Apparently Wednesday is new beer day here at 43N/89W. My latest trip to Barriques brought to me, among other things that you’ll see reviewed here soon, a six of Capital Dark from Middleton’s own Capital Brewery. This beer is based on the recipe from one of the brewery’s first two “Garten Brau” from 1986 and is, in a way, a nostalgic rebranding of their long-time offering Munich Dark.
Beer: Capital Dark
Style: Munich-style Dunkel Lager
Description: “Rich, bold and smooth! Plenty of specialty malt flavors with a slight dryness in the finish makes for a beer with excellent style. – capital-brewery.com”
Vitals: 5.4% abv
My take: Pours a striking dark mahogany with a healthy off-white head that fades to a soapy film. This beer pulls no punches in its unabashed maltiness, nor should it based on the tradition of the style. A variety of specialty malts have combined to create notes of toasted biscuit, caramel, cocoa nibs and dark fruit. While sweetness is the dominant impression on the tongue, it aptly avoids becoming cloying with a dry, toasty finish – about as smooth as a beer with this much malt complexity can be. I would liken this beer to a session version of a dark doppelbock – a beer rich in malty flavor that doesn’t stick to the mouth or overfill the stomach. As a brewer, Capital has always been best when they stick to their German roots and this beer is right in their wheelhouse and truly a masterstroke on their part. A great choice as the leaves begin to change color and fall seems nothing but inevitable.
43north/89west 
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