Nothing is ever straightforward, it seems. While craft lagers continue their slow but steady rise, it doesn't necessarily mean everyone wants something too, well, crafty. I've had many a conversation with brewers over the years about whether to call their lager a pilsner, even if it is a pilsner, as they fear it could put people off; sometimes, they'll wonder whether even "lager" is too much and plump for "draught", no matter that the beer is in cans too.
A few years ago, Balter dropped Pilsner – a favourite within the Crafty team – from their core range to be replaced with the much more mainstream-suited Lager, and here, a few years on, Wayward are doing the same. Out goes their Pilsner – winner of a gold at the 2022 Australian International Beer Awards – and in comes Everyday Lager, a companion piece to the Everyday Ale they debuted in 2018.
It's a beer that tells you everything you need to know in its two words too. It pours the most lagery of golden colours, crowned with a splendidly tight foam from which softly sweet cereals meld with fruity esters that flit between stonefruit, something almost banana-esque, and a little citrus curd. It’s more sweet than bitter, with the impact of the Vic Secret hops kept minimal, and more mainstream Aussie that earnestly crafty. Just as it says on the tin (which also still states it's an Aussie pilsner – see first paragraph!).
James Smith
Published August 30, 2022 2022-08-30 00:00:00
