Atwater Dunkel

Brewed by Atwater Block Brewery
Style: Dunkel
Detroit, Michigan USA

Serve in Dimpled mug, Lager glass, Stein

Atwater dunkel weizen on tap at the Mad Mex in Robinson. Big 16 oz glass for $5. Very nice dark brownish hazy pour. Aroma of sweets and root beer along with fermenting fruit, interesting and appealing. Nifty earthly intriguing flavor that reminds me of Corsendonk or Fat Gary. Medium low carbonation that is not tingling but welcomed. Very friendly and well balanced. A decent behaved brew that is easy to enjoy. Cannot detect much, if any bitterness. Overall just a nice repeatable session brew that leaves me feeling happy. Everything about this brew is very acceptable. Would not hesitate to buy this again. Dunkel is one of my favorite styles. On par or slightly better than other good dunkels I’ve had such as Weltenburger Kloster Barock Dunkel, Penn Dark Lager Beer and Warsteiner Premium Dunkel. Better than Harpoon Munich Dark and Saranac Chocolate Amber. I’m not sure why this is not classified as a dunkel weizen.

This one has a significant yuck-yum factor. The aroma is alright. It’s light but mildly chocolaty, with cream soda, brown sugar, tea, and dark malts. The appearance is brown with a medium sized head. The flavor is where this one starts to have problems. You first get a bad fruitiness that is like over ripe watermelon and basil then a nice chocolaty, dark malt flavor follows. Finally there is an astringent bitter aftertaste. The palate is thin. This one has major problems with off flavors but there is potential.

Dark clear brown/amber color with a big beige head. Aroma is pretty sweet with caramel and fruit. Flavor is bittersweet with some caramel and sour fruit.

Tallahassee, Fl. - Albertson’s Liquor store - 12 oz bottle. Nice, sparkly dark coper pour with thin but long lasting off-white head. Sweet caramelly aroma with some yeasty accents. Hearty, slighlty smoky flavor with some ripening vegetable notes, caramel and sweet potatoes. Slightly sticky mouthfeel. Very decent.

Porterish, nutty-sweet cereal aroma. Medium, clear brown with a very big tan spongy head. Mostly roast, lightly sweet, pretty bitter. FInishes off with a prominent roastiness. Fizzy, mouthfeel isn’t thick, but it isn’t watery either.

Bottle, pours a dark red/brown color with a nice and fluffy head, not as big as many of the german variety but nice. The aroma is different, reminds me strongly of soy sauce and tobacco. A bit of tobbaco tastes, reminds me of dipping copenhagen, finish is kind of light. Very carbonated. Not as malty or robust of flavor as I expected. The smell is quite strange not very familar with it in the beer world, I feel like I can smell salt, but there is no salty or soy taste to it. hmm strange. Maybe just soggy and moldy grains were used. Hey I am not bashing this beer but I am not lauding it either.

I should have known this would gush by the forceful hiss upon opening... might I recommend to chill below cellar temp before serving? Regardless, it pours a deep, ruby/brown with moderate carbonation beneath a huge, cream-colored head. Aromas are faint, dry, roasted and tinny. I find some corn husks and grassy hops, but none of the sweet malts I was somehow expecting. Flavor is an additional letdown with chocolate that has an innate sourness to it. A little chalky in the mouth. Others (below) have commented on its sourness, and I can’t believe that was what Atwater Block was going trying to achieve. I wish I could find a bottle code so the brewer could see if there was a problem with this batch.

<font size=-4>Single 12 oz. bottle from <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Place/illinois/plainf Plainfield, IL 60544</font>

Very deep brown in color, huge & thick beige head, not that much lacing though, aroma of dark roasted coffee & vanilla, thick & full bodied but light in flavor, very thin in the flavor department, not a whole lot going on, only slight hints of vanilla, toffee & caramel, light & sweet finish, very average, nothing to write home about