Tag Archives: Rice Lager

Beer Styles, Lager

I’ll Have a Lager Please

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Lager is the most popular type of beer in the world. Walk into any bar in any country and the chances of Lager not being available is almost zero. This includes the United States, where Lager accounts for approximately 87% of beer sales. Almost all of the world’s best-known beers are Lagers – think Budwesier, Modelo, Heineken, Molson, and Stella Artois. A noteworthy exception is Guinness. This highly popular brew is an Ale.

The popularity of Lager in the United States can be traced back to the second half of the 19th century when large numbers of German immigrants arrived in the United States. It was these immigrants who introduced Lager to the American beer drinker. Prior to their arrival, Ales, brought here by the British, had dominated the American brewing landscape.

But what is the difference between an Ale and a Lager? Well, to start with, they are brewed using different types of yeast. Generally speaking, Lagers are brewed using ‘bottom-fermenting’ yeasts (Saccharomyces pastorianus), while Ales are brewed using ‘top-fermenting’ yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). They are also fermented at different temperatures, with Ale yeast’s fermenting between 60°F to 75°F and Lager yeasts fermenting between 45°F to 55°F. Lagers also take longer to produce. It can take 7-8 weeks to brew a Lager, compared with 2-3 weeks for an Ale. Indeed, the word “Lager” is derived from the German word lagern, which means “to store” and refers to the long cold-conditioning phase that follows primary fermentation. Not surprisingly, the final products tend to have different characteristics. Lagers are more carbonated and can be best described as crisp, smooth, and mellow. Ales, in comparison, are more robust, fruity, and aromatic. If they are IPAs, they can also be quite bitter.

In discussing Lagers and Ales, it important to distinguish between types and styles of beer. Lagers and Ales are types of beer. Think of Lagers and Ales as an umbrella, beneath which exist dozens of different styles and sub-styles. Indeed, the Brewers Association recognizes over a hundred different styles/sub-styles of beer. Examples of Ale styles include India Pale Ale, Scotch Ale, and Oatmeal Stout, while examples of Lagers include American Light Lager, Vienna Lager, and Munich-style Dunkel.

While Lager is the most popular type of beer among beer drinkers generally, this is not the case when it comes to craft beer drinkers. In the world of craft beer India Pale Ale (IPA) is king. A recent report published by the Brewers Association looked at regional variations in the popularity of different craft beer styles. It reported that sales of IPA ranged from 45% of all craft beer sold in the Midwest to 62% in the Northeast. Furthermore, the same report showed that the popularity of IPA has been growing since 2020. At some craft breweries, IPAs may account for 90% of the beer they produce.

According to Matt Westfall owner and brewer of Counter Weight Brewing Co. in Cheshire, CT, in the early days of the craft brewing movement, IPAs allowed craft breweries to really differentiate themselves from mass producers such as Anheuser-Busch. Craft Lagers were frequently “disparaged by craft beer aficionados for being too akin to mainstream beers”.

In recent years, there have been a number of stories in the media suggesting that Lagers are becoming more popular among craft beer drinkers. Jamal Robinson, Sales and Marketing Director at New England Brewing Co. in Woodbridge, CT credits this to the fact that many craft beer drinkers have palate fatigue. An over-indulgence in big, bold, hoppy, IPAs has left some craft beer drinkers seeking something more crisp, more mellow, and more sessionable (i.e., lower ABVs) beers. Jim Vorel, writing for Paste Magazine, believes that the increasing availability of craft lager “represents a desperately needed (and much appreciated) alternative to the other styles that command peak popularity at most taprooms”. According to Malika Wichner, writing for Backbar Academy, Lagers “are not only easy to drink but also retain a depth of flavor that appeals to a wide range of palates, making them ideal for both casual settings and larger social gatherings where a more approachable beer is desired.” Wichner, identifies the growing popularity of craft Lagers as one of eight beer industry trends to look out for in 2025. And it’s not just in the United States that craft Lager is gaining popularity. A similar trend has been identified in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Craft Lagers can also serve as gateway beer for people who typically drink mass produced Lagers. Justin Jacobson of Whitchcraft Beer Store in Austin, TX suggests that craft Lagers, “serve as a good launching pad into craft beer” for drinkers of mainstream beers (which are predominantly Lagers).

I was reminded of the growing popularity of craft Lagers on a recent trip to New Orleans, LA. While there I paid a visit to Brewery Saint X. As I perused their beer menu, I was struck by the number of Lagers on offer. Of the sixteen beers on their menu, six were Lagers. In addition to two different Helles Lagers, there was a Schankbier Lager, a Rice Lager, a Kellerbier Lager, and a Märzen Lager. I opted for one of the Helles Lagers (Struttin’) and a Rice Lager. While it is not uncommon to see a Helles Lager on the menu at craft breweries, Rice Lagers are somewhat rarer, but there is certainly a market for them. According to Jim Vorel, the range of Lagers that I found at Brewery Saint X is a relatively recent phenomenon. How recent? Walk into most breweries as recently as 2019 and Vorel suggests that the choice of Lagers was quite limited.

The beer menu at Brewery Saint X in New Orleans, LA

Brewery Saint X (established in 2023) is part of Neighborhood Restaurant Group (NRG), based in Alexandria, VA. NRG, is a collective of hospitality venues. Greg Engert is NRG’s Beer Director. As someone who works in the brewing industry Engert says that he is “drawn not only to the innovative spirit of brewing, but also to its history. While we’re excited to showcase a wide array of styles at Saint X, it’s the classics that we’re most interested in honoring.” And when it comes to beer, there is nothing more classic than German Lagers. Indeed, on their website, the brewery mentions they have “a particular reverence for the classics, from German and Czech-inspired lagers to British cask-style beers.”

I enjoyed a Rice Lager at Brewery Saint X

There are, of course, some disincentives to brewing Lagers. Due to the length of time it takes to brew them (6-8 weeks), they take up valuable fermentation tank space that could be used for producing Ales. Thus, brewing a Lager comes with high opportunity costs. Lagers are also more challenging to brew. When brewing an Ale, it is much easier to hide imperfections thanks to the heavy use of hops and other ingredients such as coffee, peanut butter etc. In the case of Lagers, any imperfections are easily detectable. As noted by Aaron Baker, Senior Marketing manager at Oskar Blues Brewery, Lagers are “the hardest to perfect” as there are “a lot more things that can go wrong during the brewing process.”

There are also some hurdles with respect to consumer perception that have to be overcome. Much of the impetus for the craft beer movement was its opposition to the mass producers and their homogeneous, uninspiring, Lagers. Rightly or wrongly, Lagers were associated with low-quality, bland tasting beer. And while they were more time-consuming and, in many ways, more challenging to produce, some consumers balked at the idea of paying premium price for a beer style that Anheuser-Busch were offering at half the price. While brewing craft Lagers may sound mundane to some, there is still room for pushing the envelope when it comes to experimentation and creativity. For example, Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers in Framingham. MA produce Hoponious Union, a West Coast Style Hoppy Lager, while Providence Brewing Co. of Providence, RI brew a hazy New England India Pale Lager. At the same time, some breweries go to considerable lengths to brew an authentic Lager. For example, as highlighted on the website of Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers:

“To create authentic German-style flavors, Jack’s Abby brews with traditional ingredients and techniques. The Jack’s Abby brewing team travels to Germany every year to procure German hops and malt from small family run operations in Bavaria. The brewers use old-world brewing techniques of decoction and spunding to recreate historical lagers.”

My early beer drinking days in my native Scotland were dominated by Lagers. Lagers made by breweries such as Tennant’s were ubiquitous and the beer of choice of many beer drinkers in Scotland. Today, thanks in large extent to the craft beer revolution, my palate has evolved, and I enjoy a wide variety of beer styles – Brown Ales, Hazy IPAs, Sours etc. I do still enjoy Lagers, however, especially during the warmer months of summer. So, I am pleased to see more breweries brewing more Lager.

Further Reading:

Casey, Gregory Paul. 2022. The Inspiring and Surprising History and Legacy of American Lager Beer. Master Brewers Association Technical Quarterly, Volume 57, Issue 1, Pages 9-18.

Beer Styles, International, Rice

The Rice is Right

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A few weeks ago I received an email from Lindsay Campbell, a journalist for the magazine Modern Farmer. Lindsay was writing a story about rice-based beers, specifically Japanese style lagers, that had been trending in craft breweries in recent years. From reading my blog, Lindsay knew that I have visited a lot of breweries across the United States and so she was wondering if I had sampled any rice lagers and what my opinion was of them as a style. I told Lindsay that I had never sampled any rice lagers made by an American craft brewery. I did have plenty of experience with rice lagers, thanks to four trips to Japan, plus visits to China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan. Some of the better known Japanese Rice Lagers include Asahi Super Dry, Kirin Classic Lager, and Sapporo Original Draft Beer. The best selling beer in the world is a Rice Lager – Snow Beer, brewed by China Resources Breweries Limited. And, of course, there is Bud Light which prominently displays its ingredients – hops, barley, water, and rice – on its packaging. Indeed, rice has been a part of the Budweiser recipe since 1876. Impressively, Anheuser Busch is the largest end user of rice in the United States. In 2018, Anheuser Busch purchased more than $120 million of rice; all of it from farms in the United States. Incidentally, worldwide twice as much Snow Beer as Budweiser is consumed annually. Within the United States, four regions are responsible for producing almost all the rice grown. These are:

  • Arkansas Grand Prairie
  • Mississippi Delta, (parts of Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, and Louisiana);
  • Gulf Coast (Texas and Southwest Louisiana); and
  • Sacramento Valley of California.
Snow Beer, a Rice Lager from China Resources Breweries Limited is the best selling beer in the world

Rice is a key ingredient in Bud Light

Geographic Distribution of Rice Production in the United States


A Field of Rice in Texas

On a global scale, rice is an important crop. It plays a critical role in feeding the world’s population, and is a primary staple for more than half the people living on Earth. China and India are the world’s leading rice producers, with the United States not making the top ten.

Rice Lagers are generally on the lower end of the ABV spectrum, with most coming in at around 5%. They are a highly highly drinkable, light bodied, beer with a crisp, dry, finish. The rice can also provide the beer with a slight sweetness. They are a perfect warm weather beer, that not only pairs well with Asian cuisine, but also with summer favorites such as burgers. In many respects, Rice Lagers can serve as gateway beers and are a nice introduction to craft beers for someone whose palate is used to macro-Lagers. Rice Lager also has the advantage that it is gluten free.

In the craft brewing world, rice is what is considered an adjunct. An adjunct is anything outside of the beer’s four traditional ingredients of malt, hops, water, and yeast. Rice, as an ingredient in beer, has a bad reputation among some craft beer drinkers due to its association with macro brews such as Budweiser and Bud Light. In her 2006 book Ambitious Brew, Maureen Ogle made the statement that “craft brewers treat rice almost as if it’s rat poison.” A little tongue-in-cheek perhaps, but you get the idea that rice might have a reputation problem. In a 2009 video titled “I am a Craft Brewer” several dozen craft brewers from across the county extol the virtues of craft beer and the people that make it. At one point in the video a craft brewer disparagingly notes that corporate breweries put rice in their beer. This is followed a few seconds later by anothet craft brewer proudly stating that “I don’t put rice in my beer”.

For some years now, however, some craft breweries have been putting rice in their beer – it has not been every brewery and those that do are doing so very selectively. So we see headlines like Craft Brewers Rethink Rice in Beer and The Rice Renaissance. Breweries that are utilizing rice as an ingredient in their beer appear to be in places that were at the forefront of the craft beer revolution back in the 1980s – places in states such as California, Colorado, and Washington. Could it be that the initial innovators are still leading innovation today? Fieldwork Brewing in Berkeley, CA brew a Citra Rice Lager that they have named Sushi Beer. Bottle Logic Brewing in Anaheim, CA brew a Japanese Rice Lager called Hanamachi. And it’s not all Rice Lagers that craft breweries are producing. As far back as 2007, Great Divide Brewing Co. in Denver, CO released Samurai, an unfiltered rice and barley ale. Great Divide is still brewing Samurai today, and includes it in its year-round portfolio of beers. Some breweries are using locally grown rice to produce their rice beer. Crying Eagle Brewing Company in Lake Charles, LA used Louisiana-grown rice in its Louisiana Lager.

Samurai Rice Ale from Great Divide Brewing Co., in Denver, CO

Hanamachi is a Japanese Rice Lager Brewed by Bottle Logic Brewing in Anaheim, CA

Crying Eagle Brewing Company use Louisiana-grown rice in its Louisiana Lager

The piece that I was interviewed for in The Modern Farmer was titled The Rice Renaissance. It is a title that suggests that rice is making something of a comeback in American brewing. On the one hand, you could argue that it has never really fell out of favor with American brewers. Rice has been a key ingredient in the Budweiser recipe since 1876. However, the article is really about the use of rice in craft brewing. Despite the negative reputation surrounding rice as an ingredient in beer, there are some craft brewers who are experimenting with it. This should come as no surprise. Craft brewers are highly creative and, one might argue, sufficiently secure in their own skin to utilize an ingredient that others might shun. The website Beeradvocate.com lists only 245 distinct entries in the category “Lager – Japanese Rice” – not a large number. Many, not surprisingly, are brewed by Japanese breweries. So, “renaissance” is perhaps too strong a word, but if you see a rice beer on the menu at a brewery be sure to check it out.