Half Acre Pony Pilsner

Brewed By: Half Acre Beer Company in Chicago, Illinois

Purchased: 16oz CAN from a 4-pack bought at Half Acre in Chicago, IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Pilsner, 5.5%
Reported IBUs: ?

You know what's awesome about having Half Acre in Chicago? It's that I get to buy their Pony Pilsner and drink a beer that is substantially better than BudMillerCoorsYuengling. Yup, I said it. About Half Acre:

The Half Acre Beer Company was founded in October 2006, which is young for craft beer in general, but great for the local Chicago scene. The founders of Half Acre started out by working with the Sand Creek Brewery in Black River Falls in Wisconsin. They eventually developed their Half Acre Lager, and began distributing and selling it in Chicago during the August of 2007. The beer was successful enough that Half Acre was able to buy out a space in the Bucktown area of Chicago. With continuing sales, Half Acre was eventually able to purchase equipment from Ska Brewing Co. and moved to their current location on Lincoln Avenue on the north side of Chicago. Half Acre has been brewing at their Chicago location since 2009, and seems to be really expanding in both amount of distribution and popularity. Check out the full story HERE, and check out their website for a low-down on all their beers and info. 

If you roll over to the Pony Pilsner Page, you can see that this beer is a take on the classic German Pilsner. This beer uses German hops to provide a "crisp awakening" for your summer needs. Clocking in at 5.8%, this is a drinkable, tasty beer.

Half Acre Pony Pilsner

This one pours a lemony-straw-yellow color, with a lively and spritzy bright white head. I kicked up two finger's worth of head, and there's some nice lacing. A thin coating of head is hanging around. 

The aroma on this is super floral, with big lemons, lemon zest, biscuit/cracker, grass, and bready/cereal malts. 

This is light, crisp, smooth, and refreshing. It has nice cutting carbonation, huge cracker/grain/cereal/biscuit, bitter lemon, floral, and earthy/UK-style hops, and a nice mineral edge. 

There's not a lot to talk about here, but for the style, this has a light mouthfeel, nice carbonation, and a wonderfully dry finish. The palate depth and complexity are good for the style, and there is really nice dryness in the back. The bitter finish is lovely too. At 5.8%, this one goes down easy and is super smooth drinking.

Rating: Divine Brew

I'm feeling a Light Divine Brew on this. This is a great American interpretation of a German Pilsner. One of the better ones...one of the ones that is readily available in the Chicago-land area. This is actually one of my favorite beers from Half Acre, and this beer pairs well with pizza, burgers, pasta, wings, and whatever else you can throw at it. It's also super cheap...and comes in awesome 16oz cans. What could you possibly hate about this beer? It does everything it's supposed to, and it does it with style.

Random Thought: People always complain about the lack of drinkable, lighter-style beers being made by American breweries. Well, here is one. Sure, this beer packs about 20 times the hop flavor as Budweiser or Yuengling, but you know what? It's not that hoppy. The main character is the biscuit/cracker malt, and it's awesome. Pair this beer with pizza and tell me you aren't in heaven. Do it.