Amber Lagers

Beers had been lagered over summer for centuries in Alpine caves before the emergence of factory-made examples in the late 1830s. While the best known of these new beers were blond, the first, likely predating Pilsener by five or six years, were darker, in varying degrees.

Wiener (or Vienna Lager)

Typically maltier than a blond lager, a Wiener (4.6-5.4% ABV) should be slightly toasted and with restrained bitterness. The colour ranges from ruddy amber to light brown, its reddish tints used to come from special Vienna malt, though crystal malt is now more common. The first commercially produced lager in Austria may well have come from the brewery of Anton Dreher at Schwechat, near Vienna in 1841, now part of Brau AG (Heineken). Its revival in 2014 has fuelled new interest in the style in Austria and elsewhere.