GORDON BIERSCH'S SOOPRIZE PACKAGE

Doesn't really matter where I drink 'em - the brewpub, a barbeque, on tap, in a bottle or at the ballgame - I really enjoy GORDON BIERSCH beers. Even the pilsner. You might have noticed I'm not really a lager kind a guy - no matter. Gordon Biersch, no matter how much their corporate tentacles spread across the country and soon the globe, just plain make good beer. Take the MARZEN, for instance. Why I just did the other day, as I watched my San Francisco Giants and Barry Zito get pounded during an afternoon scorcher. This beer is a malt-lover's deight. Beautiful red amber with zero head at all, the Marzen is refreshing and delicious. It's smooth, clear and caramel-tasting, with a medium body and just an overall feeling of being untainted by anything but good ingredients. That's pretty amazing for a brewer churning out as many barrels as these guys are, and yet I like 'em as much as I did when I first encountered their beers in the very early 90s. I keep thinking they're gonna suck, and they never do. 8/10.