Devils Backbone Vienna Lager

Vienna Lager | Year-Round | United States

By Tom Cannon

Judges Rating: 96
Aroma: 22
Appearance: 6
Flavor: 39
Mouthfeel: 9
Overall Impression: 20

The beer pours a lovely clear amber, with burnt orange highlights. The aroma is clean bright malt, somewhat reminiscent of freshly baked cookies, with maybe a touch of toasted pine nuts. The flavor extends the malt expression found in the aroma. Again, the malt flavor is clean and toasty, with hints of freshly baked bread and a touch of nuttiness. None of this is very big. It is a Vienna Lager, after all, not an Oktoberfest, but the flavors all work well together… Few amber lagers and ales express malt as smooth and clean as this. Not a big beer, but soft and thirst quenching. It’s refreshing to see lighter beers with this much subtle complexity.