Around the year 841 CE, group of burly Vikings founded a city on the banks of what would soon be known as the river Liffey.
Inspired by a pool of blackish water in the area, they named it Dubh Linn, or ‘black pool’ in early Gaelic.
That is, of course, entomology for the name of the city of Dublin, capital of Ireland, and rather fun place to be.
Ireland has other fantastic places to go (Galway, I’m looking at you), but if people are traveling to Ireland, they are almost always traveling to Dublin first, last, or everything in between.
When you think of Dublin, there’s a certain black-looking beer that is uniquely synonymous to the municipality of the city and the cultural zeitgeist of Ireland as a whole. This was wisely sidestepped by Winter Garden’s Crooked Can when making a beer for Raglan Road.
Instead, Crooked Can took more inspiration from the name of the city itself, making Dubh Linn (Black Lager, 5% ABV) into a Schwarzbier-esque drinking opportunity.
It is nicely dark, very much a deep brown with a slightly molasses and malty aroma with some plum and prune as well.
The flavor is wonderful, definitely more schwarzbier in flavor with deep roasted malt and a lot of great dark stone fruit qualities.
Should this beer have been a dry Irish stout? Probably not. I’m a good fan of black lagers as well.
Besides, with Raglan Road being such a draw as an Irish Pub, I’m sure most people are going to be getting a Guinness if they want a Guinness, then going to the adjoining shop’s rather sizable Guinness collection.
They can be enjoyed separately for the unique for the experiences they provide, and there’s always something to be said for beers that were brewed only for the location.
Let’s be honest, though, the real proper thing to do is order a pint of each in rapid succession.
Drink Florida Craft,
Dave
@floridabeerblog
[email protected]
Looking for more great Florida beer content? Browse all of our latest posts and podcast episodes, or follow us on some of our social media.
Listen to the Florida Beer Podcast – Powered by Florida Beer Blog on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and more.
Get 10% off a new beer mini fridge from NewAir with code FLORIDABEER.
