Jet Black Lager
Felstar Brewery & Felstead Vineyard

The ninth beer tasted by half-pint at the Chelmsford Summer Beerfest., 12/07/2006, gravity-dispensed.

A: mahogany hue, cob-web like loosely-bubbly beer head, low carbonation, great clarity!
S: rich, juicy ripe dark fruity notes abound, plus a 3D malty aroma, with a mild touch of vanilla-chocolatey note supporting a flowery scent of hops (American varieties?)--much more in line with a fruity porter than with any kind of dark lager, as far as my limited experience is concerned.
T: a semi-chewy texture of dark malts and juicy dark fruits upfront, followed by a mildly bitter-sweet chocolatey aftertaste; a slightly rough, semi-roasty tinge of roast/black malts stays firmly behind, laced with an interesting tangy finish with more sour-sweet dark malts lingering down the palate... Short finish, though.
M&D: smoothly-textured, low-carbonated, medium-bodied, like a reasonably tasty and malty porter, lacking the crisp and cleaner palate supposedly coming with a dark lager. I really like this beer, but to try to persuade myself that I'm drinking a lager is painfully difficult.