Cornerstone Black Lager

Another of Black Lab Brewing’s two flagship beers, Cornerstone Black Lager is a 5% schwarzbier sold in 500mL bottles. The blackish lager, highlighted in amber, pours with a quickly thinning off-white head.

The beer has a lovely roasted malt and chocolate nose, accented with a whisper of anise. The beer is initially sweet and malty, with decent balance provided by a semi-sweet chocolate and raisin closing note, with just a touch of dark cherry.

Flavourful and rich, Cornerstone is an agreeable dark lager. I’d have liked the percentage to creep a bit higher, and the finish could have been more robust, but that hardly takes away from an otherwise excellent schwarzbier. An all-too-rare for Ontario after dinner lager.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Goatman Imperial India Black Lager

Goatman Imperial India Black Lager is produced in Garland, Texas by Lakewood Brewing Co. At 9.3% and 82 IBUs, this brew has major chops. According to the label, the brew is in honour of the Goatman of White Rock Lake, though there are scant details on his story. The beer is brown-black and topped with tan head.

The aroma is toasty and rich, though fairly mild. The flavour was definitely not, though, with notes of licorice, spice, and heady hops ballast.

Goatman was a damned strong and robust. It was my first go at an Imperial India Black Lager, and I liked it a lot. I didn't have a frame of reference, but I'm confident this stuff stacks up well.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10.

Guinness Black Lager

I was pretty floored when I saw Guinness Black Lager at the liquor store.  I had no idea that Guinness & Co. had branched out beyond their famed stouts. This black lager hails from St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland. It's sold in 330mL bottles and contains a light 4.5% alcohol. According to the label, this stuff is "cold brewed with roasted barley".

It's a deep, dark brown lager streaked with amber and ruby highlights. It poured with a thick, off-white head that starts thick and quickly faded. The aroma is grassy, but also has some malty qualities. It's very easy-drinking for a dark beer. It moves from sweet to bitter, with fairly significant focus on rich maltiness. The finish is mildly bitter, but remains malty to the end. There is some nice, roasty warmth in this brew which is otherwise quite refreshing.

It was a real novelty to see something new from Guinness and it's ain't bad either. It's not super memorable, but it was decent enough. Give it a try.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Staropramen Premium Beer

As a beer lover, one of the travel destinations I would most like visit is Prague, Czech Republic.  So many fantastic beers are Czech or Czech-inspired.  If anyone is at a loss about what to give me for my next birthday, plane tickets to Prague would be a nice touch.

Staropramen Premium Beer is a fine example of pale lager from Prague.  Sold in 500mL cans, this little fella weighs in at 5% alcohol.  It is a very clear brew, with the nice golden colour of apple juice.  It has a grainy, bready aroma with an aluminum kick.

My wonderful partner took the time to review this one with me.  In her opinion, Staropramen tastes light and is noticeably fizzy, with an apple-y undertaste.  She says it is more fizz than substance and has a refreshing, slightly bready aftertaste.  In her opinion, this is a great session beer.

In my opinion, the flavour is quite doughy and moves from sweet to bitter.  It has a fairly bulky, bitter aftertaste that is quite tinny and tends to linger.  This is not a bad little lager.

This brew is worth trying, but it's not apt to leave you awestruck.  It's more of a reliable, stalwart mug o' suds.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10 (Partner would have given this a remarkable 9.0, particularly due to its foam moustache potential).

Köstritzer Schwarzbier

Köstritzer Schwarzbier is a black lager from Germany. It's sold in classy looking black, gold and red 500mL bottles and weighs in at 4.8% alcohol. It's a very dark beer--black with ruby highlights. It's topped with a lusty tan head and leaves behind tons of lace.  Köstritzer smells of roasted grains. It has a relatively mild initial flavour and a thin body. It's roasty and considerably malty. Given the mild beginning, the aftertaste is surprisingly bitter and robust.

It's a pretty solid schwarzbier, however I'd like a bit bolder flavour at the front end and a bit more body.  Still, it's quite refreshing for a dark beer, and a very nice looking pint.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.