Monteith's Doppelbock Winter Ale
Monteith's Brewing Co.

Monteith's Doppelbock Winter AleMonteith's Doppelbock Winter Ale
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From:
Monteith's Brewing Co.
 
New Zealand
Style:
Doppelbock
ABV:
6%
Score:
83
Avg:
3.64 | pDev: 11.81%
Reviews:
29
Ratings:
40
Status:
Active
Rated:
May 26, 2021
Added:
Feb 13, 2008
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  2
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Daneve76:
Photo of Daneve76
Rated by Daneve76 from Australia

4.25/5  rDev +16.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

May 26, 2021
More User Ratings:
Photo of pagriley
Reviewed by pagriley from Illinois

4.13/5  rDev +13.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
A bit confused between the Doppelbock and the winter ale - seems to be a duplicate entry. Either way, Monteith's website only lists one Doppelbock and the label is the same as the one I have so this is the 6% Doppelbock.

L - Great depth of mahogany color with a off white head that dissipated after a few minutes to leave good lacing
S - Malty with nice caramel and nutty roasted malt notes
T - Nice malts with hints of toasted nuts and caramel. Slightly more bitterness to finish than I expected, but not unpleasant (just a touch more than expected for style). Clean finish and a nice overall profile
M - soft full mouth feel. Carbonation is spot on

Overall a very nice beer - bloody good stuff and a good price compared to the other options I had in Australia ($18 a 6er, one of the cheaper things I had)
Dec 27, 2014
Photo of SmashPants
Reviewed by SmashPants from Australia

4.03/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bottle: standard 330mL brown bottle with a simple but stylish label.

Appearance: poured into a tulip glass - transluscent dark brown with ruby highlights. A good, thick one-finger head hangs about for a good while with decent lacing.

Aroma: good aromas of sweet toffee and caramel malts, and some roasted coffee malts behind. A touch of spice also. Smells good.

Taste: a very smooth toffee and caramel with those roasted malts again. Just a good, solid and easy-drinking dark lager.

Aftertaste: the flavours linger for a time, which is nice. A touch of bitterness on the finish also.

Mouth feel: moderate in feel with a moderate carbonation that carries the flavour nicely. A very nice sessional beer.

Overall: this one was a big surprise for me - a real gem from Monteith's, who usually present average at best. The best part of this is the price, at only AU$55 for a case of 24 x 330mL. For a great dark beer that is a fantastic price - the only let down is the recent (to me at least) revelation that Monteith's have attempted to trademark the name 'doppelbock', even though it is a beer style, not their personally-devised name for their beer. To put that into perspective, they have already trademarked the 'name' (or rather, the international style) Radler and Saison, meaning no other NZ breweries can name their beer Radler or Saison, and no genuine internationals can import such a beer to NZ.Pretty poor stuff. Even though I live in Australia and not NZ, I'm not sure I'll buy Monteith's any more after finding out the above trademarking stuff, just on principle.
Sep 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by wrightst from Maryland

Sep 16, 2014
 
 
Rated: 3.5 by MenInVen from Australia

Jun 09, 2014
Photo of Ant777uk
Reviewed by Ant777uk from England

4.23/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
During 3 years of living in Australia, this was without the best beer that I discovered. In Melbourne it seemed to only really be available in the Autumn and Winter, which was perhaps due to the beer's name.

Not that many Australian's seemed to know about it, and it's stocks were generally quite low. I recall a number of times where I drank a few bottles and then had to choose something less exciting.

The colour is black with a mystic deepness, and it has a fresh, fruity, complex taste that is reminiscent of a dark Belgian abbey beer, yet originally different. There is a kind of dried apricotty taste infused with bitter mocha notes that forms a Christmassy overall experience that is smooth and easy to drink, yet highly complex.

This is completely superior to Monteiths other offerings, and is one of the best beers I have had.

Many memories of drinking this in Melbourne's E55
Nov 09, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by magpieken from Australia

Oct 24, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by SouthCrescent from Pennsylvania

Oct 02, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by tobelerone from New Jersey

Aug 08, 2013
Photo of soju6
Reviewed by soju6 from Missouri

3.55/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
A: Pours a dark cherry color with a small thick head that fades to bits of lacing.

S: Aroma of roasted malt, dark fruit with a bit of chocolate and trace of spice.

T: Taste of roasted malt dark fruit, with a bit of nuts, chocolate and coffee. Mild bitterness and a dry finish.

F: Fairly light body, smooth with a decent balance.

O: Could be a bit more robust. Not a flashy beer.
May 30, 2013
 
Rated: 2.5 by pin from Australia

May 22, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by hopnerd from Australia

Aug 10, 2012
Photo of aBeeraWeek
Reviewed by aBeeraWeek from Australia

3.93/5  rDev +8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
A - A nice dense head. Heavy looking brew with dark colours and a slight red hue.

S - A lot of malt influence as you would hope from this style. Plenty of chocolate and toffee.

T - Toffe and chocolate is there again with a slight hint of sweet dry fruit. Medium level of bitterness gives it a nice balance.

M - A medium to heavy body, and although creamy, sticks in the mouth nicely holding in the aftertaste.
Jun 18, 2012
Photo of bylerteck
Reviewed by bylerteck from Canada (ON)

3.54/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Bottle from a shop in Melbourne. From notes.

A - Poured dark, dark red. One finger of off white head. Decent carbonation, bright. Spotty lace, no retention.

S - Really malty. Rum, raisin, dark fruit.

T - Sweet, toasty malt, some bread, mild dark fruit, tobacco.

M - Really carbonated, light to medium body, dry and roasty finish.

O/D - Too carbonated. Not bad. Decent and flavourful. Really nice maltiness for Autumn.
May 18, 2012
 
Rated: 2.75 by Chou from Oregon

Apr 17, 2012
Photo of jazzyjeff13
Reviewed by jazzyjeff13 from England

4/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A 330ml bottle with a BB of Feb 2012. Acquired from Harvey Nicks in Leeds.

Poured into a Delirium chalice. A dark ruby hue with plentiful carbonation. Yields a decent head of creamy light-tan foam that remains for a few minutes before reducing to a surface layer. Aroma of rich, fruity malt with notes of chocolate, brown sugar, dried fruit, caramel and booze.

Tastes of sweet, fruity malt with a dry finish. Notes of molasses, caramel, chocolate, dried fruit and yeast. A mild stewed hop bitterness. Mouthfeel is smooth, tingly and a little slick. Somewhat astringent. Aftertaste of sweet, fruity malt.

Nice - rich and sweet. Uncomplicated; the flavour is well-judged and satisfying. Perfect for winter drinking. Well worth trying.
Feb 13, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by DrNo from Australia

Jan 12, 2012
Photo of Raebies
Reviewed by Raebies from Australia

2.85/5  rDev -21.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5
Clean malty smell, slightly metalic. Thin mouth feel. Slightly tangy chocolate taste, a little yeasty. The flavour isn't too deep and is fairly smooth, easy drinking. Overall it's not very inspiring and I wouldn't seek this beer out over others. I prefer Monteith's slighty smoother Black Beer.
Nov 23, 2011
Photo of doktorhops
Reviewed by doktorhops from Australia

3.58/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Winter ale!? It's practically summer, those crazy kiwis! Well actually the summer ale from Monteith's will no doubt be out soon and I will be sad, why? I'll tell you why; I love Doppels! They're big Bavarian bear-hugs of a style, and I remember when I was in Munich apart from drinking excessive amounts of Weiss's that Doppelbock was my go to brew. Prost bitch!

Poured from a 330ml bottle into a Stein glass.

A: Deep ruby red body with some foamy 1cm bone-meal coloured head action.

S: The malt aroma in this beer has it's own gravity! It's a bold malty biscuit fragrance with toasted sesame (weird but thats what I'm smelling) and a mild chocolate note. No hops on the nose, but this is to be expected from a classic malt driven Doppel.

T: Very on the nose with the flavour department; big malt biscuit base with toasted sesame and mild chocolate. The finish is long and dry with an accompanied tang of alcohol and minimal bitterness. Much smoother than expected but the taste of alcohol is a little more than it should be.

M: Quite smooth bodied and with a fairly low carbonation than expected this brew goes down easy... deceptively.

D: Intriguing in a way, but bland in another. I know it goes against the style but some decent floral hops would really have lift this brew into another dimension. However as it is it's a decent but average affair here. Would I recommend it? Yeah it's alright value as it is... a good kiwi go at what I believe to be a challenging style to brew. Sweet as bro.

Food match: German/Kiwi food? Errr, Hangi with Spatzle... or maybe a nice Schweinshaxe with a side of roast Kumara and Taro. You decide.
Oct 19, 2011
Monteith's Doppelbock Winter Ale from Monteith's Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 83 out of 100 with 40 ratings