Black sheep of the family
Dark in this case is more of a reddish brown. The aroma has plenty of dark fruit mixed in with yeast notes. The flavors are much the same with fruitier yeast and fairly minimal sweetness. The finish has just a touch of bitterness and isn’t overly dry – not sweet by any means but just mild. The body is medium, tops, rather than heavier and the alcohol is just slightly warming rather than harsh and aggressive. The result is quite drinkable perhaps trending towards dangerously so. My only complaint is I wish it were a bit more complex. On a less compressed brewing schedule, aging and refermenting in the bottle might serve this one well.
This recipe had one of the lengthiest grain bills I’ve ever seen. The base was twelve and a quarter pounds of pilsner and two and half pounds of Munich but then came a parade of specialty malts: thirteen ounces each of special B, caramunich, and aromatic malt as well as seven ounces each of white wheat and melanoiden. In case there weren’t enough fermentables, another thirteen ounces of cane sugar went into the boil as well as two and a quarter ounces of Hallertauer. Note-taking on this particular brew day was inept so I don’t know exactly what the gravity was. The estimate for the recipe was 1.103. I’m quite certain that it came in lower than that – it doesn’t taste that strong. My guess would be somewhere in the mid 80s. The yeast used was WLP540 Abbey IV. A 80F+ fermentation temperature was recommended but seasonally impractical. That may have impacted the yeast flavor development (or lack thereof).