August Black is a winter seasonal 5.5% schwarz beer from August Beer based in Tokyo. During a recent trip to their Roppongi branch, the owner mentioned that the seasonal was a new one worth trying and gave us a quick sample – that’s how you get customers hooked. It’s not brewed by August Beer but rather it seems in Okayama as the beer contains water sourced from the Asahikawa mountain range, though the owner declined to mention whether it was from Doppo Beer or another brewery. August Black is only available on tap at certain locations.
First was a half, next was a pint.
August Black Aroma and Taste
The first sample I had of August Black was a mere 50 ml but it was enough to get me hooked on it. I do like my dark lagers and schwarz beers seem to be hit and miss in Japan – either they’re too thin or they’re too chalky or roasted. The aroma coming off of was mainly roasted malts along with a slight chocolate edge to it as well. The body was pitch black adorned with a light frothy white head on top that was a little gassy.
August Black, when chilled, had a roasted quality to it that was milder but allowed a slight bitterness to emanate through. As it warmed up, it became slightly chalky along with the roasted flavour developing some coffee hints to it. It was an easy drinking beer with just the right amount of heaviness to it – enough to know that you’re drinking something that isn’t your usual standard of lager but not enough to leave you feeling weighed down by it. However, the chalkiness to it left a weird, unusual residue on my tongue that felt like it needed scraping off.
August Black One Line Review
August Black is an ok introduction to schwarzbier but that chalkiness was most peculiar.
