The other day, I had a Beck’s Dark. Nothing Earth-shattering about that, right? But I can’t tell you the last time I drank one of these babies, one of the most ubiquitous German dark beers on the American market. A few decades ago, I drank a lot of Beck’s beers, including the dark. That was during the early stages of my craft brew appreciation.

As time went by, I found myself trying lots of other brews, something I still love to do to this day. Sadly, that didn’t leave a lot of room for beers like Beck’s. Even the dark. But as I recently found myself in an establishment that didn’t offer much in the way of draft beer selection, I started to peruse the bottled list.

And one of the choices there was Beck’s Dark. I decided to have one for nostalgia’s sake, and because, well, I hadn’t had one in such a long while. The waitress brought me out a bottle, along with a glass. And you know, it really isn’t a bad beer at all.

To be sure, there are other dark lagers I prefer on the market (Dinkelacker Dark immediately comes to mind), both domestic and German-brewed. But that doesn’t make this a bad beer, and its nice once and a while to go back to your roots. As I sipped my glass, I was transported back to those magical days of youth when a few (or more) bottles of Beck’s Dark was a real treat.

Today, Beck’s Dark is still brewed in Germany, though the brewery has been bought out by the Belgium-based international conglomerate Interbrew. To my taste anyway, the beer hasn’t changed much, though I wish they could have dispensed with those annoying green bottles.

Beck’s says this is the number one imported dark beer in America. It approximates the German dunkels style, in case you were wondering. Contrary to popular myth, it is not higher in alcohol than light colored beers. Beck’s Dark is about average at 4.8% alcohol by volume, with 11 grams of carbs and 146 calories per 12-ounce serving.

Beck’s Dark pours to a brownish chestnut color with a light head formation and a sweet malty nose. The body here is medium, not too thick and cloying but not exactly thin either. There is a faint hint of chocolate, but lots of sweet malty character. Molasses comes to mind most immediately. The beer finishes a little sweet too, with only the faintest suggestion of hops to balance.

Beck’s Dark is not an overly complex beer. The sweetness will likely appeal to many, but isn’t powerful enough to put off the experienced beer veteran. I give it three and a half stars with a round-up to four.

If you drink the occasional light-colored import like Beck’s, St. Pauli Girl , or Heineken , why not give this one a try? You may just find you like it, and eventually move on to more new brews-just as I did some twenty or so years ago.

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