Hermannator
Vancouver Island Brewing

HermannatorHermannator
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From:
Vancouver Island Brewing
 
British Columbia, Canada
Style:
Eisbock
ABV:
9.5%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.94 | pDev: 13.71%
Reviews:
46
Ratings:
85
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 14, 2022
Added:
Jan 04, 2003
Wants:
  17
Gots:
  11
Brewed in limited batches each year, Hermannator Ice Bock was first introduced by Hermann, one of our original Brewmasters, during the holiday as a unique gift to his closest friends and customers. Crafted at 9.5% abv, using a signature blend of chocolate and caramel malts, this German Eisbock is slowly cold aged in our cellar for over 3 months.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by papawu76:
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Rated by papawu76 from Canada (BC)

4/5  rDev +1.5%

Dec 02, 2011
More User Ratings:
Photo of TooManyGlasses
Reviewed by TooManyGlasses from Canada (AB)

3.95/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Pours a very dark brown with finger of bubbly tan head.
Nose is malty - raisin, date, plum and chocolate with earthy hops in back.
Sweet and malty on the palate - plummy fruitiness, notes of chocolate and toffee but hint of licorice and a mild earthy coffee like bitterness at the back.
Medium to full mouthfeel with underwhelming carbonation that detracts somewhat - malty sweetness carries an otherwise decent strong lager.
Feb 14, 2022
 
Rated: 4.49 by Electros from Canada (ON)

Apr 05, 2021
Photo of leaddog
Reviewed by leaddog from Canada (AB)

4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
The Original Seasonal Hermannator Ice Bock

Poured from a 473ml can.

Appearance - Pours a deep copper brown with two fingers of bubbly tan head.

Smell - sweet malts, plum, prune, raisin, and grape, chocolate, hint of coffee, and earthy yeast.

Taste - sweet malts then quickly goes into the plum, prune, raisin, and grape. The brew is finished off by the chocolate, hint of coffee, and earthy yeast.

Mouthfeel - Full bodied with low carbonation. Finishes sweet and sticky with the malts, dark fruits, chocolate, and hint of coffee lingering.

Overall - An interesting and approachable brew that displays the rich notes from the malts along with the fruits and other notes of chocolate and coffee. Worth a try if your curious.
Feb 17, 2020
Photo of altstadt
Reviewed by altstadt from Canada (BC)

2.94/5  rDev -25.4%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Very dark red-brown. Almost opaque. Poured no head. No lacing. Minimal bubbles rising.

Very slightly sweet smell with over-roasted malt. Heading towards a very light soy sauce smell. Swirling the glass kicked up a sweet perfume smell with a bit of mint, and a light barnyard. Strange complex mix that would be more attractive if it weren't for the barnyard dragging it down.

Sweet with a dark roasted malt flavor. Light bitters that taste like they are a side effect of the dark roast. Mild chocolate. Thankfully neither the soy sauce or the barnyard show up in the flavor. The roast is on the edge of being burned, which makes it less appealing. The aftertaste is mostly sweet and the dark roast flavor with a very slight hint of mint.

This is very close to flat. It hardly foams up at all. Medium body is all coming from the relatively thick liquid. Not creamy or oily.

I'm not sure what the fuss is about. This balances out as a fairly average beer. Nothing stands out as being particularly interesting or offensive. Reading through some of the reviews it would seem like there are some serious issues with consistency. For example, the can I opened up was nearly flat, but others reviews note high levels of carbonation. I may give this another try next season.
Nov 27, 2019
Photo of WanderingRonin
Reviewed by WanderingRonin from Canada (AB)

3.65/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Appearance is a very dark brown color with some faint red highlights to it that pours with a half finger of thinnish tan/ light brown colored head that has a poor retention to it but leaves a slight skim on the surface of the glass and some light watery lacing.

Very sweet smelling, almost syrupy even with a brown sugar and molasses aroma with some hints of dates and plums thrown in.

Sweet and sticky dark malt forward with toffee, cola and molasses flavors forward that make way to dark sticky dried fruit flavors like tamarind and prunes. Sticky bittersweet lingering finish with some sickly over ripe fruit hints a light warming hint of an alcohol.

Pretty heavy bodied with an average, maybe slightly above average amount of carbonation to it.
Oct 25, 2019
 
Rated: 4.15 by IPAnicked from Canada (BC)

Mar 20, 2019
 
Rated: 4 by starclimber from Canada (BC)

Feb 26, 2019
Photo of gandres
Reviewed by gandres from Philippines

3.94/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Tuesday, February 05, 2019 7:08 PM
341 mL bottle poured to wine glass
Sight: black, minimal foam, dark red if held against the light
Smell: very good, aroma of malt
Taste: very good, bold complex flavor, slightly bitter, sweet,
Mouth feel: very good carbonation, some tartness, very good follow through, very good finish, bitter aftertaste
Overall: very good beer, ok to repeat, not look for
Feb 06, 2019
 
Rated: 5 by R_Kole from Canada (AB)

Jun 10, 2018
 
Rated: 1 by monk2021 from Texas

Mar 20, 2018
 
Rated: 3.5 by Howlader from Canada (AB)

Mar 17, 2018
 
Rated: 4 by Corson from Canada (AB)

Mar 16, 2018
Photo of hreb
Reviewed by hreb from Washington

3.73/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
30th anniversary of Vancouver Island Brewing's Hermannator Ice Bock. Beer pours very dark brown to black, with nearly no head formation. Aroma is malty sweet and slightly phenolic. Flavor is similarly malty, with toffee sweetness, with a bold bock flavor, cut with sharp carbonation, which lightens up what could have otherwise been a very heavy brew. There's a complex malt profile going on here I'm struggling to explain. Licorice comes through most clearly.

An interesting and dangerously drinkable beer.
Feb 20, 2018
Photo of biboergosum
Reviewed by biboergosum from Canada (AB)

3.91/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
341ml bottle - nice to finally see this famous (in Canada, anyways) offering make its way to Alberta, and the 30th anniversary brewing at that.

This beer pours a clear, dark orange-brick brown colour, with one rather skinny finger of weakly foamy, bubbly, and fizzy tan head, which leaves absolutely nothing in the way of lace anywhere near the glass as it quickly blows off.

It smells of bready and doughy caramel malt, a lesser generic toffee sweetness, a hint of wafting smoke, some muddled dark orchard fruitiness, and very subtle earthy, musty, and floral noble hop bitters. The taste is grainy and bready caramel malt, stewed apples and pears, besotted raisins, a touch of wet char, medium-dark chocolate wafers, iced coffee, and more plain earthy, leafy, and herbal green hoppiness.

The carbonation is fairly low-key in its innocuous frothiness, the body a solid medium weight, and generally smooth, with nothing really causing any sort of trouble at this point in the game. It finishes off-dry, the malt and robust attendant fruity esters running the lingering show.

Overall - this is a pleasantly rendered version of the style, much darker than the norm, full of malt and fruit goodness, and with an expertly integrated 19-proof wowee sauce quotient. Pretty good stuff!
Jan 11, 2018
Photo of HipCzech
Reviewed by HipCzech from California

4.04/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Serving: 341 ml bottle (“packaged on 25 Oct 17”) poured into a 20 mL stemmed tulip glass. 2017 vintage (“30th Anniversary”).

Appearance: Deep, dark chestnut brown with a fizzy head of tan bubbles.

Smell: Fully malty aroma; toasted grains, some dark, dried fruit, and a hint of alcohol.

Taste: Deep, malty body with toasted grains, cocoa and burnt caramel. Dark fruit emerge as it warms along with a bit of boozy heat - brandy soaked raisins. Faint smoke enters in the close along with bitter tea and earthy hops.

Mouthfeel: Medium, creamy smooth body with moderate carbonation.

Overall: While many other brewers now offer bigger, bolder malt bombs, Hermannator remains a classic. An eye opener 20+ years ago, it showed what a winter seasonal could be, and still evokes happy memories. Food friendly: paired well with both rum balls and Stilton.
Nov 25, 2017
 
Rated: 3.9 by Eric_Standard from Canada (BC)

Oct 26, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by BCborn from Canada (BC)

Aug 09, 2017
 
Rated: 3.35 by bylerteck from Canada (ON)

Jun 21, 2017
 
Rated: 3.74 by Coronaeus from Canada (ON)

Mar 14, 2017
Hermannator from Vancouver Island Brewing
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 85 ratings