Bridge Road Chevalier Dunkelweizen

With so much attention lavished on the other two members of the Chevalier range - the Saison and Biere de Garde - the Dunkel's been shunned a little: it's like the Beechworth Cinderella that's picked on and kept out of sight by her ugly sisters (although we're not suggesting there's anything ugly about either of those beers - quite the opposite). But just as Cinderella had her little glass slipper, so the Dunkelweizen has a little trick up its sleeve, in the form of a brand new recipe from brewer Ben Kraus. (This analogy has gone far enough now, Crafty) Whereas before the beer was a blend of others, now it's a brand new one built from scratch. Pouring a deep mahogany brown - opaque like a chocolate liqueur - there's plenty of foam banana and some malty sweetness rising from its thick brown head. In the mouth, there's milk chocolate, cola, some burnt toffee and, of course, more of those bananas. There's plenty to chew on in a pretty creamy mouthfeel too, all rounded off with a smidgeon of gently lingering roast bitterness. But no pumpkin - not even a magic one. (Oi!)

Published February 11, 2011 2011-02-11 00:00:00