This beer was a real surprise for me. I had tried the Kaiserdom Pilsner a few weeks ago and found it a little sweet, so I wasn't sure whether their Alt-Bamberg Dunkel would be even sweeter. But the real surprise was the colour. I had been expecting the usual brown kind of Dunkel, but this was pitch black. I mean, even holding the glass up to the light I was hard pressed to see any light getting through, let alone colour tones. It has a full-on malt aroma with roasted notes. This is unlike any Dunkel I have tasted, and actually, even if it had been called a Schwarzbier I would have said the same. It's leaning towards a Porter or even a Stout. It tastes like there's plenty of chocolate malt, and a good dash of black malt all on top of a base of munich. Is that a faint whiff of smoke, or just the roastiness? There's more than a hint of christmas pudding, but it's not that heavy despite all of this. The carbonation is gentle and lifts away any residual sweetness. I can't really comment on the hops -- if there were any -- as I was just brought on a malty journey, and I loved every drop!
Phwoar! My kind of beer.
ReplyDeleteI think Dunnes sells Kaiserdom Pils. Wonder what the chances of getting this in are?
Christmas pudding? Smoke? Chocolate - that sounds like the perfect winter beer. Perhaps a trip to Bamberg is in order.
ReplyDeleteI think I need to get a few more bottles. Just to confirm my initial notes. I hope it wasn't just shock! :D
ReplyDeleteI like porters and stouts, and this was the closest I've come to one in a German beer (no, I'm not saying it is a porter or stout). I'll have to do a concentrated survey of Dunkels, just to see if this is unique. ;)