Dark Lager Tasting (May 13-15)

Michael, I suspect you are correct here.

It has been a loooong time since I have drank a Yuengling Black & Tan but it stands to reason that the dilution via Yuengling Premium (40% of the total) would mitigate the roast aspect.

Cheers to Yuengling (and Lord Chesterfield)!

 

I always get the good, old-fashioned melanoidin kick from HB Dunkel -- mixed in with that pumpernickel, no doubt.

 

I wouldn't either... but beggars can't be choosers.

What's the date code on your Hofbrau?

 

With beer #4 I’m finally getting to the primary sub-style of dark lager that precipitated this tasting. Czech-style Dark Lagers.

I’ll start with a USA-brewed version. Unfortunately, this brewer does not respect their customers enough to date the can. So, I must assume this beer has age on it more-or-less in line with the other beers I bought that were dated… that is 6 months old or older.

Nonetheless, when shopping, I did ignore age to go for availability. Every one of the Czech style beers I could find were either undated (this one) or at least 6 months old (the upcoming Utepils), with the two from the Czech Republic being even older.

So, at least they are more or less on a level playing field vis-à-vis each other.

OEC Coolship Lager Black (Czech Style)
ABV: 5.4%
IBU: NA

The aroma initially hits with roasted malts. If I linger a bit, I also pick up chocolate.

Very dark body, a bit hazy (in the actual meaning of the word, not as a marketing euphemism) with a back-light revealing a ruby color and moderate carbonation. One inch tall light tan head, thick and creamy appearing with moderate retention. The head forms a pitted surface as it recedes and leaves thick sheets of lacing down the glass.

The starts with a quick-hit of bitter that is replaced by roasted malts. This then transitions into a malty roastiness with subtle chocolate and dark bread. As it approaches the finish, the bitterness returns resulting in a dry finish and a roasty, malty, creamy-but-bitter aftertaste. NB: The bitterness is notable in contrast with the malt flavors, but this is less bitter than you might find in, for example, a typical Czech pils.

With the big deal made by the brewer on the can label “Coolship & Open Fermented” plus “Coolship” in the name of the beer, I was expecting perhaps a bit of wild funk, but none appeared to my palate.

Mouth feel is thin-moderate, creamy, and smooth.

Overall, a very enjoyable, very drinkable dark lager. A pox on the brewer for the undated can, though.

L: 4.0 | S: 3.75 | T: 4.25 | F: 3.75 | O: 4.0 | Rating: 4.02

 

Michael,

If my memory serves me right you have also tasted Hofbrauhaus Freising Dunkel. Conducting a side-by-side tasting of this beer with Hofbrau Dunkel would be an absolutely wonderful drinking experience I would think.

Cheers!

 

FWIW I have noticed over several batches/years that my homebrewed Czech Dark Lager is still very tasty at 10-12 months of age. I am not 100% sure why but I suspect that the dark malts used to brew this beer have great anti-oxidant capability.

Hopefully as you work your way through your stock you will still find the beers to be enjoyable despite the age.

Cheers!

 

Good question -- the HB I saw on shelves, when looking for tasting beer, was bottled late last year. Within the year best-by, but I didn't want to invest in a whole six-pack at this time.

 

I have (almost!) always enjoyed dark lager, particularly Munich Dunkel, and have often in the past been kinder in my judgement of similar dark lagers from Europe. Enough so that (back in the 1990s) I was seen as one of those: “Oh! You like bitter, dark beers!” people, by the younger wine crowd, just out of college.

What we have here is a bitter-ish dark beer -a Czech Style Dark, in fact- and an excellent example of the style. And so I hope you’ll all excuse the fact that it’s been poured into glassware for a Polish dark lager:



Because y’all seem to enjoy reading, here’s a copy-paste from my review of moments ago:

“Pours a dark “cola” brown, topped with a medium dark tan head. It was an aggressive pour by myself from the can, but the head has a lot of staying power and there is an excellent lacing effect on the sides of the glass.

Dark malt character in the nose is where it’s at. A quite a bit of chocolate-y goodness, but some toffee and (hop) floral notes as well. Excellent balance.

Sweet in the first sip, but it’s much more of a slightly sharp, slightly tangy bittersweet-sweet. So, “malty” and sweet, but it’s hardly a single note, one dimensional effect. Hop bitterness kicks in about midway through the drink and carries this one through, followed by the bittersweetness which finishes it out.

Rich, lasting depth of flavor, despite the lower ABV (or maybe because of it?), and very well balanced.

One of the better domestic example of “the style” (although there’s quite a range of character in the originals, to be sure) and well worth seeking out if well balanced, session-able, characterful dark lagers are in your wheelhouse.”



Cheers!

 

@zid

I believe that Youngs chocolate stout is the closest thing possible to adult chocolate drink like yoohoo. I love the nitro version around Christmas

 

Although I will never forgive Leinenkugel’s (Miller, Tenth & Blake, or whoever was pinching pennies back then) for discontinuing the original Leinenkugel’s Bock in favor of “Big Butt Doppelbock”, the fond memories I have of Creamy Dark are almost enough to quell my longstanding rage against this pusillanimous purveyor of supercilious suds.

In short… I will have to track some of this down. Cheers!

 

277U, so about 7 months old. Less than ideal, but still a lot fresher than the Ayinger I was looking at.

I do prefer the Freising, but unfortunately can't find the Dunkel, even in stores that stock the brand.

 

Used to love the Kozel Dark back when we could get it (1999?) as an import.

I can imagine that they do right by a non-alcoholic version.

 

I like the Freising a lot, but most I see on shelves has been there a while -- and it doesn't help that they don't have a clear best by date.

FWIW -- the HB I saw had numbers in the 300s.

 

Here's a little change of pace:

Solid Air Smoked Lager by Threes Brewing

It's a really nice beer, although it could use a bit more depth to take it to the next level. Very clean, with a crisp, dry finish; mild smoke blends in well with bread crust, almond, an almost rye like spiciness, caramel and a hint of herbal hops. It all reads extremely cohesive, though. Very well made, and perfect for spending an evening drinking glass after glass.

 

Likely less than 2 months old, but the date is mostly scratched off. Poured from a tall-boy can into my Ayinger Pokal.

Sinopia body with copper highlights supports a low beige cap. Average clarity (the beer is unfiltered); mediocre retention; very fine/delicate lacing.

Vague aromatics suggest country bread, and a low herbal element.

Nice, even, bread-y malt on the palate entry. Low, clean bitterness. Faint milk chocolate and nuts. Smooth medium finish. Clean, somewhat delicate.

Medium-light bodied, slightly low carbonation perhaps.

More than the sum of its parts in some ways, even if it lacks the richness of the better examples of the style.

(3.59)

 

Then perhaps it would be a match for a typical craft American Schwarzbier.
I would have liked to include their porter in my group, but I could not buy a bottle. Their "Black & Tan" is an easier beer to find here.
For me (although I can't remember the last time I had one), I just consider their porter a porter... albeit an unusual one.

 

The Black and Tan is my older son's favorite beer, so we get 12 packs of cans whenever he's around. Those packs seem to be the go-to size, so I'm guessing they still sell well.

 

Man do I love that beer! I haven’t seen it locally in some time now, but if I did…well, you know

Just enjoyed it vicariously through you, thank you.

 

Here's the 4th of my style mixup tastings. This time my intention was to include Xingu and a Schwarzbier. I always like adding something extra for a little chaos, so this time I went with Off Color Ten Crowns - a Czech-style black lager.

There have been a bunch of times on BA when people complained that Xingu isn't a good Schwarzbier. My reaction is always that Xingu isn't a Schwarzbier and that one shouldn't knock it just because it's classified on BA as such. The category is just a case of "best fit."

Xingu was supposedly inspired by a black beer produced in the Amazon rainforest in the 1500s that was made with corn and manioc and fermented naturally. I doubt Xingu resembles this inspiration, and resembles a Schwarzbier much more… but I'm not the type who would claim that it is a Schwarzbier. This version was brewed in Canada and owned by a Brazilian company. Let’s see if I can identify it next to a Schwarzbier. So for that, I went with the iconic Kostritzer.

As the "US craft beer" in the group, Off Color Ten Crowns was easily identifiable. It was hoppy and had a nice (but subtle) malty character with some roastiness.

The Kostritzer had extremely low carbonation in suspension. Perhaps this was a result from pouring from a can and beer agitation (which sometimes happens for me). Fortunately I have a bottle I can open later this weekend for comparison (if I have the endurance for it). The low carbonation dictated everything with this beer. It was smooth, limp and lacked hop presence.

The Xingu had very nice balance. There was a cocoa flavor to the beer. The acidity level was just enough to provide structure. For my tastes, all too often dark lagers are overcome by too much background acidity.

In the end, (ignoring the Off Color) I correctly assumed which beer was the Schwarzbier based on the carbonation level (I didn't think the bottled Xingu would pour that flat). Could I have determined which was which if the carbonation was the same? I have no idea. I probably would have been guessing at best.