Another “departure” of beer giants from the Russian market. Baltika rolled out two new Holsten – Holsten Pilsener and Dunkel. In fact, they are not really new, but reanimated old varieties. Both Holsten Dunkel and Pilsener were on sale back in 2015. Back then they were only bottled. Then these beers disappeared. Now they’ve started up again. The only difference is in the pilsener. It used to be 5% alcohol, now it’s 4.5%. The trend for lighter beers is apparent!
Holsten Pilsener (Russia, Yaroslavl) – 4.5/10.4 Aroma is weak. Taste is clean (of course), malty. In the aftertaste hop more than in the usual Holsten on some percent. In essence, it is the same Eurolager. Yes, clean, minimal hops – the beer is purely to quench your thirst. It’s hard to call it a pilsner. C rating.
Holsten Dunkel (Russia, St. Petersburg) – 4.6/10.7 In 2015 I noted the bright kvass, bread note. There is no such thing now. I found a clear, but not strong, smokiness in the aroma and aftertaste. Soft caramel flavor. Overall, quite pleasant, although quite light dunkel. Rating “B-“.
