My baby!
Written: Mar 24 '00 (Updated Mar 26 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Ripplingly full malt profile
Cons: You can only get it in the Spring
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| beerfly's Full Review: Victory Munich Dunkles |
I like to think I had a little something to do with this beer. About three years ago I was visiting with Victory's brewmaster, Ron Barchet. We were out in the tank room, "tickling the zwickel" to tap some fresh beer off the tank. We sipped and sighed, then I swear to God Ron said to me "So what do you think we should do next?"
I dream about moments like this and have a small file at the back of my head on the answers to this question for various breweries (for instance: Penn--rauchmarzen, Otter Creek--IPA, Old Dominion--the Triple again), so I was ready. "Munich dunkel!" I blurted out. "Something dark and mellow and by-the-liter drinkable."
Ron liked the idea (though he immediately put The Ron Touch on it and started muttering about a 14 Plato brew; I had more in mind an 11 to make it lower ABV and poundable), and we talked a little more... But then I left, and I didn't hear a thing about Dunkel until a year later, when the first batch of Victory Dunklesbier came out.
Gawd, it was glorious. The light walnut color comes solely from Victory's painstaking double decoction; it's all pale malt. The malt character is possibly the best I've ever tasted in an American beer; deep, multi-layered, the kind of malt depth you expect from a doublebock, yet here it is on a light-framed session beer. The dry malt finish is like the lure of a siren, pulling you on to another glass. It's a great beer for all-afternoon sessions, and for the boot game (Victory now sells these glass drinking boots--I really wanted one for my birthday, guess I'll have to hint some more next year!).
Food? Bring on your German favorites, roast chicken, veal, mild sausages, noodles, this beer knows these foods down in its genetic soul. But you can happily quaff this with the burgers, pizzas, and calzones on Victory's pub menu as well; it's an easily pleased beer.
Whether I planted the seed in Ron's mind or not isn't important to me, not really. What's important to me is planting the next seed: putting this beer in year-round production. One season just isn't enough!
March 26 update! I was at Victory this afternoon, and I have two changes to add. First, they are now calling the beer "Victory All Malt Dark Lager." This is a bad call that makes the beer sound cheap. Second, they are bottling it and selling it for $7 a sixer. This is a brilliant move, and I hope it sells like mad for them. Had two 22 oz. glasses and it was absolutely magnificent.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
beerfly
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Member: Lew Bryson
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Reviews written: 88
Trusted by: 82 members
About Me:
One bourbon, one Scotch, one beer, eh? I'll take Kentucky Spirit, Scapa, and HopDevil.
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