Smith & Lentz German Pils – one of the best in the country, if not the world!
Smith & Lentz is a neighborhood brewery and pizza joint in Nashville, Tennessee. They use mostly local produce for their food and won “best pizza in Nashville” back in 2022…oh, and they even make their own ice cream!
This is the first time Smith & Lentz has been on Belt’s Beer Garden in almost six years. Their lone previous appearance was back on December 7th, 2018…when I still wrote two reviews per week. A lot has changed since then.
Today I have their German Pils, which is exactly what it sounds like…a German-style Pilsner. It has a 4.8% ABV and was generously hopped throughout the boil to give it some crispiness. A pack of four 16-ounce cans is $14. It is ranked the 161st best German Pilsner in the WORLD on BeerAdvocate and Craft Beer and Brewing gave it an 89/100, so I am excited to try this one.
It poured a slightly muddled golden straw color with about a finger of eggshell white head topping it off. The foam lingered for a moment before fizzling down to a thin ring around the edge of the glass.
The aroma was bready and slightly hoppy but also quite light and muted. There wasn’t too much to the scent but the grist did offer up biscuity notes while the hops added some light citrus qualities and a bit of peppery spice.
It begins with a fizzle of carbonation that lingers for maybe half the sip…just humming underneath. Immediately there is a burst of citrus on the tongue, with a massive pop of lemon and grapefruit rind.
The breadiness and grains are almost completely hidden in the taste, allowing for those bright hoppy notes to shine, without it being bitter at all. The lemony crispiness continues for nearly the entire sip, with the grapefruit seeming to fade more and more with each additional swig.
Around the midway point there is a slight spice, as some black pepper notes are picked up from the hops. But it is very mild and limited, as that bright citrus quality carries the beer from start to finish.
On the backend, the beer finished a tad dry, with some sticky grapefruit peel resin lingering. But, outside of that, it’s super light and crushable. Maybe too crushable. I could kill a six pack of these guys in an hour.
This Pils is perfect for summer (too bad I discovered this beer in late November). It’s a great beer for the outdoors that would be amazing while on the water or tailgating or at any sporting event. If you like lighter brews, this is a must try.
