Off Color Crispy Beer For Pizza 6Pk

Off Color Crispy Beer For Pizza 6Pk is a 5% ABV Italian-style pilsner from Chicago's Off Color Brewing, sold in a six-pack of 12 oz cans. Scoring 88 on BeerAdvocate, this sessionable lager stands apart through its use of a hopback — a post-boil hop addition technique that draws out delicate aromatics rarely found in the style.

Quick Facts: ABV: 5%  |  Origin: Chicago, Illinois  |  Style: Italian Pilsner  |  IBU: 35  |  Brewery: Off Color Brewing

Production & Heritage

Off Color Brewing, founded in 2013 in Chicago by former Goose Island brewers John Laffler and Dave Bleitner, has built a reputation on unconventional interpretations of classic beer styles. Crispy Beer For Pizza uses a restrained grain bill of just two malts — pilsner and Munich — paired with German Select hop pellets and Chinook whole hop cones. The defining production step is hopbacking with the Chinook whole cones, a technique where hops are added after the boil but before fermentation, extracting finer aromatic oils without adding harsh bitterness. The result is a cleaner, more nuanced hop character than standard dry-hopping or kettle additions would provide.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Fresh bread crust and sweet pale malt lead into brighter notes of lemon zest and citrus. Underneath, subtle herbaceous qualities — thyme-like and gently piney — emerge from the hopback process.

Taste: The entry is clean and malt-forward, with light caramel sweetness from the Munich malt giving way to crisp cereal grain at mid-palate. Lemon and mild grassy bitterness build gradually, kept in check by the beer's 35 IBU restraint. The overall impression is balanced and dry, with enough malt backbone to stand alongside food without competing.

Finish: Dry and snappy, with lingering lemon zest and a faint whisper of pine. The finish clears quickly, encouraging another sip — exactly the kind of drinkability an Italian pilsner demands.

How to Drink Crispy Beer For Pizza

Serve cold, between 38–45°F, straight from the can or poured into a pilsner glass to release the hopback aromatics. This beer was literally designed around pizza — the dry, crisp body and moderate bitterness cut through cheese and tomato sauce with precision. A Radler made with fresh lemon juice leans into the citrus character for warm-weather drinking. A Beergarita (beer, lime, and a salted rim) plays well against the herbal hop notes. A Shandy with ginger ale amplifies the bread-crust sweetness while keeping things light.

Best For

• Pairing with homemade or delivery pizza night
• Bringing to a summer cookout as a crowd-friendly session beer
• Introducing craft-curious friends to Italian pilsner as a style
• Stocking a fridge for game day with a beer that stays refreshing across multiple rounds

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Crispy Beer For Pizza taste like? It delivers fresh bread crust and light caramel malt up front, followed by lemon zest, mild grassy bitterness, and a hint of pine. The overall profile is dry, clean, and highly drinkable at 5% ABV.

How does Crispy Beer For Pizza compare to other Italian pilsners? Most Italian pilsners rely on late-hopping or dry-hopping for their aromatic lift, while Off Color uses a hopback with Chinook whole cone hops — a less common technique that produces a smoother, more integrated herbal-citrus character rather than a punchy hop-forward nose.

Is Crispy Beer For Pizza good for beginners? Absolutely — the 5% ABV and clean, balanced profile make it approachable for anyone familiar with standard lagers, while the hopback aromatics give craft drinkers something to appreciate beyond a basic pilsner.

Where is Crispy Beer For Pizza made? It is brewed by Off Color Brewing in Chicago, Illinois. The brewery was founded in 2013 and operates out of Chicago's Logan Square and Lincoln Park neighborhoods.

What foods pair well with Crispy Beer For Pizza? Margherita or pepperoni pizza is the obvious match, as the dry bitterness slices through melted cheese and rich tomato sauce. Grilled chicken with lemon and herbs mirrors the beer's citrus and herbal notes. Light salads with vinaigrette work well against the crisp finish. Fried calamari benefits from the carbonation and moderate bitterness cutting through oil. Mild, creamy cheeses like fresh mozzarella or burrata complement the soft malt sweetness.

What sizes does Crispy Beer For Pizza come in? The standard format is a six-pack of 12 oz cans, which is the most widely available configuration.

Is Crispy Beer For Pizza worth the price? It positions as a craft session beer at an accessible price tier, delivering more complexity than macro lagers thanks to its hopback technique and quality ingredients, without reaching into premium craft pricing territory.

Why Crispy Beer For Pizza?

The hopback technique with Chinook whole cone hops is the single biggest reason this beer stands out in a crowded Italian pilsner field — it produces a level of aromatic finesse that standard hopping methods simply cannot replicate. The stripped-down grain bill of only pilsner and Munich malts keeps the focus squarely on drinkability and clean malt expression. With an 88 on BeerAdvocate and a 3.8 on Untappd across thousands of ratings, it has quietly earned consistent approval from a broad cross-section of beer drinkers. For a beer that announces its purpose right on the label, it delivers exactly what it promises — a crisp, balanced lager engineered to pair with one of the world's most popular foods.