Day #340 – Magic Hat Black As Night Winter Lager

As it is now well into December I shall be reviewing plenty of winter seasonal ales.

Magic Hat Black As Night Winter Lager

Today’s beer comes from Magic Hat Brewing Company. This is their winter seasonal, a Schwarzbier at 4.6%. It is also known as Magic Hat Howl if you see that around as well.

This beer pours a dark brown color which appears to be black until you shine some light on it and notice it is definitely brown. Beige head.

Aroma is very roasty. Roasted malts and nuts with some dark grain sweetness as well.

Taste is a bit metallic with a fat roasty malt flavor in the middle. Ends with the malty sweetness you expect with a touch of bitterness.

Cheers!

Day #277 – Samuel Adams Black Lager

In my early days as a young beer enthusiast, when I was trying whatever new beer I could get my hands on, I was inevitably trying lots of beers from Samuel Adams. They were plentiful, available and presented me with a wide variety of new styles. Some of their beers I liked right off the bat, many I didn’t but I certainly remember the exact time and place when I tried this beer. It made that much of an impact on me, and I knew I liked it, I just couldn’t say why. Well I don’t think I’ve tried this beer in several years and I am looking forward to figuring out why I liked it so much right off the bat.

Samuel Adams Black Lager

Samuel Adams Black Lager is classified as a Schwarzbier, which literally means black lager. It has an ABV of 4.9% and I am not sure if this beer has made it to year round production now. I picked this beer up in the Fall seasonal mix pack, and I don’t see it around in the smaller 6-pack mixers anymore. It used to be mixed in with the Irish Red and the Brown Ale. (Come to think of it I haven’t seen the Brown Ale in ages either.) On to the beer.

This beer pours pretty dark. When held to the light you can see it has deep ruby hues with some touches of brown near the edges. Off-white colored head.

Aroma is dark malts, slight roast, a touch of peat perhaps and some chocolaty tones. Certainly an attractive smell that would appease any new drinker.

The flavor is also quite the delight. Dark chocolate flavors mix with bittersweet malts and a slight roasted quality near the end. This was pretty different for one of my earlier beers but I can see why I liked it so.

Cheers!

Day #217 – Austin Beerworks Black Thunder

Brand new beer from a brand new brewery today!

Austin Beerworks Black Thunder

Austin Beerworks opened up earlier this year.  At this point they only have 4 beers in production, and I have one of them in front of me today!  I was super excited to see this beer; so excited in fact, that I forgot to take a picture!  Haha, so here is what the tap handle looked like:

This beer is classified as a Schwarzbier and has an ABV of 5.2%.

Tap at Black Star. So cool to see this here. Very dark brown color that let’s little light through. Tan head.

Aroma is chocolatey, dark malts,light roast and other sweet flavors.

Flavor is dark roast, bitter malts and grains, some dark chocolate. Finished bitter.

Man it’s so good to see so many new brewpubs and breweries popping up in Austin.  Very nice!

Day #203 – Rahr & Sons Ugly Pug

I’m out at the Rahr & Sons brewery today and I feel this is the perfect opportunity to feature another one of their beers! It’s hot as hell and I could sure use a refreshing beverage.

Rahr & Sons Ugly Pug

The Ugly Pug is part of their year round line-up and is one of their flagship beers. It is named for Oscar the pug, who unfortunately passed away earlier this year due to ugliness….or old age. It is a Schwarzbier listed at 4.75%.

Yum! This is one of my favorite easy drinking beers from Rahr. It pours a dark dark brown color with an off white colored head.

Aroma is roasted malts, toasted notes, light coffee and chocolate. Very nice smell.

Flavor is a mixture of roasted malts, toasty chocolate and smooth tasting grains. A standard no doubt.

Cheers!

Day #180 – Full Sail Session Black Lager

I’ve got one of the oddest shaped bottles I’ve seen in awhile today. I will admit to having been terrified of this line of beer as it’s almost shaped like an old school cough medicine bottle. Hope it doesn’t taste like that though!

Full Sail Session Black Lager

Full Sail Brewing Company is a new one for my blog I believe. It is based in Hood River, Oregon. The beer I am trying today is one of 2 in their Session series. It has a very sessionable 5.4% ABV and is classified as a Schwarzbier.

This beer pours a dark reddish brown color and has a nice tan foamy head atop it.

The aroma is caramel malts, grains, roasted notes and a touch of nuts.

The flavor is dark malts with a fair roasted taste as well. The finish is a tad bit watery but overall pretty refreshing!

Cheers!

Day #154 – Xingu

We’ve finally made it to one of my favorite beers.  This is a solid beer and I have a really cool glass to go with it.

Xingu

Let’s start with the name: Xingu.  Now I, among most others think this is pronounced “Zin-goo” but that is incorrect.  The correct pronunciation is “SHIN-gu”.  This is a schwarzbier brewed in Jacareí, Brazil by FEMSA Cerveja Brasil.  FEMSA is the second largest brewery in Brazil.  I originally bought this beer because of the kooky name and it turned out to rock.  ABV is 4.6% so this one will go down REAL easy.

This beer pours a very dark brown color that touches on red with a khaki colored head.  It looks very much like a loaf of bread sitting on this beer.

Aroma is dark malts, heavy on the chocolate with a slight roastedness.  There is also a sweet quality to the aroma as well.  Nice.

Slick mouthfeel with a dark malty flavor.  Slightly roasted with a nice tingle over the palate.  Nice sweet caramel flavors that mix well with a chocolatey character.  Nice and smooth; I like this one!

Cheers!

Day #60 – Shiner 97 Bohemian Black Lager

Day 60 and I’m still trying to make up for the debacle of a beer on Monday.  Sorry Shiner, but that one just plain sucked.  On the other hand, I have a beer planned for today to continue on with my WEEK OF SHINER that is probably the best offering they have! Hooray beer!

Shiner 97 Bohemian Black Lager

This beer (affectionately referred to by the locals as “Shiner Black”) was the anniversary beer for their 97th year in business.  We liked it so much that they decided to make it a year round offering.  I’m thankful for that!

This beer is classified as a Schwarzbier, which is basically a black lager.  All the smoothness that a lager has to offer with the tasty girth of a heavily malted beer.  It rings in at 4.9% which reminds me of another interesting point.  In Texas, if a beer is 4.9% or less it is labeled as “beer”.  If it is 5% or higher, it is labeled as “ale” and falls into a higher tax bracket.  So, even if a brewery releases a LAGER at 5%, it still has to stupidly be fitted with the label, ALE…….which is RIDICULOUS!  Figure it out Texas, seriously.

Ok enough rant.  On to the beer…

This beer pours a very dark brown color that almost touches on black, that shows a small bit of reddish color with held to the light.  The head response can be seen quickly and stands tall with a light beige color.  Appears quite foamy.

The aroma is fairly grainy with a heavily roasted nose.  Lots of malts in this.  Not much sweetness but there is a definite burnt/toasted characteristic.

Flavor is roasted nuts and malts, with a bready-toast bit and light smoke.  The mouthfeel is a bit thin for it appearance, but it has enough smokiness to keep things interesting.  This is very drinkable and tasty; one of the nicer offerings from Shiner indeed.

Cheers!