Caña believe it?

They like a lager in Spain, although they tend to like it in climate-appropriate smaller measures. Spain's busy microbrewing scene does lager too, though for a different audience and in a different format. Today I have two takes on Bavarian-style lager from Navarra's Naparbier.

The first, Psychedelic, is quite wackily packaged but is simply a Helles: the orthodox 5.2% ABV and hopped with standard German varieties. It's a very pale yellow in the glass, with a slight dusting of finely-spun haze, even after a month or so motionless in my fridge. This is pretty much exactly what I want from a Helles, from the cake-and-hay aroma, through the luxurious pillowy soft mouthfeel and gentle carbonation to the sweetly herbal finish. Helles must be smooth and süffig, and this absolutely is that. I have only one tiny niggle and it's those herbs. There's a little bit too much basil and eucalyptus in here, and it detracts a little from the drinkability. Yes, it's character, and I'm sure completely deliberate, but it's one thing (other than the serving size and pricetag) that made me think I would still rather have a Spaten. Still, if this was a technical exercise to nail the style, they've hit it pretty squarely on.

A doppelbock follows, and Pantokrator is a beast of an example at 9.7% ABV. It's the proper dark brown but rather muddy in the glass. Again they've hit the major points of the style, with chocolate and caramel meeting an intense liquorice sweetness, but that extra gravity gives everything a bigger punch compared to the big-brand Bavarians. There's a heat and a jammy stickiness, and whether it's this, the cloudiness, or both, it doesn't have a lager's cleanness. Instead of a quick finish it lingers on the palate longer than is entirely comfortable. All the things I find problematic in doppelbock are here and I can't recommend it as a result. If the previous beer was an attempt to mimic the originators, this one puts a twist on the style, one which I don't think works.

Maybe it's the extra freedom that comes with brewing strong and dark that led Naparbier to take liberties with their doppelbock. While I respect their iconoclasm, I think there's a reason that the Germans tend to brew to a fairly tight specification.