berliner buergerbraeu: bernauer schwarzbier

this is the first of two beers i'll be reviewing from germany's hauptstadt (capital city), berlin. berlin is not known for its beer, or any other cuilinary acheivements for that matter. their claim to fame in the kitchen is eisbein or cold pickled jellied hog's arm, which is just as wretched as you think it is. in fact, beer from any brewery with a "berlin" in its name is known to be sub-par (e.g. berliner pils, berliner kindl). except for this one. this brewery is respectable.
their schwarzbier, however, cannot stand up to the gold standard, koestritzer. they call it a bernauer schwarzbier, which would be a schwarzbier from bernau. you haven't heard of bernau, because it's in that vast expanse of empty flatness, brandenburg. well, that isn't quite true. there are several bernaus in germany, but it's safe to assume they are referring to bernau bei berlin, meaning "bernau by berlin." they are not famous for their schwarzbier, even though the style springs forth from thuringen and pervades brandenburg as well. there's a little sweet malt in the nose with a slick mouthfeel. the body is thin and a little smoky.
though their other brews are quite good, i can't recommend the schwarzbier if you have the more prominent koestritzer available.