Robin Shepard
A lineup of local black lagers in cans, bottles and glasses.
However you want the black lager: can, bottle, growler, bottle.
Among surprising finds currently on Madison beer shelves are black lagers, including historic styles like the Czech tmavé pivo and the German schwarzbier. Black lagers are distinguished by their balance of malt to hop flavors. They finish clean and dry, and many come in at less than 5.5% ABV. While black lagers can be so good, not all achieve perfection, so do your homework.
Tmavé pivo in Czech translates to dark beer and American craft brewers seem to have become enamored with this style. Usually brewers use Czech hops, like Saaz, that are known for soft earthiness and mild floral notes. The schwarzbier is quite similar, with clean, soft chocolate or licorice-like flavors, but these are often made with German noble hops.
Among the early 2025 standouts is a Czech dark lager from Tyranena. It is a great representative of the style and easy drinking at 4.8% ABV ($6/glass and $8/growler; it’s a brewery only beer). Starkweather Brewing is offering a tmavé pivo created by brewmaster Peter Schroder at the request of taproom regular and brewery mug club member Todd Arner as part of the brewery’s Friends Request Series. Starkweather’s Czech dark lager is a soft, medium-bodied beer with smooth roasted chocolate accents. It finishes at 4.9% ABV ($8/glass and $17/crowler).
Schroder thinks dark lagers have increased in popularity because they offer the malty sweetness that goes well with cold weather drinking, without the high levels of alcohol found in imperial stouts and barleywines. “I made one because I wanted to do something lighter as an alternative. It gives people a reason to stay here a little longer,” says Schroder.
Schwarzbiers are popular for some of the same reasons. Among the best ones is Black Bier from New Barons Brewing Cooperative in Milwaukee. This lager-focused brewery gets recipe advice from its co-op members. Black Bier hits all the right notes for me with its pleasant roasted chocolate maltiness; it finishes at 5% ABV ($11/six-pack). Another impressive offering is 1840 Brewing’s West Bend Dark. The beer has been a hit in the brewery’s West Bend taproom. This black lager has hints of toffee and chocolate, and is balanced, clean and very easy drinking ($11/six-pack).
Don’t overlook a couple of Wisconsin mainstays. Sprecher’s Black Bavarian ($11/six-pack) and Leinenkugel’s Dark Lager ($11/six-pack) have been around a long time and are well respected with numerous awards. Black Bavarian is the gold standard among Wisconsin-made Schwarzbiers.
Other winter seasonals to look for
The ghost of Christmas past? Last Christmas is a big bold Belgian quadrupel from Eagle Park Brewing ($20/four-pack). This winter seasonal is bourbon barrel-aged for 12 months. The dark stone fruit flavors of the quad are wrapped in the sweet warmth of bourbon. This year’s annual installment comes in at 12.5% ABV. Do not be afraid to lay down a can or two for next year’s holiday celebrations — these are worth unwrapping anytime.
Lakefront Brewing’s new winter seasonal is a black IPA called Black Bird. It has nice hop character, and is balanced and approachable at 6.8% ABV and 40 IBUs. All too often black IPAs come off too harsh in bitterness from heavily roasted dark malts and piney hops. Instead, Lakefront does it right. Head brewer Luther Paul backed off the burnt roasted flavors and took things in a surprising new direction by using fruity hops like Citra, El Dorado, Idaho 7 and Cashmere. The result is a smooth backbone of toffee and chocolate with hints of bitter orange and stone fruit ($10/six-packs).
