Munich Dunkel - Tasting Notes

I brewed this Munich Dunkel back in May and employed a double decoction mash as well as 6+ week lagering period.  It was pretty long process going grain to glass (over 2 months) but I think it was worth it.  Some style you can make mistakes and throw a ton of hops at it and hide some flaws (at least for a little while).  A beer like this is really a demonstration of the care that was taken in making it as there isn't any hiding of the flaws.  I'm not sure how loudly I would crow my ability to brew this style (since this is somebody else's recipe) but I'm very happy with how well I was able to execute this one.

The combination of malt complexity and smooth and easy drinking character make for a really comforting and satisfying beer.  Once I'm setup to keg I plan to have one of these on tap all the time.

Tasting Notes:

• Aroma:
• Clean lager yeast along with a bit of toasted bread and burnt caramel.
• Appearance:
• Dark Amber or light brown in color with good clearity.  Pours with a finger head that settles down to a thin layer of foam after 30 s or so.
• Flavor:
• Bready and toasty malt flavor come through up front.  A very rich malt flavor.  Get a bit of the caramel I picked up in the aroma as well.  The malt flavor lingers into the finish and is carried through with a light hop bitterness.  I pick up a subtle hint of hop flavor in the beer which is herbal and tea like.  No alcohol and no yeast character come though.
• Mouthfeel:
• Light-medium bodied and fairly dry.  Goes down very smoothly.
• Overall:
• Rich and complex malt flavor which is comparable to many of the German made examples I've had.  Easy drinking and refreshing which makes drinking 2 to 3 pretty easy.  Nice clean lager profile - it was a well executed fermentation and lager period on this beer.  One interesting note:  this beer has, by far, the least sediment per bottle of any of the beers I've made.  This hasn't prevented the normal carbonation from occurring.  The six odd weeks of lagering is likely responsible but I also gave it some extra time to fine with gelatin.  I may have to try something like this with future beers.