Style Sheet for... American Style Amber Lager
Greetings,
This style of beer has the same root as what is now called Märzen, or Oktoberfest style beer. It is a style developed in Vienna, Austria. In 1841 the Viennese brewer Anton Dreher introduced a new beer with a reddish, coppery color and a juicy malt character. The popular acceptance of this new beer made a great impression on brewmaster Gabriel Sedlmayr at the Spaten brewery in Munich. He was soon brewing his version of that beer and calling it Marzen ("March beer").
Today, Anton Dreher's style of beer is no longer brewed in Vienna, while Sedlmayr's beer continues being brewed as "Oktoberfest" beer.
American brewers, both large and small, brew variations of the "Vienna" style, with enough variation to claim a distinctive style of their own. What makes the American version unique is lighter body, less hop flavor. The color of the beers comes from the use of darker Crystal malts, Vienna malts, Munich malls, and occasionally darker malls such as British Amber, Chocolate, and Black malt. The Coors Brewing Company markets George Killian's Irish Red, that is neither Irish nor red.
Many smaller breweries produce amber lagers still loosely based on the Vienna style but have largely reduced the style to a copper colored, caramel flavored than paler beer with a pronounced citrus American hop character.
The Association of Brewers' 2004 Beer Style Guidelines state that, "This is a broad category in which the hop bitterness, flavor, and aroma may be accentuated or may only be present at relatively low levels, yet noticeable." Typical alcohol content is 4.8-5.4% by volume.Cheers!
Peter LaFrance
( peter.lafrance@beerbasics.com )
The above is one of my entries to The Oxford University Companion to American Food & Drink:
