Flensburger Gold is a golden lager brewed by Flensburger Brauerei, a family owned brewery in Flensburg, in the far north of Germany near the Danish border. Weighing in at around 4.8% ABV, it is brewed in the Dortmunder Export style, a lager tradition that sits between a pilsner and a classic export beer, and is one of the range of "Flens" beers the brewery has produced since the nineteenth century. Flensburger Brauerei was founded in 1888 and is known as Germany's most northerly brewery to still use swing-top bottles, sealed with the distinctive "Plopp" closure that has become part of the brand's identity. Based on the Flensburg Fjord, close to the Danish border, the brewery has grown into a well established regional institution, producing a range of beers that includes a pilsner, a dark beer, seasonal bocks, alcohol-free versions and the Gold style featured here. All Flensburger beers are brewed according to the German Reinheitsgebot, or beer purity law, which restricts ingredients to water, malt, hops and yeast. As a Dortmunder Export style lager, Flensburger Gold is brewed using a process similar to that used for pilsner, but aims for a slightly fuller, maltier character with a touch more residual sweetness. It pours a clear golden colour with a good, persistent head, and the flavour is generally described as rich for the style yet still mild and easy drinking, with a light hop bitterness rounding off the finish rather than dominating it. At 4.8% ABV, it sits at a fairly standard strength for a German lager, making it suited to relaxed drinking rather than a heavily hopped, bitter style. Serve Flensburger Gold well chilled in a tall glass to show off its golden colour and head retention. Its balanced, malt-forward character makes it a good match for classic German food such as pretzels, bratwurst and other grilled sausages, as well as roast pork or a simple ploughman's style plate of bread, cheese and cold cuts. Its mild bitterness also makes it an approachable choice for those new to German export lagers. Flensburger Gold offers a genuine taste of northern German brewing tradition, produced by a brewery that has kept its distinctive swing-top bottling and purity law brewing methods since 1888. For drinkers looking for an alternative to standard pilsner styles, it provides a slightly richer, maltier take on the German golden lager category.
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