Pilsner (German)

Germany's most common style — a lighter-bodied cousin of Czech pilsner: pale, crisp, and cleanly bitter.

Profile

Paler and crisper than the Czech original, drier, more bitter-forward.

Germany's brewing identity is still shaped by the Reinheitsgebot (the 1516 Bavarian "purity law" restricting beer to water, barley, and hops — yeast wasn't yet understood and was added to the law later), though the modern law has more nuance and doesn't apply the same way to all styles or exports.