Krombacher Dark - Krombacher Brauerei

rangerred

Tennessee

3.35/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

330ml bottle into a pint glass.

Pours a very dark brown with a very thick two finger tan head. Great head retention and lacing. Quite impressive.

The aroma has a nice caramel and toast note along with grassy hops so typical in the style. There is a nice balance between the roast and hops although I wish the toastiness was a little more prominent.

Much less roast in the flavor although there is a healthy dose of caramel. Bread and grassy hops in the background but all of the flavors are quite subtle overall. Just a light bitterness and oily mouthfeel with a bit of sticky in the finish.

Overall. a decent schwarzbier but a little underwhelming. I prefer the original pils.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 22:45:10 | More by rangerred

silverking

Florida

3.83/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

A- Very dark brown, with red highlights. It has a khaki head with fair retention. Lacing is nice, leaving well defined rings down the sides of the glass.

S- Lighter and fruitier than expected. It shows notes of floral sweetness, raisin, and cocoa.

T- Sweet raisins covered in chocolate, slightly tart in the mid-palate. The finish is dry, with mild roasty notes of black coffee.

M- Light, dry. light carbonation that is very gentle.

O- Very impressed. The body of a lager, with the taste and aroma of something more. Easy drinking, sessionable, and very good.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2013 20:11:54 | More by silverking

scruffwhor

Illinois

3.03/5  rDev -11.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Dark garnet, maybe cola colored brew. After the pour, head recedes swiftlyThe bubbling that I can see seems pretty vibrant in this brew.

Tinny, maybe somewhat roasted malt and some grassy hops. Smells crisp with a little darkness.

Roasted, but carbonated, bubbly crisp and some metallic twang to teh flavor and palate. Some earthy hop flavors helping to balance the metal flavors. Sort of easy to drink, but too metallic for my taste.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 01:11:42 | More by scruffwhor

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.23/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12oz Bottle from Brouehaha QC for 2.50$

Appearance - Dark brown colour with an average size fizzy beige coloured head. It's hard to make out the level of carbonation and there is some fair lacing. The head lasted for around 4 minutes.

Smell - Malts, chocolate, grains, metallic

Taste & Mouth - There is an above average amount of carbonation and I can taste malts and a hint of chocolate/coffee. There is also some corn/grains and some metallic notes. It ends with a grainy and lightly malted aftertaste with a bit of lingering bitterness.

Overall - It smells better than it tastes unfortunately. Still a pretty decent beer but not something I would pick up again. It's just a tad too boring. I can see how this would be a session beer however; especially given the ABV.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2012 23:51:06 | More by spinrsx

jazzyjeff13

United Kingdom (England)

3.1/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A 500ml bottle with a BB of July 2012, so it's just out of date. Picked up from Tesco some time back.

Poured into a tulip pint glass. A deep reddish-brown colour; appears black unless held to the light. Forms a large head of brownish-tan foam that lasts for a few minutes before subsiding. Aroma of sweet, grainy malt with mild hints of caramel and brown sugar.

Tastes of caramel malt with a mild finish. Slightly sweet. Faint notes of grain, brown sugar, caramel and very mild stewed hops. Quite dry, but no real bitterness to speak of. Mouthfeel is smooth, with pleasing tingly carbonation, though a bit thin. Aftertaste of caramel malt.

Not bad, but not particularly substantial. The aroma and flavour are rather one-dimensional, just mild caramel malt and little else. I guess I'd like to see a more robust malt character and perhaps a hint of roastiness/bitterness to complete the flavour. Still, it goes down easily - this would be a good choice when you don't want anything challenging. Worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2012 20:50:58 | More by jazzyjeff13

oberon

North Carolina

3.43/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into my Monchshof Schwarzbier glass a medium chocolate color with reddish hue through out a 1/2 finger off white head atop.aromas are light with some choclate and mineral notes.somewhat bready with a real tinny/metallic element to it,a doughy chocolate finish.It's decent,not overly sweet by any mean but not overly complex either.

Serving type: bottle

07-07-2012 20:24:34 | More by oberon

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.78/5  rDev +10.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

A: Pours a clear near black in color with some hints of dark amber near the edges of the glass and the surface when held up to the light. The beer has a quarter finger tall beige to dark beige head that reduces to a thin film covering about half of the surface of the beer and a ring of medium thickness at the edges of the glass. Light amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Light to moderate aromas of dark malts and possibly some chocolate malts.

T: Like the smell, the dominant flavors of the beer come from the malts - mostly dark malts with some light amount of chocolate malts. Light bitterness is present but does not really linger.

M: On the lighter side of medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation.

O: Very easy to drink, enjoyable, and sessionable. Though this appears as a dark beer that might put some people off, this is light enough to be a very enjoyable summer beer. I like the flavor quite a bit.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2012 10:45:34 | More by dbrauneis

metter98

New York

3.63/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: The beer is very dark amber (near black) in color. It poured with a small beige head that has good retention properties and consistently left a thin layer of bubbles covering the surface.
S: There are moderately strong aromas of dark malts in the nose.
T: Similar to the taste, there are flavors of dark malts and notes of chocolate malts.
M: It feels light- to medium-bodied and a bit smooth on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer goes down very easily and is rather drinkable. It is a good representation of the style.

Serving type: bottle

06-30-2012 17:30:25 | More by metter98

RonaldTheriot

Louisiana

3.9/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Krombacher Dark has a thick, roiling, pillowy, beige head and a dark brown appearance, with red highlights. Pretty heavy lacing is left down the glass. The aroma is of tap water and maybe some malt sweetness. Taste is of dark-roasted barley malt, coffee, chocolate, some straight-forward bitterness, and sweetness. There is paperyness here as well. Mouthfeel is light to medium, and Krombacher Dark finishes crisp, clean, refreshing, and easy drinking. Overall, this is a good beer, and I think it’s worth trying.

RJT

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2012 14:39:42 | More by RonaldTheriot

vickersspitfire

Texas

3.43/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pilsner, it’s a tempting dark amber brown, almost black, color topped off with a two and a half finger thick tan head that slowly tins out to about a 1/8 inch of bubbles with a tick lacing. There’s a good caramel aroma mixed in with some chocolate, figs, and raisins. It’s light bodied, bitter overall with a good orange zest flavor. Sweet undertones are present and there’s a slight alcohol and raisin flavor in its aftertaste.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2012 04:11:45 | More by vickersspitfire

tempest

Pennsylvania

3.13/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Picked up a single from Euro Market. Not a bad beer, but it comes off like a Euro dark lager. This beer has a touch of roast, but no cocoa. Instead, the malt character has a stronger fruity barley. It's a smooth beer with a slightly dry finish. Not bad, but not a schwarzbier. Eh.

Serving type: bottle

03-04-2012 03:42:33 | More by tempest

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

3.43/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Served in a Krombacher tulip glass.

A - Poured dark brown with 2 fingers of off white head. Some light cane through around the edges of the glass but otherwise opaque.

S - Light nose. Some dark roasted malts with a slight bitterness evident.

T - Roasted malts, chocolate and a prominent hop bitterness. There is also a decent sweetness that takes on caramel and mollases flavours at times.

M - Light to medium body. Moderate carbonation.

Serving type: on-tap

12-09-2011 15:57:29 | More by TheSevenDuffs

flyingpig

United Kingdom (Scotland)

3.48/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Dark mahogany brown with an inch tall dark tanned head. Retention is good, lasts about a couple minutes.

Dark roasted malts and some chocolate upfront coupled with a stronger coffee smell that I would have like but nothing too overbearing or off-putting. It is quite sweet and has some background vanilla notes that I was not expecting.

Dark malts and hints of barley along with a sweet chocolate flavour that matches the nose well. There is very little evidence of the coffee or vanilla from the smell however and the beer is the better for it in my eyes. It has hints of brown sugar too.

Medium to light bodied with mild carbonation and a rich, creamy smoothness to the sip. It is quite and crisp with a mild bitter end to it.

A rather enjoyable beer that went down quite well and would make an excellent session beer in my opinion. It wasn't outstanding by any means but decent.

1001 Beers Blog:
http://abarwithnoname.wordpress.com

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2011 22:19:45 | More by flyingpig

StJamesGate

New York

3.35/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Black that's clear oxblood in light and ashy tan foam that fades to film quick enough. Lagery grain, a bit of prune and a mulchy wet wood scent that's not entirely pleasant.
Raisin toast malts with slightest roasty sour bite and vague grassy hops. Marmite cloyingness as it warms. Root beer finish and drying linger.
Thin, fizzy, watery.

Definitely sides on the macro lager side of the style - it's not Guinness black lager, but it's not a great advertisement for Schwartz. A quencher with a twist, but look elsewhere for quality.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2011 21:38:54 | More by StJamesGate

julian89

Georgia

3.1/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Black body with very little head or lacing.

Smell:Very light with a raisin, malt, and vague vanilla odor.

Taste: Sweet, very sweet, not too much to it. Malt taste is strong.

Mouthfeel: Almost to light for a beer, similar to water consistency.

Overall: A little bit to light for me, I don't want to bash the beer, but I could see it being a little more in flavor and balance then it is now.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2011 23:14:41 | More by julian89

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

3.03/5  rDev -11.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

16 ounce pint - Taco Mac in Kennesaw, Georgia.

Appearance: Effectively a black body with an inch of airy, light beige froth. Thin sheets of lace on the way down.

Smell: Incredibly modest, disinterested notes of roast, semi-sweet chocolate, coffee, and vanilla.

Taste: Very, very light touches of cola, roast, chocolate. There's really just not much to it at any point. Mildly sweet. A drop of faux vanilla flavoring. Very light herbal hops and accompanying bitterness. Soft, roasty-ish finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light body. Medium carbonation.

Overall: Inoffensive, easy drinking. Just as the Krombacher Weizen was a bit on the "light" end of the flavor spectrum, so, too, is the Krombacher Dark a wee bit wimpy.

Serving type: on-tap

10-25-2011 17:53:49 | More by ChainGangGuy

crossovert

Wisconsin

3.48/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

2 330ml bottles poured into a half liter dimpled mug.

It pours a dark brown with a foamy tannish white head that leaves a lot of lacing.

The smell is fruity with a hint of cocoa.

The flavor is light with a hint of roasty chocolate, some hops, and some fruit.

A light easy drinker, not bad.

Serving type: bottle

10-22-2011 01:52:33 | More by crossovert

chinchill

South Carolina

3.95/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

300ml brown bottle with both production (4 May 2011) and "best before" dates (4 May 2012) on the back label. [bravo!]

A: This "dark" beer is really dark: near opaque with reddish-brown highlights at the edges. The large dark tan head picks up some of the coloration, having traces of reddish-orange. Certainly a good looking beer before the head dies.

Aroma: rich but not very complex, featuring medium and dark malts with a hint of smoke. Faintly reminiscent of Negro Modelo, but much richer and better.

T: Dominated by roasted/toasted malts, some spicy hops make a noticeable and well proportioned contribution to a fine schwarzbier. Very tasty yet neither bitter nor sweet. Finishes with a lasting toasted malt flavor with hints of smoke, spicy hops and coffee.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with perfect carbonation. Some appreciated dryness in the finish.

O - easy recommendation for malt lovers, this one has plenty of rich dark malt flavor, mostly dark roasted without any off- or burnt-flavor qualities. A very fine German dark beer. Reminds me of the world-class Andecher. Despite nearly identical ratings, the taste is better than the aroma and really outstanding for style.

Serving type: bottle

10-05-2011 00:47:11 | More by chinchill

yemenmocha

Arizona

3.5/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours dark brown with good clarity, and small head that doesn't last long. Nose is light and toasty, with gentle brown sugar baked goods in the background. On the palate, good carbonation, roasted malts, and grainy sweetness. Light bodied. Easy drinking.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2011 03:46:59 | More by yemenmocha

BlackHaddock

United Kingdom (England)

4.22/5  rDev +23.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

500ml Brown bottle poured into two Alt glasses: this beer is really dark, dead dark in fact, a huge light brown head topped off a good looking beer.

The aroma was of slightly smoked malts, coffee and dark chocolate also could be detected.

The flavours in the mouth followed the smells almost to the letter, roasted and toasted malts giving off those lovely chocolate and coffee tastes, again with a hint of smokiness.

Mouthfeel was a lot better than almost every other Schwarzbier I've had, being richer and thicker than the usual lager based brews normally found under this style.

Wasn't expecting such a good beer to be honest, glad I bought it. Easily the highest scoring beer of this style I've reviewed (this is the 12th).

Serving type: bottle

09-11-2011 19:34:16 | More by BlackHaddock

Cyberkedi

Georgia

3.63/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Comes out of the tap a deep warm sable with a thick, fine-bubbled light tan head. Malty aroma has a smoky undertone and subtle chocolate and coffee hints. Crisp, malty, lagerish flavor has nutty and coffee undertones and a hint of semi-sweet chocolate. Smooth, fairly fizzy texture is rather pleasant.

Serving type: on-tap

09-04-2011 01:19:22 | More by Cyberkedi

Arithmeticus

Maryland

3.9/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Poured chilled in hotel glass in Sofia, Bulgaria hotel. Beer follows Germany's purity laws.

A: solid black, thin head
S: plum, chocolate, fig; very sweet and delicate smell
T: coffee, roasted grains, sweet; hops are subdued; light ABV makes this easy to drink

A pretty good, decent beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-26-2011 13:21:47 | More by Arithmeticus

BDTyre

British Columbia (Canada)

3.58/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Nice gem...being German, I thought this would be much more widely reviewed. Dark ruby-brown, almost black with a creamy, tan head. Strong hops, creamy malts, light grassiness and even a mild skunk in the nose. Definitely a lager smell, but with suggestions of chocolate and coffee to it.

Slightly bitter lagery taste. Light caramel and chocolate, raisins and brown sugar. Very faint coffee. Light citrus from the hops.

Light body, good carbonation - what you expect from a lager. Very nice schwarzbier, and with a low ABV easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

07-13-2011 05:25:39 | More by BDTyre

Everydayoff

Thailand

3.33/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Poured 500ml bottle into a pils glass with freshness date on back label.

A:
Very deep brown to almost black color with hint of reddish hue, thick off-white foamy head with good retention and left with good amount of lacing patches upon recede. The carbonation is medium to high.

S:
The smell consist roasted malt, chocolate, creamy/buttery diacetyl.

T:
Dominate by roasted malt which produces a bit astringent touch. Slight bread and mild hop bitterness also disclose to fill the taste.

M:
The body is somewhere between light to medium with proper amount of carbonation. The finish is rather dry.

O:
Good taste and low alcohol keep this beer in high drinkable side.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2011 06:21:21 | More by Everydayoff

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.53/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On-tap at Terroni, an Old World pizzeria in downtown Toronto...

This beer appears a clear, dark cola hue, with two fingers of foamy light beige head, which leaves a splattering of lace around the glass as it retreats. It smells of lightly roasted malt, some mild mocha, and earthy hops. The taste is toasted caramel malt, dry chocolate, some nutty coffee, and floral, earthy hops. The carbonation is moderate, the body medium weight, and a little slick, and it finishes off-dry, the sweet malt somewhat offset by the soft green bitterness growing from the hops.

A nicely flavoured, suitably complex black lager. Went well with a spicy Neapolitan pizza.

Serving type: on-tap

03-25-2010 22:24:09 | More by biboergosum