A Dark Lager & A Black Lager…To Kick Off Spring?

OK, so I was going through my fridge and found these two gems way in the back. I akin this discovery to finding a $20 bill in a jacket that you haven’t worn in a while!

Needless to say, I was excited for the delicious flavors that were soon to be cascading over my palate. But two dark beers just as Spring is starting? Hmm, well we all know that dark isn’t a flavor, right? And with these two beers being lighter in ABV, I figured why not?! Plus, I really wanted them, so…

The two beers in question are -

1 - Good Bird House - Czech Dark Lager from Grist House Brewing in Pittsburgh, PA

2 - Mixin’ The Colors - (German) Black Lager from Northway Brewing in Queensbury, NY

Now, should we call this a battle? If so, what should we call it? Czech Vs German? Tmave Pivo Vs Schwarzbier? PA Vs NY? Nah, let’s just call it what it actually is - Me cleaning out my fridge and finding two tasty beers to enjoy!

Let’s start with the Czech Dark Lager -

Good Bird House (4.7%ABV) pours a deep mahogany with a garnet tint and a beige head. The aroma is that of toasted bread crust, subtle chocolate and some dark fruit. The flavor has more Maillard notes up front, followed by mild semi-sweet chocolate and a good amount of dark fruit. A slight bit of hop bitterness helps to dry out the finish, making another sip very necessary. Until the glass was empty that is. A very enjoyable Dark Lager indeed!

Grist House is a go to of mine every time that I’m in Pittsburgh. Well, along with many of the other incredible breweries in the Steel City. It’s a really cool spot right in the middle of one of Pittsburgh’s many unique neighborhoods. Get there the next time you’re in Western PA!

One other note on this beer. It’s a collab with Birds Fly South Ale Project in Greenville, SC along with Good Word Brewing & Public House Brew Pub in Duluth, GA. Now if I could only figure out how they came up with the name for the beer!

Next up, it’s Schwarzbier time -

Mixin’ The Colors (5.0%ABV) pours a dark brown with deep ruby highlights and a tan head. The aroma expresses notes of roast, dark chocolate and mild coffee. Moderate malt sweetness paired with the flavors of subtle roasted coffee and cocoa powder, along with the slightest hint of caramel and honey give way to a surprisingly dry, crisp, clean finish. Another online review that I read for this beer professes that it’s “Nestle Quik In A Glass”. I see where they were going, but this beer is more complex than that. Slightly bolder than its counterpart in this little imbibition today, but equally as satisfying. This is a solid Schwarzbier. Well done Northway!

I spent parts of some of the summers of my youth in this brewery’s neck of the woods. Lake George to be exact (just up the road). I still love visiting up that way as you could imagine. And with so many great breweries located in the Adirondacks, there are many reasons to visit!

Well, I enjoyed that thoroughly! I hope you enjoyed reading this just as much! Now to go look and see what else is hiding in the back of the bottom shelf of my beer fridge!