Bock
Redoak Boutique Beer Cafe

Redoak Beer Cafe is one place I've always wanted to visit and there's no time like the present as they say. One thing that immediately caught my eye upon entering was the wooden vat on the left-hand side marked "Bock": I'll have some of that.

Tap poured into a Stein.

A: Exhibits a classic Bock cloudy mahogany body with a bold cream coloured (and textured) head.

S: Has an aroma of dried fruit, sour dough and caramel malts. The balance between the three is well placed.

T: A heady mix of dried and candied fruits, cherry, raisins, hint of apricot. The sugar cloys slightly and then the bready yeast finishes with a slight hit of bitterness reminding that hops were involved in the brew. I'm liking the Bock!

M: Heavy bodied with a creamy mouthfeel, true to the style. Good stuff.

D: I was sceptical about a brewery that claims to be the best (or implies it with "Australia's most awarded") but Redoak does not disappoint and when you order a Bock here you know exactly what you'll get: a Bock. Excellent brew.

Food match: Classic German cuisine; schinken, wurst, kartoffel, etc... you get the idea.

Red - brown in the glass, looks great. Lifted aromatic nose of fruit and toffee apple, very appealing. Follows up very faithfully in the palate although some excessive fizz gets in the way of flavour (and probably served too cold). Regardless, this must be close to the best bock brewed in Oz.

Pours a clear but vibrant red colour; lighter than I expected. Head is very generous but also nice and dense, quite fluffy on the top with good retention. Lacing is quite thick; not bad.

Smells fairly boozey and slightly vinous. Malty base with English toffee but a good sour bent from lagering giving black cherry, merlot and some cedar wood. A tad simple but stylistically fine.

Taste is fairly tangy upfront with unripe apple mixing with those vinous booze notes and cherry hints, some carbolic flavours mixing with noticeable carbonation on the front that is then placated and mollified by complementary roasty malt that dominates the back. Quite chocolatey, hint of spearmint and sultanas but mostly just a lingering Belgian chocolate flavour.

Really quite a pleasant bock as it finishes up, good warming notes and fairly well restrained. Bit too phenolic for everyday drinking but enjoyable enough for a slow sipper.

Solid dark copper colour with garnet highlights. Good clarity. A creamy yellowish tan head looks nice but disappears too quickly.

Some bready malts are good. A small amount of sour pineapple comes through but it disappears after a couple of minutes.

Sour, sour pineapple is predominant. Some good, complex dark malts are present in the midpalate. But, why, why, why must every Redoak beer in a bottle be sour. They are all the same tart pineapple. I'd let this off as a bad bottle but my experience says that they are all like this. It's a pity as the hints of malt I get are really good.

Medium bodied, moderately high carbonation. That would be fine except for the mouth puckering astringency that comes through.

Not all that drinkable. Firstly, its astringent. Then the flavours are wrong and aren't that nice. It's really a shame that Redoak sets itself out as Australia's best brewery but they can't get a single thing into a bottle without screwing it up.

Pours a deep dark red-black, with some clarity. Like crushed dark raspberry juice. Head is a very fine and compact mass of beige bubbles. Lacing is good, although the body looks a little thin. Overall though, it's a fine looking beer.

Masses of sweet malt and molasses on the nose. Huge gobs of melting caramel, brown sugar and raisins. It's exceptionally sweet, and quite robust. I do enjoy the depth of character, even if it's only one character.

Quite a smooth palate, very rich, but again, overwhelmingly sweet. I was looking for a slightly drier character in the mouth to clean it up, but it's still syrupy and thick, full of malt sweetness. There is a slightly darker roasted character, and a faint noble hop bitterness on the back, but it's not enough to deal with the big full flavours. It comes across as imbalanced, but there's no denying it's a robust bock.

Pretty decent overall. Good characters, and lots of flavour. I find it better than the average Redoak attempt, and although it's not a particularly true to style one. I'll have it again though.

a: dark amber color, medium head that quickly disappears, some carbonation
s: malty aromas countered by almost-sour fruity smell
t: match to the smells -- strong malts balanced with slightly sour fruity taste at the back along with hoppy bitterness, something else lingering -- like it was smoked
m: medium body with moderate carbonation, could be more smooth
d: an interesting take on bocks, not bad but not great. after visiting their flagship brewery/bar, i have very high expectations for redoak & this one didn't quite live up to it. too bad their best beers aren't available in bottles.

A - Deep bronze colour with a large beige head that quickly subsides into a thin whisp.
S - Caramel/toffee maltiness dominates. Some slight floral hop notes in the background.
T - The caramel/toffee presence dominates the taste as well. Quite a sweet, cloying feeling.
M - Full bodied with a medium carbonation.
D - I wouldn't knock it back if offered but there's many better beers from this brewery as well as others that I'd take first.

Pours a deep ruddy brown with orange edges, clear & sparkling... with a spongy tan head, leaving a sudsy lace.

Aromas intially reminded me of my fermentor... strong hop volatiles. An almost sour cherry note is there also, with a hint of dark chocolate.

Big complex malty flavour, including a subtle hint of something smoky. Almost pudding-like in fruity richness. Back palate of herbal minty hop.

Body is light/medium though. Alcohol notes are there, and it finishes without cloying, with a medium bitterness persisting.

Probably should have checked the ABV before buying as my palate just doesnt handle anything above 6
Well not to waste it ,I poured a mahogany semi transparent beer that had many large bubbles adhering to the sides of the glass giving it a soft drink appearance.The loosely packed head was yellowish
The aroma was thin and waterywith a thought of honey in there. Overall rather bland.
Because I found higher allcohol beers overpowering I struggle to find a lot of other flavours however this did have a sweetness and some toasted grains lurking about but didnt really asault the palate The mouthfeel was the best part of this beer being balanced smooth and sweet.The swallowing was the disappointment.
Not my style of beer but is probably a reasonable example of the style