Brooklyn Brewery Silver Anniversary Lager
First off, I’d like to thank the kind folks at Brooklyn Brewery for allowing me the opportunity to take part in celebrating their 25 years in business. Congrats to them and here’s to another 25 plus years of tasty brews. Secondly, I can’t express how awesome it is that the company chose to acknowledge and celebrate the fact that it was the lager that got them rolling so many years ago.
Some breweries (and I really have no complaint with this) would use such an occasion to brew some outlandishly over-the-top, barrel-aged paleolithic beast of a beer. Brooklyn kept it relatively simple, and classy, by releasing this bottle-fermented doppelbock version of their classic lager.
This 9% ABV beer is probably one of the more refined and cleanest drinking lagers I’ve had in recent years. It may not supplant Ayinger’s Celebrator as my favorite go-to doppelbock, but it’s damn fine tasting nonetheless.
Appearance
A large stack of resilient, tawny foam rests proudly atop the amber brew leaving behind nice lacing as it slowly dropped.
Aroma
Being bottle re-fermented, the brew has a strong yeasty character to go along with stone fruits, caramel, grains, a light citrus note and a touch of alcohol.
Taste
Immediately after the first sip, all I could say was this brew is smooth and clean. Yeast, caramel, lightly toasted bread, apple and grains arrive with a moderate amount of sweetness. There’s a subtle bit of a hop presence in the semi-dry finish as well as a hint of warmth in the chest despite its overall mellow character. The medium bodied brew is softly carbonated and wonderfully balanced.
Overall
I couldn’t think of a more appropriate style of beer that the company could have selected in order to celebrate this special milestone in their history. This doppelbock drinks smooth with a refined palate and clean, morish finish. It’s a beer that I could sit down with for a while. Well done Brooklyn.
Rating: 4.25/5
This is a review of a promotional sample from the brewery.
