Spaten Dunkel | Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu
Brewed by:
Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu
Germany
franziskaner-weissbier.de
Style: Munich Dunkel Lager
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 5.50%
Availability: Year-round
Notes / Commercial Description:
No notes at this time.
Added by BeerAdvocate on 02-05-2009
Ratings: 590 | Reviews: 204
1/5 rDev -72.7%
bmcduff2, Feb 09, 2012
2.18/5 rDev -40.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Another reviewer noted the term "boring". I'd echo his sentiments. I'm not familiar with Dunkels so I'm not in a position to compare this brewer with others.
However, if you like dark beer don't expect this one to give you the German dark beer experience. It just falls short. Sure it's got flavor and a nose but all in all I can't think of a moment in time where I would choose this style over others.
If your going for an imported dark, stick with Spaten's Optimator.
475 characters
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Another reviewer noted the term "boring". I'd echo his sentiments. I'm not familiar with Dunkels so I'm not in a position to compare this brewer with others.
However, if you like dark beer don't expect this one to give you the German dark beer experience. It just falls short. Sure it's got flavor and a nose but all in all I can't think of a moment in time where I would choose this style over others.
If your going for an imported dark, stick with Spaten's Optimator.
475 characters
2.46/5 rDev -32.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2
Pours a clean deep amber color with a light tan head. In the aroma, well, standard European lager like smells. In the taste, a small roast inside of a standard European lager. A smooth and medium to lighter bodied mouthfeel, with a dry lager like grain in the aftertaste. Basically, a standard European lager with a note of like caramel like roast.
348 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2
Pours a clean deep amber color with a light tan head. In the aroma, well, standard European lager like smells. In the taste, a small roast inside of a standard European lager. A smooth and medium to lighter bodied mouthfeel, with a dry lager like grain in the aftertaste. Basically, a standard European lager with a note of like caramel like roast.
348 characters
2.51/5 rDev -31.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours a brilliant reddish-mahogany and smells bready and faintly malty with delicate touches of cereal and apricot. The nose is a little weak considering the color and that weakness continues on the palate which feels a little watered down. A slight oily maltiness and a balancing, but equally nonstriking, hoppiness lead to a crisp and very short finish.
355 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours a brilliant reddish-mahogany and smells bready and faintly malty with delicate touches of cereal and apricot. The nose is a little weak considering the color and that weakness continues on the palate which feels a little watered down. A slight oily maltiness and a balancing, but equally nonstriking, hoppiness lead to a crisp and very short finish.
355 characters
2.51/5 rDev -31.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
With the dark color I was expecting a heaver body and deeper taste but was disappointed and feel that this is just a pilsner with food coloring and cinnamon. It has that sourness of the original Spaten but toned down with a bit more focus on malts, but not much more. It burns a bit going down and I wasn't too motivated to finish the bottle.
342 characters
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
With the dark color I was expecting a heaver body and deeper taste but was disappointed and feel that this is just a pilsner with food coloring and cinnamon. It has that sourness of the original Spaten but toned down with a bit more focus on malts, but not much more. It burns a bit going down and I wasn't too motivated to finish the bottle.
342 characters
2.54/5 rDev -30.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Tried this Dunkel with no real preconceived notion of what I would end up with.
Appearance: Pours with very little head that dissipated quickly, as is the case with other Spaten beers I have tried. No lacing at all. A dark amber colored beer.
Smell: Dark fruit, perhaps raisin, or berry apricot, some yeast smell carrying a heavy expectation of a full taste.
Taste: Surprisingly light, slight yeast taste but still with a little dark fruit. Average flavor for a dark German beer. Expected something a bit more robust.
Mouthfeel: Flat with little carbonation for a bottle beer. Enjoying this glass seems like a draft from an under carbonated draught.
Drinkability: Good flavor for a session beer
700 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Tried this Dunkel with no real preconceived notion of what I would end up with.
Appearance: Pours with very little head that dissipated quickly, as is the case with other Spaten beers I have tried. No lacing at all. A dark amber colored beer.
Smell: Dark fruit, perhaps raisin, or berry apricot, some yeast smell carrying a heavy expectation of a full taste.
Taste: Surprisingly light, slight yeast taste but still with a little dark fruit. Average flavor for a dark German beer. Expected something a bit more robust.
Mouthfeel: Flat with little carbonation for a bottle beer. Enjoying this glass seems like a draft from an under carbonated draught.
Drinkability: Good flavor for a session beer
700 characters
2.58/5 rDev -29.5%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
This one seemed too sweet, lacking the usual roast nature and somewhat smoky nature of a German dunkel. sweetness dominates the aroma and taste, and that’s what is remembered, a cloying sugary taste. Disappointed.
215 characters
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
This one seemed too sweet, lacking the usual roast nature and somewhat smoky nature of a German dunkel. sweetness dominates the aroma and taste, and that’s what is remembered, a cloying sugary taste. Disappointed.
215 characters
2.63/5 rDev -28.1%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Looked like coca cola. Carbonation fades away quickly. Aroma was brutal chemistry set, roasted elements.
Taste was still harsh bitter roastiness without a lot of malted body to provide help in the mouthfeel. Not a big dunkel fan, but this was just a thinner body with above average bitterness and roasty flavors that made for acridity.
339 characters
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Looked like coca cola. Carbonation fades away quickly. Aroma was brutal chemistry set, roasted elements.
Taste was still harsh bitter roastiness without a lot of malted body to provide help in the mouthfeel. Not a big dunkel fan, but this was just a thinner body with above average bitterness and roasty flavors that made for acridity.
339 characters
2.75/5 rDev -24.9%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Slightly above average for a lager.
35 characters
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Slightly above average for a lager.
35 characters
2.76/5 rDev -24.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A pour that looked like a generic cola, dark brown flimsy beige carbonation head that falters on the side of the glass. Harsh aroma, not pleasant, alcohol and industrial cleaner type of aroma. Can't recall seeing a beer of this color (dark) in a green bottle.
Taste was a little better, the aroma harshness was a little much, not as bitter or alcoholic as I was expecting it to be. Flavor is lighter and easy going, don't let the color fool you. Some licorice like notes got in there though, I don't know if that's the yeast or what. Not really getting the dark roast flavors, just the bitterness, which, while less than I expected after getting hit in the nose with the smell, is still above average for style.
Overall, this is an average dunkel lager, with a far below average aroma. Sheesh. Bring on the nail polish!
823 characters
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A pour that looked like a generic cola, dark brown flimsy beige carbonation head that falters on the side of the glass. Harsh aroma, not pleasant, alcohol and industrial cleaner type of aroma. Can't recall seeing a beer of this color (dark) in a green bottle.
Taste was a little better, the aroma harshness was a little much, not as bitter or alcoholic as I was expecting it to be. Flavor is lighter and easy going, don't let the color fool you. Some licorice like notes got in there though, I don't know if that's the yeast or what. Not really getting the dark roast flavors, just the bitterness, which, while less than I expected after getting hit in the nose with the smell, is still above average for style.
Overall, this is an average dunkel lager, with a far below average aroma. Sheesh. Bring on the nail polish!
823 characters
2.78/5 rDev -24%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
A - Cola brown with very little head, even with an aggressive pour.
S - Wheat, mixed with a very distinct light-struck funk. Some Caramel malts in the background, but are hard to discern through the off funkiness.
T - A bit better than the smell, but still pretty disappointing. Lots of malt, mostly of the sweet variety. Pretty one dimensional but not bad.
M - A bit watery, even for the style, without much carbonation. Feels quite limp and thin.
D - The thin feel of this mixed with its slightly off nose makes it a tough one to enjoy. It is an easy drinking Lager, but far from interesting. Overall just an average beer that I doubt I will buy again. (if anything, I may pick up another bottle in the future just to make sure it wasnt a bad bottle due to improper storage. the lightstruck hint in the nose has me a bit concerned that this bottle was not truly representative of this brew)
896 characters
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
A - Cola brown with very little head, even with an aggressive pour.
S - Wheat, mixed with a very distinct light-struck funk. Some Caramel malts in the background, but are hard to discern through the off funkiness.
T - A bit better than the smell, but still pretty disappointing. Lots of malt, mostly of the sweet variety. Pretty one dimensional but not bad.
M - A bit watery, even for the style, without much carbonation. Feels quite limp and thin.
D - The thin feel of this mixed with its slightly off nose makes it a tough one to enjoy. It is an easy drinking Lager, but far from interesting. Overall just an average beer that I doubt I will buy again. (if anything, I may pick up another bottle in the future just to make sure it wasnt a bad bottle due to improper storage. the lightstruck hint in the nose has me a bit concerned that this bottle was not truly representative of this brew)
896 characters
2.78/5 rDev -24%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
not my favorite here. pours dark brown and flat like the left over morning coffee down the drain with the dinner dishes. smells malty and astringent. taste is really funny, german malts yes, but in weird proportion. the dark roast thing doesnt seem to work here, and the mouthfeel is rough with so little carbonation and a full body. not sure if i got a bad bottle, i know a lot of these green glass imports can be mishandled, but i really didnt care for this brew and i am a lover of dunkels
492 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
not my favorite here. pours dark brown and flat like the left over morning coffee down the drain with the dinner dishes. smells malty and astringent. taste is really funny, german malts yes, but in weird proportion. the dark roast thing doesnt seem to work here, and the mouthfeel is rough with so little carbonation and a full body. not sure if i got a bad bottle, i know a lot of these green glass imports can be mishandled, but i really didnt care for this brew and i am a lover of dunkels
492 characters
2.83/5 rDev -22.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Of all places, I had this at an Irish pub in Canada. It was in a tall, thin. pint glass. This has a somewhat dirty, golden color. It has a very bitter taste, yet has a very smooth finish. Very bitter for a lager. A very light feeling in the mouth complements the bitterness nicely.
Cheers!
291 characters
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Of all places, I had this at an Irish pub in Canada. It was in a tall, thin. pint glass. This has a somewhat dirty, golden color. It has a very bitter taste, yet has a very smooth finish. Very bitter for a lager. A very light feeling in the mouth complements the bitterness nicely.
Cheers!
291 characters
2.9/5 rDev -20.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
This was early in my beer-experience, so I'll have to revisit; not well acquainted with the style, but it did little to impress
127 characters
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
This was early in my beer-experience, so I'll have to revisit; not well acquainted with the style, but it did little to impress
127 characters
2.96/5 rDev -19.1%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Pour: Ice tea color with a small ring of head that dissipated quickly and left no lacing on the glass.
Smell: Extremely weak. Some wheat and bread, but that's about it.
Taste: Sweet caramel and wheat malts. Not much else going on. Lightly bready, but lacking the rich flavors of banana or clove that you've come to expect out of a good German wheat beer. One-dimensional.
Mouthfeel: Light and crisp. Carbonation somewhat overdone.
Drinkability: It's pretty drinkable, more like drinking sparkled water.
Final Notes: Not impressed. You could do much better than this one. And for God's sake stop with the green bottles!
627 characters
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Pour: Ice tea color with a small ring of head that dissipated quickly and left no lacing on the glass.
Smell: Extremely weak. Some wheat and bread, but that's about it.
Taste: Sweet caramel and wheat malts. Not much else going on. Lightly bready, but lacking the rich flavors of banana or clove that you've come to expect out of a good German wheat beer. One-dimensional.
Mouthfeel: Light and crisp. Carbonation somewhat overdone.
Drinkability: It's pretty drinkable, more like drinking sparkled water.
Final Notes: Not impressed. You could do much better than this one. And for God's sake stop with the green bottles!
627 characters
2.96/5 rDev -19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Had this on tap at the Gingerman in Houston. Poured in a pint glass. Appears dark brown color with a tan head that dissiptes quite rapidly. Very earthy in the aroma with some grain. Some light chocolate and caramel in the taste but no depth. Quick, dry finish. I expected more from this beer. Was a little let down. The first Spaten beer that I didn't care for too much.
370 characters
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Had this on tap at the Gingerman in Houston. Poured in a pint glass. Appears dark brown color with a tan head that dissiptes quite rapidly. Very earthy in the aroma with some grain. Some light chocolate and caramel in the taste but no depth. Quick, dry finish. I expected more from this beer. Was a little let down. The first Spaten beer that I didn't care for too much.
370 characters
Spaten Dunkel from Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu
3.66
out of 5
based on 590 ratings.