Brand Dubbelbock
Brand Bierbrouwerij

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poured from tap into small tulip glass in Europe. I know it sounds tiresome, but it puts the locally available bocks at home in the U.S. to shame. Dark caramel color, swish it around and it restores its nice thin head. It’s a little bit sticky but that’s more about the heady spilling pour, even after a little bit of rinsing. Just enough alcohol offsets sweet. Stands up to very good imperial porters I’ve had at home in terms of balance. Starts to resemble garden-variety bocks I can get at home after it warms up a little bit. Euro charm bias aside, this is really good.

 

Opaque brown/red in colour. Tight bubbles creamy beige head, low carbonation.

Malty, sweet and rich aroma.

Taste is malty caramel goodness.

Mouthfeel's medium to full, with a bit of an alcohol presence in the end. Bitter finish balances it. I flund it richer than Paulaner Salvator, which is my go to Doppelbock.

Really nice surprise. Would drink it agaim if I could find it.

 

Very lovely doppelbock, Well done Brand brewery!

 

 

My favorite Bockbeer. No this beer is not very exciting, it doesn't enthrill you with excentric flavors or the obligatory overdose of hops (if beer is not bitter there must be something wrong with it), so most beer snobs would probably call this Bock bland, but to me it is simply delicious. So well balanced, smooth and not cloying, the aftertaste doesn't stick too long so every sip you take you get the ideal sensation, not muted.
No, craft beer isn't always more tasty than commercial beer, I have tried many Bocks over the years, but Brand proves that a conservative, 'avarage Joe' recipe is all you need to make a killer beer!

 

 

 

Brown ruby colour with some lacing on top. Smell of malt, caramel and nuts (walnut?). The taste is nice: sweet caramel in the beginning, after which the malt starts to dominate, followed by hop bitterness and the nuts again in the swallowing. Pleasantly bitter aftertaste. Rich in flavour, smooth in mouth feel. Nice.