Herold Bohemian Black Lager - Pivovar Herold Březnice A.s.

Citadel82

New Jersey

4/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This was a tasty drinkable brew at a decent price.

Pours a dark coffee brown with a thick, tan, creamy head that leaves lots of lacing, Held to the light this brew shows ruby/garnet highlights. A good looking beer.

Smell is smoky, sweetish caramel, biscuit and sweet malt. Faint alcohol in finish.

Taste is malty, doughy sweet, a touch of sour with a short, dry, hop bittering finish. Alcohol is there in the back.

Feels tingly on the tongue, with a slick yet chewy mouthfeel. Very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2005 04:19:23 | More by Citadel82

pentathlete

Virginia

3.95/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Jet black in the pint glass with small beige head. Slight mocha smell. There was a hint of chocolate in the taste, some molasses in the maltiness, could have been a little crisper. The mouthfeel was a touch disappointing. It started off much too light, almost watery, then the flavors kicked in and saved it. I'm not sure what causes this phenomenon, it could have been me. Despite this, the beer is good and makes a nice afternoon beverage. I really like this style but my local stores have only one or two others for me to obtain.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2005 11:28:16 | More by pentathlete

FightingEntropy

Minnesota

4.2/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer is truly a black lager, opaque with on light, very nice in the glass with a fluffy brown head with small bubbles that fell fairly quickly. The smell is really great, lots of roast and toasted malt, caramel in the nose, but not overwhelming and no hint of coffe. The roast continues in the same vein for the taste, clear, no coffee, very nice roast malt taste, a little chewy but smooth as well. It is a spicy bite as well, but again light from the carbonation and hop that is very balanced with the malt. Overall, a very enjoyable beer, not complex, but very smooth, tasty, and refreshing while not being light.

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2007 02:15:35 | More by FightingEntropy

jreitman

California

4.33/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Black with a nice light brown head. Noticeable chocolate aromas in the nose. Taste was a whole lot of malt with nice burnt character. Moderately bitter finish. My first schwarzbier... I think I will be trying some more.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2002 22:06:34 | More by jreitman

ark57

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

It was nice to get my hands on something besides a pils from the Czech Republic. i was quite eager to sample it and it did not disappoint. It is black with ruby highlights. The aroma is has some raisin and buttery notes. The body is not too thick and is fruity with some burnt maltiness that tastes of bittersweet chocolate. It finishes crisp and clean. Quite refreshing for being a dark colored beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2004 16:05:38 | More by ark57

packetknife

Idaho

4.4/5  rDev +10%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

It's desert. Desert. At first glance most people are turned-off. It's dark with a dark head. At first sip people are suprised. It smells like burned cookers chocolate. Definatly one to try and make a seasonal habit of.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2002 10:33:43 | More by packetknife

TinusTime

Virginia

3.88/5  rDev -3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a coal black with a light khaki head. Aroma is rich with a malty chocolate nose with a hint of bitterness. Taste is deep and malty with chocolate, coffee and a bit of burnt sugar. Taste is very full and porter like. Mouthfeel is good with nice carbonation. Drinkability is OK a bit heavy for what I thought it should be. Overall a very robust lager. The label says Schwartzbier, but it seems a bit heavy for that

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2005 15:12:05 | More by TinusTime

pbrian

Connecticut

4.75/5  rDev +18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Very fresh, clean and smooth. Burnt malt aroma and flavors with hints of Saaz mingled into both as well. The finish lasts forever, leaving you with a lingering malt bitterness at the back of the throat making you want for more.

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2001 08:08:24 | More by pbrian

darklordlager

Wisconsin

4.03/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Appearance: Dark brown to black. Visibility around the edges.

Smell: Malt and Dark Fruits.

Taste: Some smokiness but mostly dark fruits, cherries.

Mouthfeel: Doesn't carry as much weight as you would expect from the colour. Pleasant.

Drinkability: The taste is very in your face. With a moderate ABV, I could put a few of these back, but the taste might become overpowering...

The dark fruits are reminiscent of a Wee Heavy, while the colour and mouthfeel are more along the lines of a dry-er Brown Ale.

Overall, an enjoyable beer.

Serving type: bottle

10-24-2008 18:55:54 | More by darklordlager

thepeter

United Kingdom (England)

4.13/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I get at least one of these each time I go to the supermarket. Poured into a pint glass from the GBBF.

A - Almost black with a slight red tint on the bottom of the glass. The head is perfect tan and lasts well into the beer and leaves a decent lacing.

S - Burnt/roasted malts, dry fruits, chocolate, a whiff of an open field.

T - toasty, malty, cocoa powder, bit of coffee, and a little sweetness.

M&D - great carbonation, easy to drink, very quaffable (not sure if that's a word but you know what I mean). Nice body, could drink it all night.

Serving type: bottle

08-16-2009 11:33:25 | More by thepeter

JudgeRoughneck

Louisiana

4.4/5  rDev +10%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 5

This is a deep ruby colored beer with a thick, foamy, malted-milk color head. Aroma is overpoweringly of sweet green apple, kind of like some of Sam Smith's beers, but even stronger. Hey, I like it.

Flavor is that same green apple along with a chocolatey malt base and a slightly roasted bitterness. It all comes together exceptionally smoothly with a suprisingly crisp finish. Mouthfeel is thick and creamy, which is nice, but something lighter would really make this brew heavenly. I don't know much about Schwarzbier but I know this is a new favorite of mine no matter what you call it.

Serving type: bottle

03-24-2006 21:38:36 | More by JudgeRoughneck

haz77

United Kingdom (England)

3.68/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours black with a mahogany hue. An inch of light tan head takes a couple of minutes to fall and leaves some lacing.

S - Chocolate, coffee, caramel, a little dark fruit.

T - Initial mouthful of chocolate and roast malts. Coffee comes through and leads towards a dry/slightly bitter finish.

M - Light-medium body and moderate carbonation.

D - Solid beer. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2006 21:43:33 | More by haz77

Byeast

Florida

4.35/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Poured a dark , opaque black , with a half inch of tan foam.

Smell: roasty malts , ghost smoke , some dark fruits , and a bit of floral hops poking through.

Taste: Very pleasant roasted character , rich , yet light bodied maltiness , smoky , some caramel sweetness , chocolate, a bit of flowery hops and a tinge of cedar in the finish.

Mouthfeel : medium body , for a dark beer: very refreshing and quaffable with a mildly dry finish.

Drinkability: An exellent Schwarzbier. Very flavorful and drinkable. Of the ones ive had , this schwarzbier has more of a pleasant smoky charater. Very good.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2006 05:15:08 | More by Byeast

Lnedrive14

Massachusetts

3.9/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Kind of tough to explain its look - very dark, like a stout, but not opaque at all. light passes through easily. medium-sized head.

A bit of fruit and chocolate sweetness and quite a bit of hops. Pumpernickel bread and a bit of molasses round it out. An interestingly complex beer - the flavors mold together in a strange way. can't say that i've had a similar experience before.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2006 04:55:39 | More by Lnedrive14

RocketWidget

Massachusetts

3.68/5  rDev -8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A very dark lager, with a small, short-lived, dark white/green head. Smell is very potent, butterscotch and sweet. Color is red /brown, hint of gold. Taste is sweet, malty and slightly bitter, with a chocolate aftertaste. Very refreshing dark lager overall.

Serving type: bottle

10-17-2003 18:53:45 | More by RocketWidget

GnomeKing

Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

There's a really nice mix of chocolate, nut, and grain flavors in this one. As you drink more, the sweet tastes, while not disappearing, yield some ground to a hops bite and a general spiceness. Everything is well-blended and tuned to the right levels, making this beer highly drinkable.

The dark lager/schwarzbier style is really growing on me.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2005 13:26:49 | More by GnomeKing

ipogios

Cyprus

4/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a black colour topped by a tanned head that settled down after a cuple of sips. The aroma was malty and light chocolate hints. Taste is malty and moderately chocolaty. I really liked this beer and it goes down quite easily. If you ever find yourself in Czech Republic try this one

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2003 05:54:19 | More by ipogios

Chadbrew

Delaware

3.55/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I am pretty new to this style doesn't seem to be many examples available. The pour is OK, dark beer but not so dark you can't see light through it. There is a creamy tan head and adequate amount of very fine bubbles of carbonation. The smell is malty and caramel, there does seem to be a hint of roast. Tastes the way it smells. Malty and caramel and enough hops bitterness to almost balance it out. I do like the mouthfeel of this; it is rich and full, kind of chewy.
Overall the drinkability is pretty good.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2006 17:06:16 | More by Chadbrew

zjungleist

Illinois

4.28/5  rDev +7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Dark brown/black in appearance with a light tan head which bubbled high and fell fast. The smell is mainly malt with a fair amount of yeast. Nice black malt flavors with some sugary notes somewhere between chocolate and vanilla. Not to say this beer is very sweet, but there is some residual sweetness countered with plenty of bitterness. Yet, that is not to say this beer is hoppy, because there is not much hop that I noticed, but mainly malty bitterness. The mouthfeel is spot on for the style, with a lager-like crispness and velvety richness. This brew is nice and complex, yet is not overpowering in any one way.

Serving type: bottle

02-16-2006 01:19:52 | More by zjungleist

BeerIsland

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer pours av ery deep brown with a thick, bubbly head. Rich, sweet, malty smells abound and are carried through to similar flavors with chocolatey fruity notes. It's a little toasty on the finsh. Very smooth and drinkable. It would make a very good winter beer but isn't a load for all the flavor you get. I like it!

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2006 01:22:25 | More by BeerIsland

endovelico

Portugal

3.73/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into dimpled stein. Taken from notes. Reviewed in 18 - 05 - 2010.

Appearance: Pours a jetblack brew with a one finger tan head with a creamy light brown rim that slowly recedes. Head retention is acceptable and lacing is minimal.

Aroma: Intense aroma of sweet chocolate with assertive notes of cacao and coffee with underlying notes of hop greeness.

Taste: Cacao upfront, with roasty and smoky undertones. On the back there is cedar and hops. There seems to be a metallic off-taste aswell.

Palate: Herold is a bit heavy on the palate, with spritzy light carbonation and low to medium bitterness. The alcohol is very well hidden.

Drinkability: Surprisingly unremarkable. Very drinkable but uninteresting. As far as style guidelines go, i wouldn't call it a straight forward Schwarzbier.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2010 11:44:17 | More by endovelico

ncbrewerbun

North Carolina

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

Poured from a brown 500 ml bottle. No expiration date.

This beer is a clear very dark mahogany with ruby hightlights. It has a tan head and lasts well into the beer, but not for the time to drink all 500 ml. A very good looking pint.

Nutty, toasty, malty aroma....Initially a very nice smell; but as the beer warms, some slightly undesireable vegetal components come out. (I let this one sit around longer than usual, or I likely would not have picked up on this.)

A well done schwarzbeer. Nice malt -- chocolate, a hint of molasses, good complexity. Sweetness of the malts comes through making a nice "schwarzbeer" statement.

I'd recommend this one.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2005 00:28:46 | More by ncbrewerbun

Stephen63

United Kingdom (Scotland)

3.63/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A - Well it's certainly black, almost stoutish. Head fizzled away quite quickly.

S - Served a bottle that was very cold so had difficulty getting too much from this, sweetness was noticeable.

T - Perhaps the stout appearance placed this in my mind but coffee/tobacco like flavour was prominent.

M - Quite a high level of carbonation.

D - Suprisingly pleasant and easy to drink.

Worth trying as, like most people, the "black lager" just got me too curious.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2007 20:41:57 | More by Stephen63

ThreePistols

Florida

4.53/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This is a very malty brew, four different malts are used in the brewing, but this is balanced by a generous helping of Saaz hops. As befits a proper lager, it is stored (lagered) for 70 days in the cellars of the brewery before bottling.

A gold medal was awarded at the Czech Beer Competition in 2000.

Deep ruby color with a creamy brown head with lace till the end. A smooth, refreshing and malty-hoppy aroma, with yeasty notes. The initial palate is full-on bitter chocolate, with good malt character and some vanilla creaminess, complimented by peachy notes on the swallow: the overall smoothness speaks of conscientious lagering. Then the Saaz shows itself with a marked, bracing hop kick in the finish. A lingering bitter chocolate aftertaste.

This is an exceptional beer when drunken ice cold. Very drinkable, I reached the bottom of each glass before I knew it.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2001 01:01:10 | More by ThreePistols

WMBierguy

Maryland

3.38/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2

Pours a dark brown - almost black. Had a tan colored head that lasted a minute or two. The taste is very mellow, with very little evidence of hops and no bitterness. The aftertaste is reminscent of coffee. Would make a good dessert beer, and I think that it would go nicel with a piece of dark chocolate. It would be a poor choice for a heavy drinking session, as it has a somewhat cloying effect. An interesting beer, though not one that I'm likely to get again any time soon.

Serving type: bottle

08-23-2005 02:28:29 | More by WMBierguy