Since opening in 2012 in Hood River, Oregon, pFriem Family Brewers has become one of the country’s most decorated breweries, led by cofounder and brewmaster Josh Pfriem’s detail-driven attention to quality and character. Here, Pfriem reminisces on a mix of beers that inspired him early in his career and continue to inspire today. For him, the markers were: “Do I still think about these beers? Are they beers that hold up and still inspire me? And do I dream about drinking them?”
Schönramer Pils
(Schönram, Upper Bavaria, Germany)
This is the one beer I probably think about the most, and it’s been a very impactful beer for me. It was my first experience in Germany, about eight years ago, on a three-week family trip. Eric [Toft] and I had met at CBC weeks prior, and we really connected on this visit. We went on multiple tours of the brewery—Eric is infamous for having multiple-day tours because there’s so much going on with that brewery. Somehow, magically, everywhere along the tour, there was a little beer fridge full of Schönramer Pils. Over the course of the tour we probably drank six-plus beers, heavy on the pils side. Inevitably we would find our way back to this little employee tasting room/hangout area—they call it the Bermuda Triangle because once you get in, you can never get out. And then you take a break [by] drinking the helles. If I had more space in this six-pack, I’d include Schönramer Hell—it’s the best helles I’ve ever had.
I love it that Eric is American, German-trained, but tinkers like a Belgian brewer, which resonates a ton with me and our style of brewing. Every little thought process and the amount of work that he has put into that brewery, it shows up in the beer. There’s a reason the Pils has won so many awards. It’s so crisp, just bitter enough, more bitter than pFriem Pilsner. It pushes the palate and has such a beautiful hop bouquet. The malt is working, the acid is perfect. The way he is in touch with all his malt and hop purveyors, the amount of raw-material blending he does, the open fermentation—you could look at it as a lot of smoke and mirrors, but man, it just shows up in the beer. I often dream of their Pils and can’t wait until I get an opportunity to try it again.