8th Sin - Hop City (Canada - Ontario - Brampton)

8th Sin - Hop City (Canada - Ontario - Brampton) 5.0%

Very dark, nearly opaque, with an off-white head which is lighter than I expected for a beer with such a dark body. Milk chocolate aroma, with a subtle earthiness, a bit of coffee, a tiny bit of grain. Chocolatey flavour with a bit of dark, dried fruit tones and a grounding earthiness as well as the taste of the crust of dark bread. The mouthfeel is a bit surprisingly (and pleasantly) light while still being creamy. The aftertaste is more strongly earthy with light prune and raisin flavours to match the chocolate.

This is a really tasty beer, I can honestly say I have never had a Black Lager that had this depth and breadth of dark malt flavours. The is something to it that I am finding hard to put into words that seems more like a lager than an ale but I think I would be bluffing if I asserted that, in a blind taste test, I'd be able to tell the difference between this and an equally tasty dark ale with a similar light mouthfeel.

Kostritzen Schwarzbier (Germany) 4.8%

Kostritzen Schwarzbier (Germany) 4.8%

A dry hoppy aroma with a bit of sweetness and a darker malt roast tone that dances between molasses and wooden tones. The beer is black, nearly opaque. Good head and lacing.

The taste is mild considering the appearance but darkly roasty, closer to coffee grounds than coffee, quite bitter with a Euro Lager dry hops flavour. Easy drinking, quite bitter moderately sweet. No alcohol flavour which some people find unpleasant because it's only 4.8% but the dark roasty flavours and bitterness are often associated with stronger beers - it is a little like low alcohol Yule Beers in that way. Pleased it came in a (stylish) 500 ml bottle as it is quite nice and I was glad to be able to top up my glass. Definitely worth trying: an interesting style well executed.

Guinness Black Lager (Ireland) 4.5%

Guinness Black Lager (Ireland) 4.5%

True to its name it is indeed black, just about opaque too with a head that is just a shade paler than beige. The aroma is sweet with some roast, something distinctly lager-like and some dry Euro hops.

The taste is a little like any other European Lager but with a bit more bitterness and quite a bit more malt character. There are tastes of roasted malt and some smoke tones. There is a caramel note kicking around in there too. All in all Guinness Black Lager is a pretty nice Black Lager: refreshing and clearly a lager but with a more interesting makeup.

Okanagan Springs Brewery (Canada - British Columbia - Vernon))

Okanagan Springs Brewery located in Vernon, British Columbia has been making beer since 1985. This taster pack included four varieties was purchased (and reviewed) in January. It seems like the composition of these taster pack changes with the season: a seasonal taking the place of the winter appropriate Brewmaster Black Lager. The labels of all of the bottles include a brief write-up of the beer and a few cool informative graphics.

Pale Ale 5.0%

A slightly hoppy and sweet ale, a little nutty and a somewhat caramel flavour. It has a smooth finish with a bitter touch.

Hopped 5.2%

A strong but not overpowering hops taste, it's more balanced than many hop heavy beers. Also not particularly bitter for a beer that tastes so strongly of hops.

Brewmaster Black Lager 5.0%

Malty with coffee and chocolate flavours. Quite dark in a glass with a frothy head. An interesting beer out of a standard brown bottle and a very detailed label tells us something of the beer. An interesting black lager, it has the same refreshing mouthfeel of a lager but with the flavours of a dark beer.

1514 5.0%

This lager is made in accordance with the Bavarian Law of Purity. The result is a lager with more than a hint of hops and malty tastes of freshly toasted bread. Tasty and refreshing.