Kulmbacher Black Lager
Fat Head's Brewery & Saloon

Beer Geek Stats
From:
Fat Head's Brewery & Saloon
 
Ohio, United States
Style:
Schwarzbier
ABV:
5.3%
Score:
Needs more ratings
Avg:
3.99 | pDev: 5.51%
Reviews:
4
Ratings:
4
Status:
Active
Rated:
Apr 10, 2013
Added:
Nov 09, 2010
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Photo of MNishCT77
Reviewed by MNishCT77 from District of Columbia

4.23/5  rDev +6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On-tap at the Fat Head's Pittsburgh location, served in a typical British-style pint glass, drank 4/9/13 over one hour.

A: 3.5 - dark/ruby-red coloration (redness is totally off for style), unable to see through, one finger tan head quickly dissipates into glass lacing, minimal alcohol legs

S: 4.25 - noble hop aroma, coffee roast, toasted bread, slight booziness (surprisingly at 5.5%)

T: 4.5 - mild sweet smoked malts on the front of the tongue that evolves into slight nuttiness and no hop presence

M: 4 - roasty, smooth, creamy, almost nitro-ish --> tastes good but off style (more like a roasty brown ale)

O: 4 - tastes good but some off-style; I usually don't care much about this, but a ruby dark red, smoky, nutty lager is not a schwarzbier, and I'm dinging it this time for this; I think that if you're going to brew a German style, you should respect the reinheitsgebot and brew something close to the style, especially if you're going to sell it commercially
Apr 10, 2013
Photo of adamette
Reviewed by adamette from Ohio

3.75/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Review from notes. Poured from tap into a clean, clear glass at the brewery.

A Medium brown head over a very dark mahogany body with good lacing left on the inside of the glass. 4.0

S Barley malt with some sweetness. The grainy barley is prominent here but the sweetness forms a nice backdrop. 4.0

T Good taste with the barley grains, malt sweetness in relatively good balance. It at least hits the style notes and even extends beyond those with the nice, balanced sweet malt. 3.5

M Medium thick feel, good for the style. 3.5

D/O Good with manageable, low ABV. 4.0
Jul 31, 2011
Photo of Stinkypuss
Reviewed by Stinkypuss from Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Fat Heads - Kulmbacher Black Lager

Pours a very dark brownish black with ruby highlights. Aroma is roasted, malty, toasted and full. Black malts and a small portion of smoke lead things off, slight coffee and a hint of cocoa. Mostly roasty, toasty malts but I dig the smoke presence as well. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied, really nice and solid mouthfeel. Overall, Fat Heads proves again that they brew seriously good beer. If you like Schwarzbier, you will love this one.
Jul 26, 2011
Photo of jampics2
Reviewed by jampics2 from Ohio

3.8/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap at Fat Heads. Served in a half-liter German beer glass.

Described on the menu as: "Black lager with ruby highlights. This Bavarian specialty lager has a nutty maltiness with a smooth chocolate finish. This beer pairs nicely with the Parma Karma platter of sausages and pierogies."

5.3% ABV, 22 IBU.

Kulmbach, Germany is called the secret capital of beer by many connoisseurs. At least according to Google. I only know of the Kulmbacher beers with the white labels. They've been decent, but I hope after this new Fat Heads offering, I associate the name with North Olmstead instead.

The beer in my glass is black with some ruby and mahogany highlights. When I hold it to the light, I notice a bit of brown on the bottom. The head is great looking and leaves behind some nice lace. This is a good looking black lager in any language!

The smell has nice roasted malt and some nuttiness. It's deep and well-done. Chocolate and coffee impressions are noticed from the roasted malt, as well as some sweet caramel underneath. The beer is not hoppy at all. This smells like it will be smooth, I hope that carries over to the taste.

Well, I may be back to thinking of Germany. The beer is by no means bad, but the taste is too nutty for my liking. I'd like to see this either as a traditional schwartzbier or see it go the direction of the American dark lagers that showcase roasted malt. There are some chocolate and bitter notes from the roast, but the nuts ruin it. I feel like I need a monocle, cane peanut suit and top hat to drink more. The finish has lingering bitterness and a touch of acidity. Not bad, but not my style at all.

The mouthfeel is decent and gets things back on track. The beer has a lighter body and good carbonation that makes it feel a touch fuller than it is. It's quite drinkable and is a decent offering for the dark beer lover who isn't in the mood for a heavy beer. But I'm just not a fan of this much nuttiness. Still a decent beer.
Nov 09, 2010
Kulmbacher Black Lager from Fat Head's Brewery & Saloon
Beer rating: 3.99 out of 5 with 4 ratings