Black Cat Lager - Paddock Wood Brewing Co.

trevorwideman

Manitoba (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

355ml bottle given to me by demcorhip, poured into a pilsner glass.

Pours a nearly opaque cola brown with a full inch of creamy head off a fairly vigorous pour. Leaves some nice sticky lace all the way down. Carbonation appears to be quite low. Aroma is husky and grainy with a hint of pepper, grass, hay, earth, caramel, cocoa and juicy apples. Clean and delicious, style wise it's a super solid aroma.

Flavour is all grains off the top, then turns nutty with hints of cocoa, caramel and fruit offset by a light, almost lactic sourness. Very pleasant and uncomplicated flavour, this is a session beer to be sure. Dries nicely in the finish, fairly soft in the mouth and carbonation is medium-low. Body is a bit heavier than I expected. That would not stop me from drinking a few of these on an evening though.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2008 03:22:34 | More by trevorwideman

ablaze

Alberta (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Dark cola brown with decent clarity, tan creamy head and superb lacing.

Clean and nutty scent, pistachios? Faintly roasted with a light, leafy hop edge and some chocolate. Slightly floral...

Nice blend of juicy, green hops and roasted maltiness. Refreshing and very easy to drink session beer. Bittersweet baking cocoa...creamy with lively carbonation and light, crisp body. Very tasty with a nice European lager character and leafy hops...like a warm summer night.

Very affordable Saskatchewan brew...and so tasty. Will come back to this one a lot as I went through the six pack pretty fast.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2008 03:07:13 | More by ablaze

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.93/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

A nicely drinkable shwartz thanks to Noxious26. This is malty and mollasses and licorice, and drying finish, but carmel malts made it a nice quick drink on hot night that did the trick. The freshness was good. Brownish colour and moderate cold coffee made it interesting.I could definately have this again.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2007 03:31:12 | More by northyorksammy

markaberrant

Saskatchewan (Canada)

4.35/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - crystal clear, not quite black, shows brown at bottom of glass and red flashes when held to a light. Small but tight tan head holds up for awhile, eventually dropping to a thin cap. Excellent lacing.

S - smooth coffee and chocolate, with an underlying sweetness

T - Magnificent mocha cream, some noble hop flavour kicks in, then some sweet malt. Aftertaste is roasted coffee.

M - Crisp and dry finish (wow, I didn't even read the label before typing this, but it says "crisp dry finish"). Overall body is light and refreshing, but not thin, it's enough to carry the excellent flavour.

D - moderate alcohol beer with tons of interesting flavours always do the trick for me!

If you'll see my review below, I must have had a bad bottle, because this is the Black Cat I originally remember enjoying. Splendid!

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2007 00:01:55 | More by markaberrant

pootz

Ontario (Canada)

4.35/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle 12 oz

The pour: Puts a deep dark brown lager in the glass with a pleasing 2 finger rocky cap which lasts and laces well.

The Nose: detects bready malts and a distinct "burnt toast char" also a coffee-like roast tone with some woody notes.

The delivery: Big chewy malts laced with roast coffee warmth and some sharp spicy Saaz hopping. Mid palate we get a nice mix of dark toasted rye bread, some bitter-chocolate tastes, creamy mouth feel, weedy hop tastes... then the clean finish which tends to dry out slowly and linger, light hop bitterness with a complementary but subtle roastiness in the background. Some light residual sweetness in the after taste.

The Verdict: A first class Canadian Schwarzbier which I much prefer to the Kostritzer from Thuringa.. ..This Paddock Wood brew is true to west Thuringia style..certainly a dryer cousin of a Munich dunkel.

Black Cat was very fresh and flavourful compared to the commercial imported German blackbeers available. The 5.4%ABV makes it a soothing and satisfying beer as well as a natural to pair up with Pumpernickel, german mustard, cold cuts and munster cheese...wonderful stuff to wash a big sandwich down with ...wish I lived in Calgary I'd have a fridge full of this stuff!

Serving type: bottle

04-19-2007 23:14:33 | More by pootz

IronDjinn

Alberta (Canada)

3.48/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

This pours out a deep ruddy mahogany, only displaying a cola-like hue when held to the light. Tall beige head on it, creamy in consistency.

Deep notes of roasted and toasted malt, along with a good dose of coffee on the nose. A roasted bitterness with pockets of milky sweetness rising up.

The consistency of the mouthfeel, along with the lightness of the flavour until the big roasted coffee ground finish, does nothing but remind me greatly of a beery version of an iced capuccino (albeit without the colossal calorie count). Which would make this the bees knees for those who are into that sort of thing. Myself, however, does not fit that category, yet I can appreciate this for what it is.

Another decent offering from Paddockwood, I'm not a big coffee flavour fan, yet I foresee myself still picking up more of this, the quality for the price is an easy sell. Hope to see more from this brewery in Alberta.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2007 20:05:20 | More by IronDjinn

vanrassel

Alberta (Canada)

3.63/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A tan head with big bubbles topped a brown body with ruby highlights. The smell was malty, with slightly sour yeast and a hint of chocolate. A bit of black cherry, too, maybe....

This beer's taste conforms well to the style: roasted (but not bitter) malts with slight bitterness coming from the hops at the end. Malted chocolate and some graininess as well, but overall this beer's taste was a little muted to make it memorable. The carbonation was low for my liking, but medium body helped beef it up a bit and keep it from being watery.

This is a pleasant, well-crafted beer, but not one I'd go out of my way to find.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2007 18:59:28 | More by vanrassel

elricorico

Alberta (Canada)

3.68/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

In the glass, this one is a deep cola brown, and sports a foamy beige head. Head doesn't last too long, leaves a ring and a pool on top.

Iced coffee smell of roasted malt is what I pick up first. Digging deeper there seems to be a bit of berry smell mixed in there.

Coffee and burnt flavours up front. Herbal taste in the finish mixed with a little bit of toasted flavour. Smoke increasingly becomes the lingering flavour as I get through the glass. Fairly balanced, plenty of flavour but nothing overbearing.

A bit of body considering it is a lager, but still manages to be light. Well carbonated, an easy drinking feel.

A good beer, my first experience with this brewery and I look forward to more.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2007 05:18:59 | More by elricorico

Noxious26

Saskatchewan (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

341ml bottle poured in a pint glass.

Black, opaque and cola looking. Light brown head is 1/2 inch on the pour, but quickly reduces to a thin ring around the edge. Sporadic lacing.

Aroma is roasted malts, burnt and a touch of sweetness.

Nice combination of roasted malt with a burnt tinge and a light hop bitterness. The malt/burnt and hops play in and out with one another appearing at different times from one sip to the next. Finish is mildly bitter with a light burnt background. Aftertaste is roasted malt with a light sweetness.

Light-medium bodied with little carbonation. You would think this would be a heavier feeling beer just by looking at it, but this body is more typical of the style.

A nice, light and refreshing beer with plenty of flavour and a good deal of complexity. Just right for the stout drinker that's looking for something lighter with similar flavour.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2006 04:35:00 | More by Noxious26

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle: Poured a pitch-black color beer with a huge foamy brown color head with pretty good retention. Aroma of roasted malt is detectable though not overpowering. Taste is a mix between roasted malt, coffee with a lingering smoke. Body has a creamy feel to it, which is quite enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2006 20:44:56 | More by Phyl21ca