The Great Hungarian Beer Bracket - Cheap Beer Edition

Photo by Giovanni Gonzales

Why the hell would I do this?

As you know, I am a great advocate for craft beer. I've been brewing for years and love drinking as many artisnal products as I can. I believe that if you are going to drink something that's bad for you, it should taste good. Now, it is becoming easier and easier to have discerning tastes. Nary a bar exists in the States that would dare NOT have at least some IPA on top. Long gone are the days when one would be forced to drink a Miller Lite out of lack of choice.

This said, cheap industrial lager does have its place in the world. For one, a lot of people love them. They make up roughly 90% of the worldwide beer consumption and there must be a reason for this. Even in the days of craft, there are a fair few people who think many of these “snobby” styles don't taste good at all. Not everyone likes bitter beer. Not everyone likes hops. Some see high alcohol as a ruiner of what should be a refreshing, easy-to-drink beverage. And sour beer? That's enough to make many run.

As for myself, I currently live in Budapest, earn Hungary wages, and frankly, cannot afford to drink craft beer all the time. Living in Norway with a good pay check or the USA with craft beer costing between one and two dollars, I could vow to never drink a crap-lager again. But in Hungary, things are different. Even the most ardent lovers of craft drink cheap lager.

Craft has become a real force in the city and the breweries have finally got their act together and lay down a consistent product. The sad thing is, they are all relatively small and are not able to save cost in scale. Plus, they need to purchase most ingredients from abroad at the same price point as the more affluent countries in Europe. So what you get is an expensive product in a poor country. The average craft beer costs about 3.00 euro, but most people only make less than 10 euro an hour. This makes it a price prohibitive beverage.

A typical mass-lager costs between .70 and 1.00 euro, a good third of the price of craft. Plus, many bars (due to restrictive contracts with these major breweries) don't even carry craft beers. When I choose I bar, I make sure that I only support independent bars with a good selection of local craft beers, but I don't always choose the bar.

Industrial lager usually doesn't taste bad. It tastes of basically nothing. I think that many of these beers are acceptable. I prefer a macro-lager to most spirits. Beer is good. I've jumped around a bit in my preferred brand. I've been a Dreher guy off and on. In my first stint here, I drank mostly Kozel from Czech. If I see Staropramen for a good price, I'll often grab a bottle (though it is brewed here at Borsodi brewery and pales in comparison to the real thing.) The real find is when Pilsner Urquell pops up for under 300huf.

What I wanted to find is: is there a significant difference between the typical brands of cheap lager in Hungary? Is it worth it to pay 300huf for a Pilsner Urquell when I can pay 150huf for a Rocky Cellar?

So, in recognition of March Madness, my buddy Giovanni and I devised the great Hungarian Beer Bracket. Due to lack of participants (it was just Gio and I, sadly), we limited our field to 16 beers. 32 would be much better as we could work in such popular international beers like Becks, Heineken, and Tuborg.

The Planning

I went to the store and listed all the beers that cost under 300huf. From that list, we got 18 Hungarian beers, a good handful of Germans, a few Austrian, Czech, and a Slovakian beer. A few beers got the axe because they are only masquerading as the real thing and are actually poorer quality versions brewed for the Hungarian market (why, oh, why Hofbrau and Spaten would you allow your names on these terrible beers?). We felt that some are just too international and didn't fit into the whole concept, so we took away the aforementioned Becks, Tuborg, and Heineken (even though the latter is actually brewed under contract in Hungary).

We were left with 19 beers. To pare it down to 16, we had three play-in spots. We were able to divide most of the beers into four clear categories with only two that fell outside of the concept. The first group was the Bargain Region, for beers under 200huf (Rocky Cellar, Rákoczi, Kőbányai, Arány Fácán, and Löwenbrau). Next, there was the Classic Region that features the four main Hungarian beers found in most bars, comparable to Coors, Miller, Bud in America (Dreher, Borsodi, Arany Aszok, and Soproni). Most of these brands have a special brands as well, so these formed the Specialty Region (Dreher Hideg Komlos, Arany Aszok Frissensürt, and Soproni 1895). There were two beers we could not easily find homes for, Szalon and Pécsi Premium Lager, so they faced off for the fourth seed in the Speicialty Region. Finally, we had the foreign invaders. Staropramen and Pilsner Urquell are as ubiquitous here as any of the main Hungarian brands. We filled out the Foreign Region with the common Kozel and had a play-in between the two main Austrian beers here: Ottakringer and Steffl.

To determine our seeding, we simply used their Untappd scores (Ratebeer would be extremely unhelpful as it is very lagerist and partially owned by Inbev...it's dead to me.). And so, the Great Hungarian Beer Bracket was born!

Tasting Logistics

The set up was simple. It was single elimination tournament. Two beers go head to head, we taste, rate, and pick the one we liked best. If we disagreed, then we averaged our scores to find the winner.

The beers were tasted from two identical wine glasses. On the bottom of each was a post it with a tiny “A” or “B”. After pouring, we would mix up the two glasses, play with the dog a bit, then mix it some more. For the most part, this masked the identity of the beers. Only a few had a different color.

We both did extensive tasting notes for each beer, but I won't be sharing them here. In general they were all quite low in flavor and were brewed with 100% pilsner malt (some adjuncts in a few of them) and Saaz hops.

Region 1: Bargain Region (Rocky Cellar/Rákoczi vs. Löwenbrau, Kőbányai vs. Arány Fácán)

We figured it was wise to start with the “worst” beers. Just so they could taste fine comparatively. It was a wise choice. From the start, Rocky Cellar was a clear loser. It was the worst beer I've ever tasted (actually no, Black Label and Steel Reserve are still the bottom). Rákoczi actually tasted good in comparison. However, when stacked again Löwenbrau, it was no contest. It is amazing how much comparison brings out the flavor of things. Rákoczi tasted good when compared to Rocky Cellar, but when drank with Löwenbrau, we were both compelled to spit it out. We actually disagreed between Kőbányai and Arány Fácán. However, both were absolutely terrible. Arány Fácán was hoppier and watery, but had a horrible poo-like aroma (Gio described it as vomit-smelling). Kőbányai actually had a pleasant malty aroma with some nice toast and corn. However, it was a bit sour with an unpleasant off-taste. In the end, we let Kőbányai move forward to the next round. It was no contest. Löwenbrau was easily the best beer under 200huf. We dumped the rest down the sink without hesitation.

Winner: Löwenbrau

The Classic Region (Dreher vs. Arany Aszok, Borsodi vs. Soproni)

We chose to do the classics next. These beers were all the same style as in the budget round, so the shift wouldn't be jarring. Yet, it was jarring!

Even in initial pours of Borsodi vs. Soproni, it was clear that we were jumping up in quality. Gone was the excessive DMS and booziness that characterized all of the previous round (I could not believe that 4% beers could smell boozy). Now, I'm not saying that these were good beers. The comparisson was reflected in our scores, which went up a few points from the bargain round, but they moderated quickly.

Borsodi was richer and heavier with a nice malty aroma. Soproni was light and easy-drinking, but it did have an off-taste. We had a hard time picking this one. I picked Borsodi and Gio picked Soproni. We tasted both against each other a few times (non-blind) and eventually decided to go with Borsodi. We both found Soproni to be more pleasant, but it wasn't a clean beer. Borsodi was a better product.

For Dreher vs. Arany Aszok, one of the two had a lovely, floral aroma that was so clear and lovely, I could whiff at it for a long time. It was clearly the best smelling beer we'd had at that point. The other was boring and had clear off-flavors. It was Arany Aszok.

The final battle between Borsodi and Dreher was no contest. Dreher smelled delicious and tasted delicious. Borsodi was merely drinkable.

Winner: Dreher

Specialty Region (Szalon/Pécsi Premium lager vs. Soproni 1895, Dreher Hideg Komlos vs. Arany Aszok Frissensürt)

Despite dumping the vast majority of the beer at this point, we were already feeling a bit woozy. So we took the dog to the park to clear our heads and taste buds. We returned ready to go.

Pécsi Premium Lager was exceptionally better than Szalon. However, I must say that Szalon, at 199huf, is an good budget buy. It did have some off-tastes, was a bit sour, but it was better than everything in our budget round.

For the first main taste-off, Soproni 1895 Premium took on Pécsi Premium Lager. Both beers were fine enough. It was a bit tough, as they were different style beers (Pécsi was bordering on a Vienna Lager color, whereas 1895 was just a typical light lager). In the end, we gave the win to Péci Premium. As we started tasting multiple beers from the same brewery, the yeast character became more obvious. There is something bad about the beers from Soproni. All their brands have the same not-pleasant, burnt-hair aroma and a bad edge. I was not impressed by any of their offerings.

I think it's a bit unfair for any beer that had to face Dreher Hideg Komlos. Basically, it's Dreher, but dry-hopped with Citra. It's a cheater hop. Everything it touches becomes nice and fruity and Hideg Komlos was no exception. That said, Frissensürt is a horrible beer. For a can that has a bunch of hop flowers on the label, there was barely a trace of hop aroma or flavor. It was boring garbage.

It was tough to decided between Pécsi Premium Lager and Hideg Komlos. There was no illusions of blindness. Citra is a clear stamp on any beer. I did find that compared to pleasant clean maltiness of Pécsi Premium Lager, Hideg Komlos tasted a bit off and sour. Both Gio and I gave the two beer equal scores. It really was a matter of taste. However, in the end, Hideg Komlos got our final stamp of approval.

We both agree that either beer is well worth their price. I mean, they're not world class or anything, but surely good buys if you want to drink on the cheap.

Winner: Dreher Hideg Komlos

Foreign Region (Ottakringer/Steffl vs. Staropramen, Pilsner Urquell vs. Kozel)

Gio and I were both excited for this one. Not that we didn't know which beer would win. There is a true pillar in that category. Most of the beers in this Region were true pilsners. I won't go on a tirade against the way that word gets flung around so willy-nilly, but the real thing is hard to beat.

For our Austrian play-in, Ottakringer edged out Steffl. For me, the tipping point was the high level of sulphur aroma in the Steffl, which I'm very sensitive to. That said, it still wasn't a great beer. Ottakringer was at least cleanly brewed.

Sadly for Austria, it could not hold its own against Staropramen. Now, this is a matter of taste though. These two beers are different styles. Staropramen is a Czech Pilsner and Ottakringer is a German Pilsner (or maybe a Helles...it wasn't very hoppy). Staropramen was richer, fuller and made Ottakringer come off as boring.

I feel a bit bad for Kozel. It's not a bad beer at all (despite its bit of sulphur), but it had to face Pilsner Urquell, a world-class pilsner. Everything about Pilsner Urquell was better. It had a cleaner malt profile, a richer hop flavor, and a beautiful aroma. It's truly a great beer. Even compared to Staropramen, it was a good step higher in quality.

Winner: Pilsner Urquell

The Final Four (Dreher vs. Löwenbrau, Dreher Hiden Komlos vs. Pilsner Urquell)

Did any of the budget beers have chance against the others? The simple answer is no. Löwenbrau was over it's head. Dreher is a cleanly made beer, with a nice hop aroma. Löwenbrau is the same style, just a lesser version. Plus, it wasn't completely clean. It had a yogurty fruitiness to it which I didn't like.

The citra hops in Hideg Komlos were not enough to take on the original Pilsner. Eariler, Gio and I were delighted by the wonderful brightness and refreshing quality of Hideg Komlos, but Pilsner Urquell is delicious. Hideg Komlos is merely acceptable.

For the final round, we went out and purchased fresh cans of each. Again, compassion will reveal a lot. In the earlier rounds, Dreher was lovely, floral, smooth and tasty. Now, sitting next to beer that just does everything right, it even tasted a bit bad. It wasn't a contest at all. Pilsner Urquell reins supreme.

We did a follow-up tasting to determine true second. Staropramen won out as being better than Dreher. Still, I must say that this competition showed that Dreher isn't that bad of a beer. It's not going to take over the world or anything, but it is a clear choice at most bars in Budapest.

Grand Champion: Pilsner Urquell

Take-away lessons

First off, let me say that I do not recommend doing this. It was far too much tasting. We were both exhausted, buzzed, and by the end, didn't really care much (thankfully, the winners were obvious). If you do a tasting, limit it to a maximum of 10, and even that is a stretch. 20 beers is far too many.

Neither of us were surprised by the results. If we had a done a bracket betting challenge before the tasting, it would have played out exactly how I'd predicted. There was not a single surprise here (except that the Pécsi Premim Lager is a pretty good beer). The only upset of the whole tournament (so the only one that went against the Untappd ratings) was Borsodi over Soproni, and that one was close. Also, the quality lined up with the prices as well (as in the more expensive, the better the beer).

Based on my analysis of scores to price, here are you best bargains:

Dreher, Dreher Hideg Komlos, Steffl, Löwenbrau, Szalon, Staropramen, Pilsner Urquell.

The worst buys:

Soproni 1895, Ottakringer, Frissensürt, Arany Aszok, Rocky Cellar

For me, this really shows the importance of comparison tasting. Rocky Cellar aside, if you only drank the terrible beers, you probably wouldn't find much wrong with them. Yes, these had off-flavors for sure, but they really become obvious when compared to a clean beer. I'm not saying that Arány Fácán will ever taste good, but I can understand how some people could buy it time after time. Sure, if you have a better beer, you'll know it's not good, but after a few days, most people's palates will adjust to the bad taste.

I really wish we had more people on this. I also wish, we'd had some devoted lovers of one of these brands, to see if their preference is more based on packaging and habit than taste.

Still, if you see Pilsner Urquell for under 300 (sometimes it is more), do not hesitate to buy it. It is worth those few extra forint.

All this aside, I don't plan on quitting craft beer anytime soon.