Style Details

Name
Inter­na­tio­nal Dark Lager
Cate­go­ry
Inter­na­tio­nal Lager
BJCP Style Code
2 C
Appearance
Deep amber to dark brown with bright cla­ri­ty and ruby high­lights. Foam stand may not be long las­ting, and is beige to light tan in color.
Aro­ma
Litt­le to no malt aro­ma; may have a light corn cha­rac­ter. Medi­um-low to no roast and cara­mel malt aro­ma. Hop aro­ma may ran­ge from none to light spi­cy or flo­ral hop pre­sence. While a clean fer­men­ta­ti­on pro­fi­le is gene­ral­ly most desi­ra­ble, low levels of yeast cha­rac­ter (such as a light apple frui­tin­ess) are not a fault. A light amount of DMS or corn aro­ma is not a fault.
Fla­vour
Low to medi­um mal­ty sweet­ness with medi­um-low to no cara­mel and/or roas­ted malt fla­vors (and may include hints of cof­fee, molas­ses or cocoa). Hop fla­vor ran­ges from none to low levels, and is typi­cal­ly flo­ral, spi­cy, or her­bal. Low to medi­um hop bit­ter­ness. May have a very light frui­tin­ess. Modera­te­ly crisp finish. The balan­ce is typi­cal­ly some­what mal­ty. Burnt or modera­te­ly strong roas­ted malt fla­vors are a defect. 
Mouth­feel
Light to medi­um-light body. Smooth with a light cre­a­mi­ness. Medi­um to high carbonation.
Over­all Impression
A dar­ker and some­what swee­ter ver­si­on of inter­na­tio­nal pale lager with a litt­le more body and fla­vor, but equal­ly res­trai­ned in bit­ter­ness. The low bit­ter­ness lea­ves the malt as the pri­ma­ry fla­vor ele­ment, and the low hop levels pro­vi­de very litt­le in the way of balance.
Typi­cal Ingredients
Two- or six-row bar­ley, corn, rice, or sug­ars as adjuncts. Light use of cara­mel and dar­ker malts. Com­mer­cial ver­si­ons may use colo­ring agents.
Histo­ry
Dar­ker ver­si­ons of Inter­na­tio­nal Pale Lagers often crea­ted by the same lar­ge, indus­tri­al bre­we­ries and meant to appeal to a broad audi­ence. Often eit­her a colo­red or sweeten­ed adapt­a­ti­on of the stan­dard pale indus­tri­al lager, or a more broad­ly acces­si­ble (and inex­pen­si­ve) ver­si­on of more tra­di­tio­nal dark lagers.
Comm­ents
A broad ran­ge of inter­na­tio­nal lagers that are dar­ker than pale, and not asser­tively bit­ter and/or roasted. 
Com­mer­cial Examples
Bal­ti­ka #4 Ori­gi­nal, Devils Back­bone Old Vir­gi­nia Dark, Dixie Bla­cke­ned Voo­doo, Saint Pau­li Girl Dark, San Miguel Dark, Ses­si­on Black Dark Lager, Shi­ner Bock
Ori­gi­nal Gravity
1.044 - 1.056 SG
Final Gra­vi­ty
1.008 - 1.012 SG
Color
14 - 22 SRM
Alco­hol
4.0 - 6.0 %vol
Bit­ter­ness
8 - 20 IBU