Kansas City Food Blog

Earlier today, Fat City got its first taste of Boulevard's new Pilsner, but neglected to reflect on lagers and lawn mowing.

There's no consensus on the perfect lawn-mowing beer, but it should be crisp, light and most-of-all thirst-quenching -- a great beer to drink after a couple of hours in the heat.

Porters are definitely not lawn-mowing beers; Pabst Blue Ribbon is.

It's fair to say that Boulevard Pilsner will be drunk by many amateur lawn workers. KC Beer Blog went so far as to say, "I may even be tempted to mow my lawn in the hundred-degree heat just so I can get full enjoyment from the Boulevard Pilsner."

But could the pilsner be the ultimate lawn-mowing beer? To test this hypothesis we found two serious mowers.

John Shoemaker and Michael Hannan of Rock Chalk Lawn Care were kind enough to be those men. They had been mowing for more than seven hours in 95-plus degree heat yesterday when they agreed to take a break and try the pilsner and explain, from a mower's perspective, whether it satisfies.
While neither had been aware of the pilsner's release, both were excited to try it. "I love the Pabst, I love those types of beers, so this should be right up my alley," Shoemaker said as he pried off the cap. But after seven hours of mowing, Hannan said, "we'll probably find anything refreshing."

Each had a different view of what a great lawn-mowing beer should be. Shoemaker said it's any beer "that you can relax to and sit on the patio and not have to think about it." Not true, said Hannan: "It's got to be light. I'm just looking for something to come home and have one of ... if I tried a pale ale after working all day I think I'd take one sip and say 'nope.'" 

Both were impressed by the taste of the pilsner. "I like it," Shoemaker said, "but I don't know if I like it enough to pay that much more for Boulevard over Pabst." When he learned that the beer cost only $5.99 for a six-pack, Shoemaker looked surprised and added, "that tastes a lot more expensive than it is." Would it be the first beer he turned to after mowing? "I don't know. I mean it's good but it's not that refreshing. There's definitely a lot going on with it. It's not like Pabst!"

Hannan said the only time he would drink it was after work. "Looking at that packaging, it's not something I'd show up at a party with. It would stay in my fridge at home just for me."

In the end both proclaimed it to be a very good lawn-mowing beer. But their actions were a bigger endorsement than their words. We'd only spoken for a little over five minutes, and both of their beers were gone.