Berlinetta Celebrates 1st Anniversary with VLK Dark Lager

Berlinetta Brewing opened in June of 2021 with a unique concept: heritage beers served in a bright, comfortable space that also serves as a vinyl record store and hi-fi listening room.  

Just one year in, Berlinetta’s high-quality European-style beers and unique taproom ambiance have captured the imagination and appreciation of craft beer lovers throughout the northeast.  Early accolades include being named Connecticut Magazine’s ‘Editor’s Pick’ for Best CT Brewery.

Berlinetta’s initial offerings included a traditional Czech-style Pilsner, branded “Velvet Pilsner” in honor of the 1989 uprising in Czech Republic that ended 40 years of communist rule in that country.  Velvet Pilsner has been widely embraced by customers throughout its initial distribution in Connecticut and Rhode Island (Via Sarene Craft Distributors), and Berlinetta now follows up this classic pale Czech Lager with VLK Dark Lager.

• Brewed with Czech Pilsner malt from Prostejov Malting in Northwest Czech Republic, founded 1869
• Czech-style Dark Lager
• 5% ABV
• Very dark color, complex flavor, slight roast

“VLK” (pronounced ‘vulk’) is the Czech language word for ‘wolf.’  The wolf is a symbol rich in meaning in European cultures; in fact, the Latin word for the plant we call hops translates as ‘Little Wolf.’  This is the reason that Berlinetta uses a wolf icon in their logo.  And all the more reason that ‘VLK’ is such a fitting name for a traditional European-style lager. 

As Berlinetta brewer and co-owner Rich Ruggiero explains it, “traditionally, Czech beer was either light lager, called Pilsner, or dark lager. Pilsner has been the world’s most popular beer style for many decades, but the Czech Dark Lager is a wonderful complement to the Pilsner that we believe deserves more attention.” 

Co-owner Chris Ruggiero adds that, “our Velvet Pilsner has been widely embraced by craft beer fans who appreciate the authenticity of our traditional beer styles, and we are very excited to present this new dark lager and share more of that same enthusiasm with them.”

VLK will initially be available only at the brewery taproom, with regional distribution to follow via Sarene Craft Distributors.