Best Polish Beer [2024 Review]

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With numerous breweries in Poland, it can be confusing to identify a brewery that manufactures the best polish beer. The best Polish beer should be mildly bitter with a moderate sweetness. In this review, I will look at some of the best Polish beers in the market.

My Top Polish Beer Reviews

Many beers in Poland are very strong, and some even come with an extra-strong label. Therefore, you should always do your homework and check the alcohol volume to find the right Polish beer for you since some of them come with high alcohol volumes.

Best Overall Polish Beer: Tyskie Polish Beer

Tyskie Polish Lager, 500ml

If you are one of the people who love drinking chilled beer during hot sunny days, then the Tyskie Polish Beer is one of the beers that improve in taste when refrigerated. Although this beer comes with 5.6% alcohol volume, it will still satisfy you like the Zubr Polish beer, which has a 6% alcohol volume.

The ingredients in this beer are safe for all people, including vegetarians, so you don’t have to worry when using it at parties. The bottle has impressive graphics, and its shape enhances the arrangement when stored in a refrigerator.

This beer comes packaged in 500ml cans, and you will have no problems carrying two or three cans when traveling. However, the main package is a bit bulky and less impressive to carry and store.

Like the Lech Premium Lager, this beer should not be left under direct sunlight, which means it’s not the best option for camping trips.

Pros

  • It comes packaged in 500ml cans, which facilitates carrying.
  • This beer is suitable even for vegetarians, making it ideal to use at parties and holidays.
  • Unlike the Zubr Polish Lage, this beer tastes great when served cold.

Cons

  • This beer needs to be stored away from direct sunlight, making it inconvenient for outdoor activities.
  • The alcohol volume in this beer cannot match the Zubr Polish Lager.

Best Polish Beer for the Money: Zubr Polish Lager

The Zubr Polish Lager is one of the beers that come with the taste of caramel. The ingredients give it a great taste and make it smooth on the tongue.

Unlike the Tyskie Polish Beer, this beer comes with a 6% alcohol volume, ensuring that you can’t get nasty hangovers unless you drink excessively.

This beer’s rounded and strong taste is suitable for all palates. Like the Tyskie Polish Beer, this beer comes packaged in a 500ml can, allowing you to refrigerate it easily and also to carry it in the car doors.

The beer can have a compact form factor with graphics printed, appealing and impressive to store in fridges with glass doors. Although the dimensions look impressive to handle, the weight of the whole package is less impressive when carrying.

Pros 

  • It has the highest alcohol volume on my list, making it the strongest beer on my list.
  • The build quality of the cans and ensures safety when carrying in car doors.

Cons

  • Unlike the Lech Premium Lager, some people might not like the caramel flavor.
  • It is not the best option to serve when chilled.

Best Cheap Polish Beer: Lech Premium Lager

Although the Lech Premium Lager has a 5.2% alcohol volume which is the lowest, it is still satisfying and refreshing. It comes packaged in 500ml cans to facilitate handling and refrigeration like the others on my list.

It doesn’t have any aftertaste, so you don’t have to worry about whether to take it before or after a meal. It features a moderate sweetness contrasted by a mild bitterness, which helps it offer a crisp and clean taste.

Unfortunately, the package is a bit bulky and inconvenient to carry after buying. However, it’s lighter than the Tyskie Polish Beer, making it a better option to carry when you’re going on trips. 

However, the optimum serving temperature for this beer is around 37 to 41 degrees Fahrenheit, which might not be the best scenario during hot, sunny days in outdoor picnics.

Pros

  • This beer doesn’t have an aftertaste, and you don’t have to worry about the time you are taking it.
  • It has the most lightweight package on my list, making it preferable for carrying when traveling.

Cons

  • This beer has the least alcohol volume on my list, making it the weakest on my list.
  • The package is bulky, making it inconvenient for you when storing.

Features to Consider in the Best Polish Beer

Polish beers from different breweries come with varying tastes, packaging, and alcohol volume. Here are some features you should consider when choosing a Polish beer.

In addition, the table below breaks down some of these features for easier digestion.

ProductAlcohol VolumePackage Dimensions (cm)Package Weight (Kg)
Zubr Polish Lager612 x 12 x 1212.52
Tyskie Polish Beer5.641 x 27 x 17.412.65
Lech Premium Lager5.241.9 x 27 x 17.112.61

Alcohol Content

One of the most important features you should consider in any Polish beer is the percentage of alcohol volume in the beer. In most cases, the original gravity and the final gravity are indicated on the beer label.

Two cold mugs of beer

These are the readings used to measure the alcohol by volume of a beer. The breweries carry out the alcohol by volume during and after the fermentation of the beer. Alcohol by weight is also another method to measure the alcohol content in a beer.

The percentage volume of alcohol in a beer directly affects the beer’s flavor. Keeping in mind that beers are designed to be swigged, not sipped, the alcohol volume in a polish beer is balanced to obtain a high-quality beer. That is why some tasty and high-quality Polish beers, such as the Lech Premium Lager, have lower alcohol by volume.

Appearance

Although different beer brands vary in color from light to dark, breweries use beer color analysis to determine the quality and standard of the beer. That means that you can use the color of the beer to determine the taste and texture of beer. In most cases, breweries use spectrophotometric technology to determine the quality and consistency of their beers.

Some other factors, such as specialty ingredients, can affect the color of your beer. For instance, fruit additions or syrup additions such as cranberries can change the visual and flavor of your beer, making it blood-red. The use of hops makes the color of the beer lighter as they leave polyphenols and acids during the fermentation process.

Overflowing beer on a mug

Also, if the pH level is acidic, the beer becomes paler. On the other hand, a brownish beer such as the Zubr Polish Lager means the beer has been boiled for longer. Checking the color of the polish beer will help to prepare your expectations when a beer is served to you at a party. In most cases, you find beers with caramel and toffee flavor having an amber or copper color. 

On the other hand, you might find beers with the bread, toast, or biscuit-like flavor having a lighter color. If you are still unsure of the quality of the beer, try swirling it in a glass. If there are foam trails on your glass or bottle, then the beer is high quality.

Aroma 

Remember, you will need a pleasant aroma when having your beer. Even before tasting the beer, the aroma can reveal the quality of the beer. For instance, the pleasant aroma of the Lech Premium Lager can tell you it has been brewed using high-quality ingredients. If you smell something different from what you expect, the beer might have expired or is of poor quality.

Taste

Although different Polish beers come with varying tastes, you should not have an awful aftertaste after drinking beer. For instance, the Lech Premium Lager has no aftertaste, and you can even have it with a burger or chicken.

Whether the taste is sweet or bitter, if it doesn’t remain consistent throughout the beer, it might be indicating something wrong with the beer.

A good beer should not have some flavors overpowering others, leading to dissatisfaction. This imbalance in flavors is also the main cause of prolonged aftertaste after having a beer.

A polish beer on a sand

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is Polish Beer Brewed Of?

The common ingredients in Polish beers are cereal grains such as rice, corn, barley, pure water, hops, and brewer’s yeast. Any of these ingredients can affect the color, alcohol content, carbonation, and flavor.

Do Polish Beers Have Any Health Benefits?

Drinking Polish beer and other alcoholic beverages might minimize the risk of heart disease. However, this applies if you are already healthy and you drink the beer moderately, like one or two bottles per day.

Some of the heart diseases that beer reduces risk include heart attack, atherosclerosis, and coronary heart disease.

Do Polish Beers Have an Expiry Date?

Yes, Polish beers come with an expiry date, and you should check them on the label. For instance, the Lech Premium Lager expires after 17 days. However, an expired beer isn’t toxic but only tastes unpleasant or just flat.

Conclusion

Are you confused about which Polish beer to go for? Consider the right taste, alcohol volume, and storage convenience. Although the best Polish beer will depend on your taste and preference, the above beers will meet your expectations, and you can’t go wrong with any of them.