From Otherlands Beer in Bellingham Washington, this evolving recipe represents a snapshot of head brewer Ben Howe’s ongoing quest to crack the code of Franconian lager.

Crisp, dry, herbal-bitter, and clean, this is a lager you’ll want to have on tap all year long—but especially as the weather starts to warm.

Big yet simple in its construction, this is a showcase of what clean ethanol flavors can add to a beer. Apple-like alcohols meld with the hop aroma and bready grist to yield a simple yet dangerous lager that’s anything but boring.

Agostino Arioli, founder of Birrificio Italiano, provided this homebrew-scale recipe for the beer that inspired “Italian-style” pilsner—an aromatic, floral, dry-hopped pilsner in an elegant frame.

This recipe from Josh Weikert, author of the Beer: Simple blog is for a bare-bones, but crisp and flavorful, German Pils.

“This refreshingly crisp cold IPA takes inspiration from our friend and former Firestone Walker brewer Kevin Davey,” Sam Tierney says. “It can be brewed two ways: one with rice adjunct to lighten the body, or another with a lower-FAN, extra-pale German pilsner malt for similar effect.”

Here we take a simple grist, often a single hop, and a long fermentation process, and we turn it into a classically grainy, floral lager. You’ll be glad to have this one on tap.

You, too, can brew a quaffable, enjoyable, malt-forward lager beer—in relatively short order.

As a rule, the Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan doesn’t open its books to share exact recipes. However, at our request, Brewmaster Tobias Zollo generously agreed to share a recipe based on the world classic Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier.

This homebrew-scale pils recipe is based on the world-class example developed by Eric Toft, brewmaster at Private Landbrauerei Schönram in Upper Bavaria.

A darker, stronger version of Bavarian wheat beer. A crisp wheat flavor is balanced by a slight chocolate maltiness. A mild clove/banana flavor accents the spicy character of Tradition hops.

With its loyal following in Germany and cult status elsewhere, what is it about Rothaus Tannenzäpfle that resonates with so many connoisseurs as well as casual lager drinkers? We went there to find out.

This pilsner from Twin Barns Brewing in Meredith, New Hampshire, near the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee, thrilled our blind judging panel and became one of our Best 20 Beers in 2022.

Based on conversations with Rothaus head brewer and production manager Mario Allendoerfer, here is a homebrew-scale recipe inspired by the modern classic German pilsner from the Black Forest.

Ben Edmunds, head brewer for Breakside Brewery in Portland, Oregon, shared this recipe for their classic German Pilsner with an emphasis on late-kettle hops.

Maybe we can't do Oktoberfest this year, but we can still don our dirndls and drink lager. Plan ahead to have this one ready for autumn. The fresh, grassy, floral hop nose on this one is a perfect fit for the bready malts in the grist.

This recipe includes guidelines on fermenting a lager under pressure—and you can apply the same guidelines to your own favorite lager recipe.

Kevin Templin, cofounder and head brewer at Templin Family in Salt Lake City, shares this recipe for their GABF medal-winner that also became one of our Best 20 Beers in 2023.

Ready to brew the Cadillac of pale lagers? This recipe has a straightforward infusion mash but gets some extra richness from layers of Munich and Vienna malts.

Stefan Zehendner at Brauerei Zehendner shares a recipe for this strong, seasonal bock that he releases every December. As with his Maibock, the target is a full-flavored yet addictively drinkable strong lager with deep, bready malt flavor and surprising bitterness, complemented by herbal-minty Perle hop flavors.