Lobkowicz Baron
Brewery Lobkowicz

 

500ml single bottle poured into a tulip.
Pours a very dark brown almost black with a decent head that dissipates quickly leaving nice lacing.

Smells of grains and and earth notes.

Tastes of grain and very slight vanilla.

This is an interesting beer, due to the colour I was expecting a dark ale or porter but it reminds me more of a lager. If I drank it directly from the bottle I never would have expected it to be as dark as it is.

 

 

Dark cola appearance with minimal head and a bit of lacing. Malty chocolatey smell and a slightly sweet taste juxtaposed by the maltiness creating an almost molasses like taste. The feel however is quite smooth though a bit thin. Overall a great beer for the price point, but not an out of this world "must have" beer by any stretch.

 

 

 

 

 

Pours a cola colour; a meagre one-finger tan head that recedes to some rings but leaves a bit of lacing.

Smell is a bit musty and herbal. Vegetal, bitter greens--that Saaz hop snap. There's almost a skunky layer here too, but almost in that way of certain European beers where it feels deliberate? Slight vinegar tang?

On the taste, again there's that slight almost tart, vinegary tang. It's really the Saaz dominating here, though--herbal, spicy, vegetal, with only a slight hint of roasted malt backbone offering up just a touch of coffee and chocolate--more so as it warms in the glass. Moderate body, moderate carbonation.

It's nice, but something about it feels slightly "off." Doesn't wow, but it drinks rather easy and--don a blindfold--I'm not sure I even identify this as "dark."

Dark brown with thin beige head. Roast grain taste, with elements of coffee and cola. Aroma hints at the coffee bitterness, taste at some cola sweetness. Smoother and slightly sweeter then some of the dark lagers.

 

 

A: Cola coloured liquid with slight tan head.

S: Sweet malts with chocolate and caramel and clean yeast.

T: Spicy and herbal hops overtop of caramel, chocolate and bready malts. Lingering soft yeasty and somewhat smokey aftertaste.

M: Medium mouthfeel.

O: I realize the hops are traditionally Czech, but this beer would've been improved if East Kent Goldings, Styrian Goldings or Brewer's Gold hops were used for a fruity hop presence; or at minimum hallertau mittelfrueh for a softer hop presence.

A very pleasant surprise find at my local bottleshop. Coca cola pour and appearance - there was no head retention, but decent enough carbonation. Not my ideal look and feel. The aroma was metallic, with a bit of sweetness and dark bread. I'm not sure if it was just the bottle I picked up, but the overall impression wasn't as favorable as previous reviews. From a flavour perspective, there is plenty happening here. I really like the toffee, milk chocolate and tea flavours that swirl in the glass. Overall, very interesting, and extremely well-priced. I look forward to a return tasting to see if this bottle was a bit "off" or lacking freshness.

Damn, it's difficult finding your Czech beer on Beer Advocate!

Served cool from 500ml brown bottle into straight pilsner mug.

A) Very dark reddish-chestnut brown. Whitish film only, no real head developed.

S) Faint whiff of sweet warming malts, if you really get your nose in there. Below par.

T) A lot better than the nose. Deeply roasted malt is right there. A mild bitterness comes from the roasted malt only, and none from hops, as per the style. Actually, pretty good.

A) A bit of a body to it, well within the style parameters.

O) Although not on a par with the best Munich dunkels, this stands up on its own merits as a tasty nutty burnt-malt lager. A good one to chug down and not expensive; recommended to any dark lager fan.