Judge’s Review: 92 Rating – Mexican Dark Lager by pFriem Family Brewers

International Dark Lager | Limited Release | USA

By Scott Birdwell

Judges Rating: 92.00
Aroma: 21.00
Appearance: 5.50
Flavor: 37.50
Mouthfeel: 9.00
Overall Impression: 18.00

Mexican Dark Lager by pFriem Family Brewers is described on the brewery’s website as: “a marriage of Vienna Lager brewing tradition and Mexican ingredients and techniques. This beer features German Pilsner malt and locally sourced Vienna malt, giving it a dark color and notes of toffee and chocolate.” Think of Negra Modelo or, if you’ve been around the sun quite a few times, the old version of Dos Equis (original). I am scoring this as a category 2C, International Dark Lager. This pours noticeably darker than Negra Modelo with very good clarity. The head retention is also good. The aroma is all about the dark roast grain notes, with very little, if any, hops to mention. I detect a bit of unbuttered freshly popped popcorn. Perhaps very low level of DMS or corn adjuncts.
My initial impression of the flavor was the roastiness of the grains that carries over from the aroma. However, the roast character is more restrained than I anticipated, given that aroma. There is some caramel malt sweetness, but nowhere near approaching cloying. Just a kiss of sweetness. I do detect some hop bitterness, but just enough to balance the malt sweetness. The finish is clean.
The body was firm, medium to full. The beer was lively and the carbonation was appropriate for the style. Not a lot of alcohol warming here, but wasn’t expected from the style. No lingering off-flavors or palate sensations. 
Overall, this was a very pleasant dark lager! I found it well balanced and clean. It is somewhat sweet on the finish, which is no surprise for the style. I strongly suspect that that sweetness would come in very handy as I finish a plate of spicy Mexican enchiladas!