Totality
Lake Anne Brew House

my first from these guys, very solid and traditional take on the style, near black, on the more sturdy end of the style spectrum, but fairly tidy too, nice this time of year. less of the brown tones and the reddish edges some of these have, more porter to stout looking, although still somewhat light in body i suppose. short off white head from the tap is all, some lace as it drinks. the nose is roasty and simple, with light astringency, a coffee note, and a german lager yeast thats apparent through the darkness, lightly bready to me, fresh, and relatively simple in the way that it should be, no frills, none needed. the flavor is straight ahead, nice roasted grain profile a tad less intense and more well integrated than it smells, pretty well lagered, nice late bitterness and european grain character together, dry cocoa, brewed coffee, and faint molasses to me, middle malts are slight, hops are out of the way, and the balance seems to come from the dark grain. light in body for its color, easy drinking with fine carbonation, and with nice textural smoothness. nothing thats going to change the world, but well executed as the american takes on the style go, appreciate the more robust dark side this comes with, while not losing its german authenticity, well done.