Light and refreshing with a crisp finish, Pabst Blue Ribbon is an American adjunct lager with very low levels of malt and bitterness.
The beer’s light citrus characteristics, intense carbonation, and sweet aftertaste pair perfectly with salty bar snacks and fried foods, while its light body makes it very drinkable and almost universally popular.
Pabst Blue Ribbon is considered an American adjunct lager, a style of lager brewed with rice or corn in addition to barley.
Pabst’s recipe features corn, which produces the same starchy sweetness you find in corn syrup and popcorn. You can also expect a faint acidity from the lager’s high levels of carbonation.
Though extremely faint, an American adjunct lager typically has a low to medium-low maltiness enhanced by its sweet corn-like aroma. You can also expect a light citrusy scent on the nose.
– Color – Very pale straw to pale gold (2-4 SRM). – Opacity – Crystal clear, with no chill haze. – Head – Frothy, sparkly white head with low retention. – Lacing – Low lacing due to low alcohol content and poor head retention.
Like most lagers, Pabst Blue Ribbon will have a light, clean, and crisp mouthfeel. Though this American adjunct lager will have slightly more body thanks to the corn used during brewing the very high levels of carbonation balance out the added sweetness with added acidity and effervescence.
For the best experience, enjoy your Pabst Blue Ribbon cold, in a pilsner or pint glass on draft or from a can.
The ideal temperature to serve American lagers is about 38-40°F. While some flavorful beers are enhanced at warmer temperatures, lagers excel as cold, thirst-quenching beverages.
As with most beers, the best serving container will usually be a can or keg. Both of these serving containers are hermetically sealed and let in no air or light that might damage the beer.
Pabst Blue Ribbon is a great beer to pair with classic bar fare; the neutral, slightly sweet taste and crisp, effervescent finish is the perfect choice when eating anything salty, fried, or spicy.
Like all beers, there is always a time and place for a cold glass of PBR as long as you enjoy beers in the style of American adjunct lagers.