Jelen Pivo

Overcoming my initial failed attempt to purchase a bottle of Jelen Pivo, I slipped one into my shopping basket at a Voli supermarket last week and made it through the checkout. In light of the fact that I will move out of my apartment and into a new one across town tomorrow, I decided to celebrate my last day living in Stari Aerodrom by cracking the Jelen Pivo and writing this review.

Jelen Pivo is a 5% a.b.v. lager brewed in the style of a German pilsner. It is the unofficial national beer of Serbia.

In appearance, Jelen Pivo is extremely pale in color. It pours with a sizable, very white head of foam that dissipates relatively quickly. There is minimal lacing on the glass as the head shrinks down to form a film on top of the beer.

Surprisingly, and quite pleasantly, Jelen Pivo is moderately bitter in flavor. Unfortunately, beyond the bitterness that is present from the moment you take a sip through to the aftertaste there is little flavor complexity. Jelen Pivo lacks any significant hop flavor and there is hardly any maltiness, if any at all. (Jelen is less malty than Nikšićko from neighboring Montenegro.) There is a slight sweetness to Jelen Pivo, not unlike many macro-lagers. Additionally, there is a hint of lemon, but I think that this mild flavor is primarily a result of Jelen Pivo’s bitterness.

The aroma of Jelen Pivo is severely lacking. Although its mute scent of wheat is fitting for a lager of its light color and flavor, I would like a little more here.

Overall, Jelen Pivo is simple and unassuming. I could imagine Jelen Pivo to be quite refreshing on a hot summer day because it is both light and slightly crisp. Jelen Pivo is a session beer. It does not stand out in any way. One reviewer on BeerAdvocate.com described the flavor of Jelen Pivo as “honest.” I think that this is an accurate assessment, presuming that no one is touting Jelen Pivo as a craft beer (which, of course, it is not). It isn’t offensive, but also not something that I’d seek out, especially not outside of the region.

As an aside, Jelen Pivo’s lacking flavor complexity and aroma might be attributable to the process of pasteurizing. This is accomplished by heating the bottles of beer to about 180 degrees Fahrenheit to kill off any remaining yeast. The process of pasteurizing both homogenizes the beer and prevents it from potentially spoiling under certain circumstances (note: this is a distinctly un-Belgian practice).

In Podgorica, Montenegro, Jelen Pivo is available in a wide variety of containers (glass bottles, cans, and plastic bottles) and sizes (0.33 liter, 0.5 liter, 1 liter, and 2 liters) in the supermarket and on draft in a few bars.

Jelen Pivo is brewed in the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and owned by the same company that brews Nikšićko Pivo (read my review), Apatinska Pivara A.D. (a subsidiary of In-Bev).

 

Have you tried Jelen Pivo? If so, post your thoughts here!

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