Schell's Chimney Sweep

Schell's is one of those breweries where good beers have been crafted long before the term "craft beer" entered the lexicon. Their year round beers, as well as their seasonals are always solid representations of their styles. Chimney Sweep is the new winter seasonal, tagged as a schwartzbier, which simply means "black beer" in German, and are usually classed as black lagers. Far from simply a lager with some brown food coloring, Chimney Sweep almost comes across as a lightweight porter. It pours with a small head, the color being a translucent dark brown. There's a touch of hoppiness and some laid back smokiness. Other flavors that make appearances are caramel and some cafe au lait. Might even qualify as sessionable and a great introductory beer for the dark beer phobic.