Beerdar: Beer to Be Aware of - I: Sly Fox Dunkel Lager

Since this is my first Beerdar post let me explain what this is, kind of. I say kind of because I look at this blog as a continuum, where the rules are very few, and always changing. But since order has been deemed useful by some "successful" people in society I guess I'll attempt at giving this page some. So with that, if I'm writing about a Beerdar Beer, that beer has caught my senses. In the high gravity world of American Craft Beer this post will, more often than not, highlight the sessionalble, non-offensive beers. They may not have the passionate following of Hop-Heads or Malt-Bombers, but these beers should! What's wrong with a beer being approachable by all? I say nothing.

With that, we start with the just released Sly Fox Dunkel Lager, coming to us from the increasingly beercentric Royersford, PA. The brother of the Sly Fox Helles Lager (which still isn't canned - and according to Brew Master Brian O'Reilly, probably won't be) pours an opaque purplish-black, with fantastic head retention all the way down to the last sip. Malty, but the light to medium-body balance makes it not cloyingly sweet at all. Bubble-gum up front with hint of chocolate covered fruit, then roasted barley - but not suffocatingly robust - and the finish is crisp and refreshing. I could drink a barrel of this stuff no problem. Don't let the dark color fool you either - with the Indian Summer most of the East Coast has been experiencing it would've been a day drinking beer during one of those 75* day's we had in October for sure. Still - better late than never. As always I need to address the can issue because some people still live in the land of can-myth - and that's not cool. There is no, I repeat NO metallic or "can" taste at all in this beer, nor has there even been in anything I've had from Sly Fox. It's all good, dude. Pick up a sixer, rack, or sixtel today or ask for it at your local watering hole!