Capital Dark - Capital Brewery

Gehrig

Illinois

3.93/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Rich chestnut with orange trim topped with two soda-like fingers of slightly tan froth that fade fast, leaving almost no lacing. Good, malty aromas--hazelnut, fruit, and caramel, as with the taste. Good, solid malt heft that is a good representative of the style. Somewhat sweet through no shortage of caramel, this could use a bit of a bite, to me. The mouthfeel is a bit thin and disappointing. On the whole, a pretty decent beer, not outstanding but not one to turn aside.

Worth a go.

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2009 01:32:30 | More by Gehrig

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.48/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from notes.

Appears a transparent yet darker reddish-brown in color with a single finger of fizzy cream colored head that dissipates down to a collar in about two minutes, no lacing. Smells of medium levels of dark roasted malt character with a prune / fig garnish on top. Tastes mostly malty, but maintains strict levels of dryness throughout with a strong level of carbonation on a lighter body. I've had better and I've had worse than this one for the style.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2012 04:53:41 | More by WastingFreetime

maxpower

Missouri

3.7/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Dark clear reddish brown in color with a small white head doesn't last, with not much in lacing. Bready and nutty aromas, starts sweet and bready with some caramel and nutty flavors, medium bodied, with a nice rounded mouthfeel, finishes smooth and sweet.

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2003 14:08:58 | More by maxpower

beernut7

Massachusetts

4.1/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This Munich-style dark lager pours with a deep translucent brown color and a foamy off-white head. The aroma is of generously spicy hops and sweet caramel malt. The light bready sweet malt and delicate dark maltiness are balanced well by mellow softly spicy hops. Quite a drinkable beer with a soft finish.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2002 17:50:05 | More by beernut7

Beejay

Virginia

3.8/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Black in the glass, held up to the light and it is blood red. Nice off white head.

S: Light hop aroma, something sharp in there, but I can't put my finger on it. The malt is subdued, but present.

T: That is a deep, rich, malty bomb. Lovely. Huge roasted flavor, and a bit of bitterness. Very nice.

M: Medium to thick bodied, carbonation is good.

D: Very nice. Well put together, and certainly a bold flavor.

Serving type: bottle

08-09-2010 02:27:26 | More by Beejay

falloutsnow

Illinois

3.03/5  rDev -18.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

From: Friar Tuck's, Savoy, IL
Date: "00114A10356" stamped on bottle's bottom
Glass: Ayinger willi glass

Capital's Dark is altogether fairly forgettable, blending a modest brown and dark malt sweetness with subdued European hops for a dark, though bland, lager with few distinguishing marks such as toasted nuts or chocolate. One that I will probably not seek out again.

Pours a 2cm head of light tan, fairly dense and small bubbles, which have a fairly froth-like appearance. Retention is about average, lasting a minute or two as it collapses to a modest cap of foam atop the beer. Lacing is excellent, with substantial blotches and clumps along the sides of the glass. Body is dark brown in color when out of the light, amber-brown with strong red hues when in. Carbonation through the transparent body, noticeable but modest.

Aroma is of crackers made from slightly toasted and roasted grains. Not much in the way of toasted nuts, cocoa, overall rather bland and unassuming. Least impressive aroma from a Munich Dunkel Lager I've had yet.

Major flavors in the beer are dark and brown malt sweetness, with mildly bitter hops in the background. Tasting opens with brown malt sweetness combined with a bit of mineral character. Mid-palate takes the sweetness and adds a modest hop bitterness to the background, while the back of the palate picks up European hop bitterness with a small contribution from dark malt sweetness. Aftertaste is satisfying: of modest cocoa and bitter European hops, creating an effect of bitter, European-style chocolates.

Beer is medium-light to light in body, with a bit of wateriness noticeable around the edges. Carbonation is medium to medium-high, creating a fairly prickly mouthfeel at first, before the beer fizzes up on the palate to become more flowing and creamy. Finish is semi-dry.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2012 04:42:04 | More by falloutsnow

Tballz420

Minnesota

3.6/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This is a very dark colored copper/brown beer. On the top is a small tan colored head. The aroma is caramel malts. That goes for the taste as well, caramel is the dominant flavor of this beer. There isnt much contrast to the malty flavor. Slightly bitter tones show through. An alright drink.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2003 21:32:45 | More by Tballz420

botham

Illinois

4.22/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a pilsener glass. pours a dark bronze color with amber highlights, and a finger or so of off-white head after a hard pour. no lacings here.

smells malty and yeasty, with a nutty and bready base. a light floral aroma is present as well. a musty aroma shows itself as one consumes the brew, though not taking much away from the other aromas.

tastes malty, with a fruity yeast base and a sweet finish. there is a light bite from CO2 here, though pleasant overall. a rather honest and simple flavor profile.

mouthfeel is creamy and medium-bodied. a light bite from carbonation gives it some depth.

drinkability is good. this is not a heavy or rich beer, but it does bring bold flavors and character to the palate, which is more than can be said about most other lighter lagers.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2007 20:19:26 | More by botham

Winter

Wisconsin

3.85/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured a dark mahogany with a cream-colored head. Aroma consisted of caramel, chocolate malt and had a feint floral hoppiness to it. Medium bodied and smooth mouthfeel. Rich malty middle. Roasted malt flavors shine through at the start of the finish. Slight smokey nuttiness introduces itself also at this point. Hop bitterness pops up in the end. A fine offering from Capital.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2003 21:28:53 | More by Winter

Shiloh

Ontario (Canada)

3.78/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A nice brew by Capital...but not exceptional. The colour is a deep dark brown with redish undertones. The crown initially was a light tan and limited, leaving only a very minor glass ring.
Carbonation was limited and the body was medium.
The taste was of dark bakers chocolate, bittersweet with a definite end rewarding the hops.
The nose was mildly grassy.
Pleasing.

Serving type: bottle

07-16-2003 23:52:44 | More by Shiloh

chilidog

Ohio

3.85/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A good pour of this dark mahogany lager offers a nice tan head that maintains and laces well. The aroma of sweet malt and spice please the nose. The taste backs it up with hints of caramel. A smooth easy drink though a little lite or watery mouthfeel. A good choice for a meal companion on the dark side.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2003 21:13:03 | More by chilidog

BeerBuilder

Minnesota

3.98/5  rDev +7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours to a ruby brown color with an off-white heat that dissipates quickly. It has a nice, sweet malty, biscuity, and chocolatey aroma. The flavor is malty, chocolatey and biscuity. It is an easy drinking brew. A very good medium bodied beer. Another good Capital brew.

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2003 07:47:02 | More by BeerBuilder

Strix

Wisconsin

3.7/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured dark brown, decent head with some lacing.

Smells of dark malts, dark fruits, and earth. The slightest lingering grain note.

Warm bread, malt, cocoa, earthiness, and dark fruits in the taste.

Medium mouthfeel and carbonation.

An easy drinking flavorful lager. Not world class, but I'd have another.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2010 00:10:33 | More by Strix

beveragecaptain

New Jersey

3.73/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 ounce bottle. This beer pours out a dark brown color with an off-white head. The aroma is toasted malt and brown sugar. Toasted malt flavor. Some roastiness. Maybe just a little smoke. Spicy hops come in in the finish. The mouthfeel is a little thin. Good drinkability. Capital makes a number of solid offerings, and this is one of them.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2005 04:25:20 | More by beveragecaptain

dstc

Florida

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours brown with a ruby background. Nice tan head that falls relatively slow to a small one. Thin lace.

Deep roasted malt aroma, not much else.

Has a burnt, sweet, roasted malt taste. A little thin but rather decent.

Medium bodied and somewhat smooth. Moderate carbonation. Decent drinking beer.

Nothing extraordinary but a good solid brew.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2009 21:39:56 | More by dstc

shivtim

Georgia

3/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A pretty average brew. Pours a clear red with some brown, and a foamy tan head. Nose is mostly roasted malts, but with some hints of sweetness. Taste is bitter hops, some malts, and a slight smokiness. Mouthfeel is ok, if thin. Drinkability is average.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2007 01:02:34 | More by shivtim

hotstuff

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A good enjoyable Dunkel and I would have rated it higher had it had more umph to it. It poured a small sized tan head that contained fine-medium sized bubbles. The body was carbonated and clear with a reddish-brown hue. The nose was moderately malty and also had notes of caramel to it. The flavor was malty, and sweet with a smooth, somewhat thin and watery mouthfeel. The lacing was fair.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2003 22:15:48 | More by hotstuff

Golden2wenty1

Wisconsin

4.3/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Picked up a single at Riley's here in Madison.

Pours a dark mahogany, remeniscent of a dark brown ale, with a minimal off-white head that fades quickly. Smell is bready and malty, got nostalgic for my Newcastle days. Taste is yeasty with toasted bicuit, roasted coffee, lactose, and a bit of belgian-style dark fruits. This seems like a melting pot of dark beers to me, a melange of english brown ale, oatmeal/sweet stout, and a mild belgian. A bit scatterbrained perhaps, but I rather enjoyed it. Mouthfeel is a bit thin, but velvety smooth. I could drink quite a few of these until the lacotse sweetness got to me. A lot more character than I would have thought here, glad I gave it a try.

Serving type: bottle

10-05-2005 00:29:10 | More by Golden2wenty1

Slynger

Illinois

3.6/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Munich Dark pours a deep, clear, amber-bronze, with a lid of fine dirty white fuzz.

The nose is a touch sweet with caramel and a few dark fruits. Dark toasted malts balance and some earthy, musty, lightly spicy hops.

Flavor is crisp and dry darkly toasted bready with hints of sweet caramel and dark fruits. Musty, spicy hops provide a pretty decent bitterness. Light-medium in body with a crisp, fuzzy, lightly sharp carbonation.

I can't recall having many Munich Dunkel's but this one has some nice attributes. A better than decent brew.

Serving type: bottle

07-29-2008 23:20:53 | More by Slynger

happygnome

Minnesota

3.33/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

a: purs a nice rich brown color with about a quarter inch of head that dissapears not too fast but doesnt stay around too long, leaves a think layer of lacing
s: biscquity/bready malts mixed with hints of cocao, grassy hop bitterness towards the finish of the aroma
t: bisquity/bready malt backbone initially, followed by the hints of of grassy hops and some fruity flavors but the malt backbone really carries throughout
m: medium bodied beer with not a lot of carbonation, overall kinda creamy

overall, i really enjoyed this and will be acquiring more

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2007 22:16:01 | More by happygnome

khiasmus

South Carolina

4.1/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A smooth, easily drinkable, dark amber, not particularly heady yet still attractive, highly carbonated, moderately malty, lightly roasty, and slightly bready dark lager, perfect for those muggy nights of summer. This is not one to sip, but to quaff, perhaps from mugs at a table of all your best friends under an umbrella near the sea by tiki-torchlight, or perhaps with your darling as you attempt to make her laugh because you love the sound, like the wind chimes on your grandmother's front porch.

This is not a complex beer, but what flavor it has is well-done. It is no Burgerbrau dark, but it is very well made for an American representation of an age-old style that hails from when beer was meant to be drunk in vast quantities because it was safer and more fun than water. Prosit!

Serving type: bottle

03-31-2009 02:36:39 | More by khiasmus

stoutman

Michigan

3.83/5  rDev +3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A very good dunkel. A deep, brownish amber color, a roasty aroma that accentuates the creamy and sweet taste; has a nice malt overtone as a good lager should have, with fruitiness. The flavor is just gorgeous with the sweet finish balanced by a generous helping of bittering hops.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2003 02:45:04 | More by stoutman

DrunkMcDermott

Illinois

3.68/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had this bottled beforehand, and it didn't really impress me. But fresh from the tap, it's a different story. I can now taste a decent dark roast taste, and that's in the middle of an evening with several Oktoberfests on tap. I think I almost an allergic reaction from the hop nose, though actual hop bitterness is not pronouced. One to seek out fresh.

Serving type: on-tap

10-02-2003 17:57:59 | More by DrunkMcDermott

wheatyweiss

Wisconsin

3.95/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a dark amber with a quickly receding head that leaves a moderate lace.

Aroma is molasses and dark candied sugar, roasted apples and peaches come to the nose.

Flavor is of malty fruit, very nice raisin and plum notes. Bready sweet roll and raisin cinnamon toast. Hops are there to balance the sweetness. Sweet roasted nuts and buttered pancakes with maple syrup. Slightly smokey peaty roll in there. The smoke is faint but it's there.

Mouthfeel is medium on body and finishes midly sweet with a slight oiliness.

Good beer, very flavorful.

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2008 23:43:17 | More by wheatyweiss

shbobdb

Indiana

4.45/5  rDev +19.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

What happens to Capital Bavarian Lager when you throw in a bunch of chocolate malt? Why, Munich Dark, of course!

Whoa there litt' fella, slow down on my taste-buds. I like roast chocolate flavours as much as the next guy, but this beer has a porter-like harshness to it. I love Capital beers for their delightful smoothness, not the astringency present here. There is simply too much roast flavour. It overwhelms anything else present in the beer. Very one dimensional.

Original score, 2-21-06
Serving: Bottle
Appearance: 4.5
Smell: 4.0
Taste: 3.0
Mouthfeel: 3.5
Drinkability: 3.0
---

It is amazing what phases we go through, isn't it? I bought a bottle of this during my stay in Wisconsin and I've got to say I am very pleased with it. The astringency that I complained about before is totally absent this time, as I enjoy a silky-smooth drink.
Aaaahhhh.

I do, however, still hold that this is basically their Bavarian lager with some carafa thrown in. But that isn't a bad thing at all. It has a pleasant grainy flavour to it, rounded out by a nice strong chocolate presence.

I would say that it is an uncomplicated beer, but I believe my statement that it was 'one dimensional' was waaaay too harsh. There is a fair amount going on in this beer, but not so much that I really have to *think* while drinking it. A perfect after work beer, with enough going on to keep me interested.

I tend to be hard on Capital, because 1) I used to drink it damned near everyday and 2) It is one of my favourite breweries. When I joined BA, I was simply spoiled on their beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2006 19:40:34 | More by shbobdb