By Kevin Burns, Beer Columnist

Browns_dunkelweizen_JPG_w300h509 One of the more interesting beer styles that American craft brewers have experimented with is the Dunkelweizen. Dunkelweizens are brewed as darker versions of wheat beers (Dunkel means "dark") and usually brown and cloudy from the yeast. They are brewed with complex malts and a light sweetness with low levels of bitterness. The common wheat and banana flavors are also present in this style.

Brown's Brewing Company in Troy, NY has just started to bottle their Dunkel and I decided that this week was a great time to review it.

Brown's Dunkelweizen poured a dark brown color with a thumb width, light tan head, The nose was is deep, with a ton of malt, bananas, cloves, sweetness and some notes of alcohol.

The body is smooth and rich, with a sweetness up front and a big malt backbone. There are chocolate notes in the middle and the alcohol is noticeable. The malts dry out on the finish and leave a faint lingering dryness. There is no real hop presence.

Overall, this is a good Dunkel. I thought it was a little rich for the style, but the chocolate was a nice touch. The flavors really start to come out as the beer warmed but I thought it could have been a little more balanced.

This beer just begs to be paired with a tasty dessert. Give me a slightly bitter chocolate fudge to pair with this beer and you will find one happy beer drinker.

Producer: Brown's Brewing Company
ABV: 6%
Price: $4.00 (22 oz. Bottle)
Rating:   35 (3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious)