Lager has long had a reputation as beer’s simplest, safest choice—a pale, cold, plain backdrop for ballgames and beach days. But the best modern examples show how versatile the style has become. Today’s lager brewers experiment with smoke, coffee, enzymes, calorie counts, and dark malts while still keeping the clean, crisp foundation that defines the category. These outstanding lagers from the 2025 Beverage Testing Institute World Beer Championships show how much lager can innovate without losing its refreshing core.
Damm Brewery Daura Damm “Gluten-Removed” Lager, 5.4% ABV
Daura is brewed by S.A. Damm in Barcelona and launched in 2006 as one of the first widely distributed beers “crafted to remove gluten.” It’s a pale lager designed to taste like a traditional European lager rather than a typical sorghum-based gluten-free beer.
It’s brewed using regular barley malt, and during fermentation, enzymes break down gluten proteins into smaller fragments, a process called enzymatic hydrolysis, which reduces gluten to under approximately 20 ppm. Since barley is still used, it’s labeled as “crafted to remove gluten” rather than “gluten free” to comply with U.S. regulations.
The beer is a golden, sparkling lager with a creamy, lasting head. It offers aromas of fresh grains and crackers, subtle floral spices, hints of herbal hops, and a touch of sweetness.
It’s light to medium-bodied on the palate, with lively carbonation, showcasing malt flavors of white bread and biscuit, along with a subtle rice-like sweetness and a crisp, slightly tangy edge. The bitterness is modest but firm enough to balance the residual sweetness.
The finish ranges from dry to off-dry, with a subtle lingering bitterness, a light herbal hop note, and a faint grain sweetness.
Cape May Brewing Co. Cape May Light, 4.2% ABV
Cape May Light is a year-round American light lager brewed by Cape May Brewing in New Jersey. It’s crafted as a 99-calorie, three-gram-carb beach-and-BBQ beer that still tastes like “real” lager. It has an IBU of 20.
It’s made as a craft light lager with very low calories and carbs, but brewed using traditional ingredients and fermented as a genuine lager instead of relying on flavoring or heavy dilution.
The beer has a pale golden hue, highlighting grainy malt flavors reminiscent of crackers and light toast, complemented by subtle herbal and grassy hop notes, and a mild savory or vegetable edge. The BevTest tasting notes mention hints of asparagus frittata, cheese rind, and arugula.
It’s light-bodied, highly carbonated, and very crisp on the palate, presenting flavors of pale malt, corn chips, and herb muffin with a hint of lemon or grassy hop character.
The finish is dry, brisk, and refreshing, with a light grain note and a whisper of herbal bitterness.
Chang Espresso Lager, 4.8% ABV
Chang Espresso is a coffee-infused lager from ThaiBev/Cosmos Brewery in Thailand, positioned as a premium, modern addition to the classic Chang brand. It has received international awards in flavored and coffee-beer categories.
The beer is made from a pale lager base brewed with malt, water, and hops, then infused with a blend of Arabica and Robusta coffee beans sourced sustainably from Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam.
The coffee is added to contribute a strong espresso flavor with minimal hop bitterness; the profile is mostly shaped by roasted coffee and specialty grains.
The beer has a deep copper color and a strong coffee aroma with notes of fresh espresso, mocha, toasted rice cake, dark buttered toast, cured meats, a hint of cocoa, and vanilla.
It’s medium-bodied on the palate, with fine, lively carbonation, showcasing flavors of espresso, chocolate, rice cake, mocha gelato, toasted grain, and a subtle savory/meaty edge from the roasted malts and coffee. Any bitterness from hops is essentially absent; the perceived bitterness is all roast-driven.
The finish is medium-long, smooth, and slightly dry, with lingering flavors of cold-brew coffee, cocoa powder, and a mild roasted-rice sweetness.
Damm Brewery Voll-Damm Doppel-Malta Märzen, 7.2% ABV
Voll-Damm is a strong Märzen-style lager produced by S.A. Damm in Barcelona. It mimics a German “Vollbier” but with a higher original gravity (17°P) and 7.2% ABV, making it richer and more robust than typical festbiers.
“Doble Malta” (Double Malt) refers to a heavier grain bill and higher extract; this is effectively a double-strength Märzen with 34 IBU and a dark copper color, positioned between classic Märzen and strong lager.
The beer has a thick white head and a clear copper body, displaying aromas of white-bread crust, toasted malt, caramel, and honey, with a hint of herbal hops.
It’s medium-to-full bodied on the palate, with a smooth, malty richness that highlights flavors of honey-glazed bread, toast, biscuit, and toffee, balanced by a moderate hop bitterness that keeps the sweetness in check. The alcohol is warming but well integrated.
The finish is long and crisp, with lingering notes of honey, bread crust, and subtle herbal hop bitterness.
Wallenpaupack Brewing Co. For the Love of Lager – Rauch Doppelbock, 7.7% ABV
Wallenpaupack Brewing in Hawley, Pennsylvania, hosts a “For the Love of Lager” series that explores classic and regional lager styles. The Rauch Doppelbock is a limited-release smoked doppelbock with 25 IBU.
The beer is decoction-mashed and naturally carbonated. In a decoction mash, instead of simply heating the entire mash or adding hot water to increase temperatures, the brewer pulls a thick portion of the mash, mostly grain with some liquid, from the main mash tun and boils that portion in a separate vessel for a set time (often 10–30 minutes, sometimes longer). The boiled portion is then returned to the main mash, raising the overall temperature for the next rest.
Historically, the process was repeated one to three times, with the latter being the traditional method for some classic German and Czech lagers. The process enhances bread crust aromas and flavors, giving the beer subtle caramel and nutty notes.
The grist includes 28% cherrywood-smoked Munich malt, 11% oak-smoked wheat malt, and 8% beechwood-smoked malt, creating complex layers of smoke from various wood sources.
The beer has a sweet, savory aroma with dense beechwood smoke, smoked plums, olives, dark cherry, and rich bready Munich malt—along with a hint of caramel, cocoa, and subtle herbal hops beneath.
It’s full-bodied and rich on the palate, highlighting flavors of dark bread, toasted crust, and caramel with a smooth, low-to-moderate bitterness. The smoke is assertive yet rounded, evoking smoked plum, charred wood, and subtle cured meat, and is well integrated into the malt.
The finish is long and warming, with lingering notes of cold smoke, dark fruit, crusty bread, a subtle residual sweetness, and a hint of bitterness.
Chang Classic Beer, 5% ABV
Chang Classic is ThaiBev’s flagship international lager, designed for hot weather and broad appeal. It’s a pale lager brewed with malt, rice, hops, water, and selected yeast.
Like many Asian macro lagers, it uses rice along with barley malt, resulting in a light body and clean profile suited for hot climates.
The beer has a clear pale-gold color with a modest white head, releasing aromas of toasted malt, light floral hops, and subtle grain sweetness. It’s light to medium in body and sweet on the palate, with notes of white bread, light honey, and a hint of citrus tang. Rice adds a neutral, easy-drinking quality. The bitterness is low.
The finish is short, clean, and mildly sweet, with a subtle floral hop note and a drying sensation.
Damm Brewery Keler 18 Pale Lager, ~5% ABV
Keler 18 is a pale lager from Damm, originally linked to the Basque region. It is marketed as a slightly richer, more flavorful Euro-lager. It follows the traditional pale lager process but is brewed to have a fuller taste and be a bit stronger than typical “standard” lagers.
The beer has a light gold color, with aromas of caramel cream, clover, hay, fresh herbs, and cucumber, indicating a blend of sweet malt and subtle herbal hops.
It’s medium-bodied, lively, and effervescent on the palate, highlighting a sweet, malty core with flavors of biscuit and brioche, a hint of butterscotch, and subtle herbal hop notes.
The finish is medium length with lingering notes of brioche, honey, and a subtle pine-tar/herbal hint.
Harbor Brewing Oktoberfest (Märzen Lager), 5.8% ABV
Harbor Brewing Company, founded in 2018 in Illinois, produces an annual Oktoberfest Märzen that has become a seasonal favorite in their taproom and lakefront biergarten. According to Untapped, it’s listed at 30 IBU.
It’s brewed as a fest-style Märzen with a grist of Munich and Vienna malts and noble hops—straightforward, but clearly focused on drinkability rather than extra strength or heavy caramelization.
It’s deep gold to light amber, showcasing toasty Munich and Vienna malt flavors of crusty bread, caramel, and biscuit, supported by herbal, spicy noble hops.
It’s medium-bodied, with smooth carbonation on the palate, highlighting toasted bread, caramel, and biscuit flavors, complemented by a gentle sweetness balanced with moderate hop bitterness.
The finish is clean, crisp, and malty, with lingering notes of rustic bread toast and a smooth, spicy-herbal hop element.
Toppling Goliath TG Pils Bavarian Style Pilsner, ~5.5% ABV
TG Pils is Toppling Goliath’s Bavarian-style German pilsner, brewed with simplicity and true to old-world traditions. It has around 5.5–5.6% ABV and approximately 30 IBU.
According to the brewery, the beer highlights Hallertau Mittelfrüh as its signature hop, imparting a classic German hop character with floral, fruity, and slightly herbal notes. The basic lager grain bill and process emphasize clean fermentation and noble hops rather than adjuncts or specialty grains.
The beer is a brilliant straw-gold color with dense “egg-white” foam, featuring aromas of fresh crackery pils malt, floral and lightly fruity Hallertau hop notes of wildflowers, herbal tea, subtle lemon, and a touch of spice.
It’s medium-light bodied, with high carbonation and a pristine palate, showcasing aromas of crisp cracker and bread-dough malt, bright floral and herbal hop flavors, and a snappy but balanced bitterness that feels distinctly German in style.
The finish is long, dry, refreshing, and bitter, with lingering floral and herbal hop notes and a very clean malt echo.
Burleigh Brewing Co. Japan Black – Black Lager, 4.4–5% ABV
Burleigh Brewing is a brewery on the Gold Coast, Queensland, known for its strong lager lineup. Japan Black is their Japanese-inspired black lager, brewed as a “dark that’s light on its feet,” marketed as a refreshing everyday dark beer. It usually has an ABV around 4.4–5% and has won gold at the World Beer Championships.
The beer is crafted as a light-bodied, low-gravity black lager, combining roasted malt flavor with high drinkability: almost a “session schwarzbier” inspired by Japanese dark lagers.
It has a walnut-to-amber-black color with ruby highlights, featuring aromas of rye bread, medium roast coffee, cocoa, and molasses, along with hints of toasted nuts and a subtle smokiness, yet remains bright and clean.
It’s medium-bodied but very smooth and effervescent on the palate, highlighting flavors of cocoa, coffee, dark rye bread, and light molasses over a crisp lager foundation. There’s a hint of umami/teriyaki and roasted nuts, but it lacks the heavy thickness of a stout.
The finish is medium length, somewhat dry, and very drinkable, with lingering notes of dark chocolate, heavily toasted English muffin, mole-spiced nuts, and a subtle smoky flavor.
Taken together, these beers make a simple point: “lager” is no longer shorthand for bland. Enzymes quietly strip gluten while leaving classic flavor intact; carefully chosen smoked malts turn a doppelbock into a campfire-scented sipper; coffee infusions transform a pale lager into a mocha-leaning hybrid; and dark lagers prove you can have roasted depth without stout-like heaviness. Even the lightest offerings here manage to cut calories without sacrificing character.
For drinkers, this invites a rethink of lager—not as a default choice, but as a canvas that can hold everything from beach-drinking ease to thoughtful, slow-sipping richness. For brewers, it’s a reminder that innovation doesn’t mean abandoning tradition; it simply means exploring the limits of what a crisp, well-crafted lager beer can be.