Bottled in ’96, consumed in 2002, idiomatic 10-month-aged full-bodied lager warms like a spectacular dessert treat, bringing ripe cherry overtones and dry plum intimacy to its capacious chocolate liqueur center. Sweet raisin and sour prune juxtaposing heavy cream finish catapults prune-hued Swiss variant to exalted grandeur its Austrian version also maintains. Barleywine, burgundy, and brandy lovers should indulge in its complexity.

Extremely versatile medium-bodied English lager miles beyond simply obvious malted grain-enamored competition (presently brewed by Canada’s Sleeman). In original ’60s British incarnation, much-benigned brew gained popularity via controversial sloganeering. But bittersweet sherry sweetness rules! Rich mocha malt extract and persistent hop pop firm up grainy bottom end. Faint fruitiness fades in and out. Easily one of the most enjoyable lagers available, despite underserved negativity.

Sumptuous soda-flowing tan-headed lager with cascading bubbles rising from bottom to top of mahogany body. Chocolate raisin fortitude given red ale-like spiced hop bittering to nutty cocoa finish, retaining up-front malt thrust along the way.

Silky amber-paled, medium-bodied “dunkel” (dark) lager retains moderate caramel creaminess and gentle barley-roasted candi-sugared malt sweetness, but hindered fruit blandness, stifled earthiness, and faint smokiness lost in midst.

Hefty 9% alcohol strong lager placates sweet barley-roasted caramel malting with sullen citric-herbal wisp. Yet despite undeniable strength, bronze-hazed Pol needs more pronounced lemon-peppered finish and better all around distinction. Miserly green apple tartness and slick yeast musk don’t help matters.

Wait a second, this one’s brewed in Canada but given German recognition. Anyhow, unlike offensively sour Miller version forced on Americans since ’77, this dry premium has soda-like fizz and lasting consistency brought on by bitterer chocolate malts plus cocoa-seeded black licorice overhaul.

Second largest Budweis brewery in Czech Republic (formerly Burgerbrau) sure has a winner with this emphatic lager. Smoked wood dryness deepens fig-plum tagline above subtle hop-roasted caramel-malted graining and walnut-chestnut illusions as crisp water lightens brisk flow.

Dry roasted coffee entry anticipates heightened stout-like expectations for brewery’s staple, but lack of assertive black chocolate roast and nasty cocoa-soured earthen musk lessen resolve by semi-flat finish. Needs better mocha assertion and sturdier nut-shelled dried fruiting for distinction. A tentative cola-hued schwarzbier.

Brewed by Stoney Creek Brewery since ’04, this tepid caramelized German-styled lager lacks intensity from its bronzed mahogany body to its swirled tan-head. Dull hops, carbolic acidity, and displaced plum astringency ravage roasted barley spine, though herbal spicing and cola nut twinge save pithy dry-grained finish.

Pungent hop-grain confluence politely embitters single malt Scotch flow. Cardboard-edged wood tones half-sweetened by cane sugaring to thick black molasses finish.

Despite deep purple haze, dark German retains light nutty grain sear and ashen malt dryness (with no bitterness, no frills, and barely a hint of dried fruited sweetness). Subdued malt-hop interaction soft enough for rookies to enjoy alongside more sophisticated tastes.

Clumsy unfiltered coppery amber lager mired by bread-y cardboard pall, oxidized cider stead, and off-putting herbal respite. Green grassy hops and skunked malts doubly drub disinterested dribble.