I could barely contain my excitement to get the Seventeen home and pop the cork. The body pours a nice dark chocolate brown, accompanied by a big frothy white head. Resting in the glass, the body is more of an opaque black, with the brown hues receding into the core. The initial aroma consists of buttery hops with dashes of caramel and coffee notes. The roasted malt and toast provide a nice base for all the other added flavors to emit from.

While the nose on this seems elegant, the actual taste is what makes this one a gem. The mouth feel is full-bodied with smooth carbonation, a perfect compliment for a Black Lager. The flavors range from maple syrup, gooey caramel and a range of dark fruits (think raisin bread). The dark accented flavors balance out well with the finish of bitter, earthy hops. The Seventeen is an overall terrific play of a variety of profiles.

Happy Birthday Avery and another job well done! Although it’s a bigger beer by ABV, for me that doesn’t mean this one can’t be sessionable. The flavors are tolerable for more than one bottle, but again be sure to mind 8.69% ABV, it’s masked too well. I highly recommend people give the Seventeen a taste, if you can find it, even if you’re not keen on the Schwarzbier style.

Rating

90
out of 100

Poured into a pint glass, it has an amazing display; rich and midnight black with a really nice tan head. The retention wasn’t the best and the lacing was weak, but not completely absent. Some charred brown hues with some reddish undertones completed the display.

The smell was frothy and bland at first, but as the head dissipated, the flavors became more apparent. Normally, the head enhances the smell for me, but on this it was quite the opposite, masking the majority of them. Roasted malt, black pepper, caramelized sugar cane and some bittering hops rounded out the nose. The balance was nice but somewhat undertoned overall.

Taking a sip of this gives you a medium-bodied mouthful that uses the carbonation to balance out some of the flavors. Immediately it’s roasted coffee, caramel malt which is (thankfully) balanced by the carbonation bubbles and hops. Although, the mouthful is surprisingly smooth. The hops stick around for a bit of a linger but it’s very light and not sticky at all. There must be some of the sweet malt too because while bitter, the finish leaves your tongue with a hint of sweet fig.

Of all the Buckbean brews, this isn’t my favorite (see Orange Blossom), but it’s not a bad one. The style isn’t completely my favorite, but I’d definitely like to try more of this style to see how it compares. In fact, to my recollection, I can’t recall any other Schwarzbier’s I’ve had, so I can’t compare the style as a whole. Is it worth a shot? Definitely. That is, if you’re a craft beer lover, like myself.

Overall: 7.6/10