Octo-Bock
Pittsfield Brew Works

Pour - dark auburn in color, nice and clean. Very much like a marzen or dark lager in appearance. Nice big fluffy head fills the top of this glass and settles to a thin white coating on top of a great looking beer that seems to settle darker than originally appeared.

Aroma - lots of baked apple and toffee smells. Plenty of estery goodness packed into this. Nice sweet toasty malts and a bit of caramel and vanilla.

Taste - sweet and flavorful. This has a big dark fruit flavor that instantly blankets the tongue, its a refreshing beer that tastes almost juicy. There is a good deal of rich, roasted malt flavor as well as some toffee. Lots of stuff going on here and oh so drinkable, even at nearly 9%.

Overall - love it. A very clean tasting dark and malty delight. This is definitely a beer that could be shared or piggishly devoured by one's self (guilty as charged). Great job with this one PBW!

Would I buy more of it? - definitely, I'll be on the look out next year when it comes around again!

Pittsfiled Brew Works is a hidden gem. My girlfriend took me there for a tasting since she knew I liked beer. We did a sampler of their offerings and the Octo-bock stood out to my taste.

At 8.88% ABV the Octo-bock can pack a punch and the Brew Works staff will cut you off after a few however you cannot really taste the high ABV. Very smooth, dark amber color.

A very drinkabale tasty Octoberfest style beer, they also sell these in 22s however they are only available onsite as PBW does not distribute. Growlers are also available of any of their beers.

Pours a stunning deep copper color with a tan, fine bead head that dissipates somewhat readily into a thin ring. The aroma is just sooo enticing - Hallertau hops riding atop a caramel and Vienna malt base, with slight whiffs of alcohol carrying the aroma deep into the nose.

Stunning. Just... stunning. Starts off with a smooth, fruity maltiness that's juicy enough to take a bite out of - caramel and ripe pears but so much more, like a German malt kiln exploded in a pear orchard. The Hallertau noble hop flavors and a subtle bitterness kick in shortly thereafter, and then the faint whiffs of alcohol return to round out the flavors. Finishes with a slightly sweet, smoldering (from the alcohol) toasty maltiness as it glides down the throat. The mouthfeel is the definition of "round and smooth." Simply scary drinkable. Strangely enough, as I was reviewing this brew, Marsden on therock.fm played a song off of Rammstein's new album. Hmmm...

Astounding. Forget the growler, where's the IV?

Almost forgot: This beer is simply perfect with grilled wurst and sharp mustard.