Pistoff

Was it the haze that attracted me to Pistonhead Haze Lager? Was it the Galaxy dry-hopping? The Swedish brewing know-how? Nothing wrong with any of these, of course, but the fact was I had three beers I wanted in my basket and it was four for €10 at Stephen Street News. Bring on the random factor!

The haze isn't done very well. It poured clear to begin with, then hard gritty bits which had settled on the bottom of the can crumbled into the glass. It evened out somewhat by the time between pouring and drinking, but still: not good visuals.

The aroma performed little better, sickly and syrupy, with a tang of sweat too. There were three months still to go on the best-before but I think its glory days were behind it. The flavour continued the sickly theme: orange concentrate and children's medicine. Galaxy at its best offers bright juicy mandarin; this is a dark mirror image of that. Thankfully it's a lager so the nastiness doesn't hang around. I still wouldn't recommend it, though. There are much better hoppy lagers out there, even on the bargain shelves.