Wolverine Dark
Wolverine State Brewing Company

A $4 or $5 bottle had at Three Blind Mice in Mt. Clemens, Michigan.

Appearance: Ruby. Head dissipates pretty quickly. Only a bit of lacing.

Smell: Malt. Roasty character to deem this a "dark" lager. Nothing especially interesting, but it smells nice.

Taste: Like the smell. A lot like it. A slight sort of coffee or chocolate flavor comes off as well, but it's in the background. Hey, I guess some roasting will do that to a beer, eh? Fairly high carbonation which is expected for the style. A pretty nice beer. Simple tasting sort of beer that you can drink without feeling compelled to think too much about what you're tasting. I'm not the only one who does that... right...?

Pours a very dark see through brown with a light caramel colored head on top. Has a light malty smell to it. Taste is of full bodied malty beverage. Notes of caramel follow.

 

 

Served on tap at the Wolverine State Brewery in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
A: Pours a crystal clear, dark copper color with a more than one finger, very slightly tan head, ring and cap retention, but solid rings of complex lacing.
S: Aromas of caramel, coffee, and brown sugar.
T: Semidry. Flavor pallet similar to the nose, with but a strong vegetable (?celery) note. Light bitterness provides some balance.
M: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
O: Drinkable, but vegetable note really detracts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12 ounce bottle into lager glass, no bottle dating. Pours crystal clear reddish brown color with a 1 finger dense light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with moderate streaming carbonation. Aromas of toast, biscuit, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, roasted malt, light nuttiness, herbal, and roasted/yeast earthiness. Damn nice aromas with good balance and complexity of roast/bready malt notes with some light hop presence; and good strength. Taste of toast, biscuit, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, roasted malt, light nuttiness, herbal, and roast/yeast earthiness. Light earthy/roasted bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, toast, biscuit, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, roasted malt, light herbal, and roasted earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice robustness and complexity of roast/bready malt with light earthy hop flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a smooth, moderately crisp, and lightly chalky mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish. Overall this is a very nice schwarzbier style. All around good complexity and robustness of roast/bready malt and light earthy hop flavors; and very smooth and crisp to drink. A very enjoyable offering.