Guinness Black Lager - Guinness Ltd.

BrauKilR

Michigan

3.08/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Aroma: Some faint hints of restrained roast and chocolate. Treacle. No coffee or burnt, as the Guinness name has come to imply. Not as sweet, spicy or nutty as some German schwartzbiers I’m familiar with (Kostritzer foremost). The most prominent aroma in this sample is an Earthy, tobacco, English hop aroma that when combined with subtle malt and clean yeast/fermentation character is vaguely reminiscent of lambic funk (some day I’ll actually smell a horse blanket and say, “That smells like a Cantillon Grand Cru!).
Appearance:Very dark brown to black with ruby hilites. A creamy tan head that builds copiously and diminishes equally quickly to a thin layer of cream, lacing the glass and just covering the surface. Neither turbid nor opaque, but clear where visible.
Flavor: Bitter up front comingled with dry roast. The subtlest hints of bitter chocolate. No esters, no fruitiness or sweetness of any sort. Lager character is whistle clean, leaving only malt and hop character to stimulate the taste and palate. The finish is dry. The overall taste experience is similar to that of the dry stout Guinness minus the creamy mouthfeel.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied and dry overall. Perhaps a hint of tartness and a roast malt crispness that echoes the Guinness signature dry stout. Dryness without astringency and modest carbonation describe mouthfeel best, like holding unsweetened chocolate in your mouth.
Overall: Personally, dry stouts always leave me wanting, as if someone skimmed the top off an Imperial or foreign extra stout and served it to me. This beer is along those lines: less nutty than a brown porter; less roast character than a robust porter or any other proper stout; restrained roastiness more in line with a dry schwartzbier. If you like Guinness draft you’ll like this.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2011 00:15:49 | More by BrauKilR

Aretis

Indiana

1/5  rDev -67.8%

05-21-2013 05:47:49 | More by Aretis

Kingcurio

Oklahoma

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-21-2013 02:20:14 | More by Kingcurio

atomicskier1889

Minnesota

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-20-2013 16:24:42 | More by atomicskier1889

ClayO

Arizona

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-19-2013 22:37:07 | More by ClayO

plaid75

New York

3.6/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured a deep brown hue with a one finger foamy white head. There was good retention and lacing.

The smell featured light roasted malts and a soft sweetness.

The flavor was likewise round and moderately roasty with a grassy hop at the finish.

The mouthfeel was typical of the style.

Overall a tasty easy drinking beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2013 02:32:21 | More by plaid75

ajtorres311

Florida

2/5  rDev -35.7%

05-16-2013 15:51:34 | More by ajtorres311

twenty5

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-12-2013 20:48:44 | More by twenty5

StaindProject86

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev +12.5%

05-12-2013 19:02:30 | More by StaindProject86

JamesStreet

Louisiana

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-10-2013 21:01:35 | More by JamesStreet

pcsnyder

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev +12.5%

05-10-2013 16:23:36 | More by pcsnyder

Tavo2311

New Jersey

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-08-2013 00:45:18 | More by Tavo2311

blknikon

Massachusetts

2.25/5  rDev -27.7%

05-08-2013 00:10:47 | More by blknikon

Erice78

Florida

3.25/5  rDev +4.5%

05-07-2013 21:41:47 | More by Erice78

John_B

Michigan

2.75/5  rDev -11.6%

05-04-2013 23:16:19 | More by John_B

ZEB89

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -3.5%

05-04-2013 20:24:02 | More by ZEB89

blee107

Ireland

1.5/5  rDev -51.8%

05-04-2013 16:59:22 | More by blee107

dvanhandel

New Jersey

3.5/5  rDev +12.5%

05-04-2013 13:09:56 | More by dvanhandel

JF1917

3.25/5  rDev +4.5%

05-03-2013 21:58:51 | More by JF1917

Carpentiere

New Hampshire

2/5  rDev -35.7%

05-02-2013 18:04:09 | More by Carpentiere

Rlh2

Texas

3.5/5  rDev +12.5%

05-02-2013 02:46:33 | More by Rlh2

hattrick95

New Jersey

3.25/5  rDev +4.5%

05-02-2013 01:07:27 | More by hattrick95

JuicesFlowing

Kansas

2.9/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.75

Poured into a beer mug.

Look: The color of coffee in a glass, with ruby coming through in the light. A fizzy soda pop head recedes to a light film. Light spots of lacing on the glass.

Aroma: Faint grains, roasted malts, maybe coffee. Smells like an adjunct lager.

Taste: There's coffee in the finish. Everything else is very much in the vein of a non-skunky Euro lager.

Mouthfeel: Light and carbonated.

Overall: Really, no complexity or taste. Only tried it out of curiosity, and you know what that did to the cat ...

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2013 00:14:31 | More by JuicesFlowing

J_Dub

Texas

2/5  rDev -35.7%

04-22-2013 22:36:39 | More by J_Dub

bmurray10

Texas

3.5/5  rDev +12.5%

04-22-2013 14:33:35 | More by bmurray10