R. T. Ryebock
Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery

Pretty dark in color, some reddish toffee hues at the edges and bottom, thin tan film for a head. Upfront the aroma is of brown sugar and toast, some fruity notes break through, apples and brambles. The taste again has plenty of brown sugar and molasses character, but the fruity flavors become more discernable than in the aroma, brambles and other berrys and cherrys. The rye gives it a distinctive grainy, toast-like flavor as well. Medium bodied, the alcohol is somewhat noticeable but smooths out well in the aftertaste.

Overall: exceeded my expectations. I am not a big bock drinker, but I liked this one quite a bit. Not overly sweet as I feel some bocks can get, a few hints of fruit like I love from doppelbocks, but the grainy/malty texture from the rye balances it out well. This is the second time Bryon has impressed me with his use of rye in brewing, the Catcher in the Rye he brewed last year was awesome too.

A-Bartender did not tighten the growler cap hard enough so the carbonation is gone pretty much...I won't deduct the points though as it is not the beers fault...Basic muddy brown color..

S-Rich, sweet, almost doppelbock like aroma of toasted malt, caramel, vanilla, maple, molasses, brown sugar and dark fruits....very nice indeed.

T-Nicely flavored...definitely more of a bock taste...brown sugar, caramel, still getting a little maple note...a little vanilla, and bing cherries...

M-Medium bodied...pretty smooth...low carbonation as mentioned at the top...finishes refreshingly sweet but not sticky sweet. By that I mean it leaves a nice malty taste on your lips but it's still more of a drinker than a sipper...

D-Overall this is quite nice...I'd give it a slight edge over the Fitgers rye bock I had last year....a bit more malt goodness to this one....I'm just real impressed with the layers of malt flavor this has....subtle but very tasty...

Named for Minneapolis mayor R. T. Rybak.

Dark mahogany hue, with bright-ish burgundy highlights. Smaller head from this pour than I got at the pub yesterday, (but this growler has been waiting in the fridge since then...the RB growlers tend that way, in my experience.)

Aroma: malty sweet, hints of chocolate, toast, cherries, & tobacco. Slightly smoky. Quite nice.

Tasty right from the start, a copious helping of delicious malty flavor, and sublimely smooth. Grapes and other dark fruit are here, met with a grainy texture, that plays well off the tongue, Continues solid, smooth, and intriquingly delicious.

I'll be enjoying the remains of this growler and checking in for a few more pints before this disappears.