Bergbock Hell
Klosterbrauerei Andechs

 

Lovely pour, foamy head and pleasant, mid gold hue. Hoppy, malty and floral notes. Not dry at all in the finish. It's a good beer and stands up in its style. ABV stands to reason. Very enjoyable.

 

Bright clear gold with a ribbon of white foam; toasty grain, flowers + candle wax on the nose; biscuit, set honey, hay, mild spice + humming bitterness to end; medium, clean, dry.

4 4.25 4 4.25 4

This is doing so many things right:
Yes, there’s a ton of pils malt that gives loads of bread, but there are also sturdy Noble hops presence, assertive (19 IBUs plays like 25) bitterness, and scrubbing carbonation that all serve to keep this from cloying. It seems sweet, but it never tastes sweet.
Add to that hints of toast and even pear esters + this is truly interesting to spend time with, while staying drinkable; I’ve very surprised at that ABV because there’s not a hint of it anywhere.
Lives up to the quality of the rest of their range.

Possibly the first maibock I’ve ever truly enjoyed.

 

Got a bottle in Munich. Excellent beer of the style, and pair really well with German sausages!

 

 

Best by 18.10.2023 e0,5l bottle
Haven’t had a Maibock in a long time. Pours a deeper golden color than expected with a frothy head. Quite sweet with a rich and slightly spicy malt character. A unique feel and finish with a pleasant boozy sweetness. This is truly special. Need to drink more beers of this style whilst living in Germany.

 

On tap at WECO Beer Garden in a half liter dimple mug
Clear gold, 1 cm fine white head which quickly disappeared.
Grass, biscuits, light citrus, floral, light stone aromas.
Light sweet pear, bread,pine, pepper, grape flavors
Smooth substantial mouthfeel, alcohol heat slowly accumulating, fruity aftertaste.
Brilliant.

May 2015: 500 ml bottle, as Kloster Andechs Bergbock Hell, BB date 13.02.2014, from CITTI-Markt Flensburg. ABV is 6.9%. Pale golden colour, large white head. Moderate aroma, some sweetish grassy and floral notes. Medium sweet flavour, notes of pilsener malts and moderate herbal hops. Not bad, but not the best beer from Klosterbrauerei Andechs.

 

Pours a clear yellow with fine, soapy head.

Smell is malty and sweet with notes of rye, toast, bundt cake and citrus.

Taste is malty and sweet, powerful but clean. Notes of rye, toast, bundt cake, pine, citrus and a hint of corn. Soft bitterness.

Mouthfeel is medium, smooth and well carbonated.

Overall, a very nice bock, balancing sweetness and spiciness well.

On draft in Portland Oregon..you could probably guess where.
Clean , Crisp...the alcohol will sneak up on you . Truly one of the best Maibocks I've had.
If you can get to the Holy Mountain in Andechs and they have it on tap you will be in heaven!
The down side is you can rarely find this one... cheers!

 

L- Mid and bright gold, clear, pours with 3mm fine white head, later clears to minor lacing.
S- I get so little smell from this that I can't even try and describe it, unexpected esp. from a 6.9% beer.
T- Now I get more but it's subtle in taste and more impactful in feel. It's a good brew for winter, moderately rich and with some sense of mild spice within it. An alcohol zing certainly comes in at the end of a mouthful.
F- Would work well for colder months and slow sipping through 2 or 3 of an evening. It's quite rich, which leads me to take this one quite slowly.
O- Nice, nothing to note out of place or balance. I'd suggest starting with this one chilled, as it really opens up as it begins to warm a touch, and that in itself can be interesting to observe. If I lived in Germany (again) I can imagine buying more of this, not least because even great beer is relatively cheap as chips there, but now being in the UK and at 'specialist-import' prices I'm not quite sold.
500ml bottle BB: 08/04/2020. Bought in the UK.

On draft at Bavarian Lodge.

Aroma is sweet and malty. Surprisingly powerful beer - sweet and malty with a bitter herbal hop backbone. Goes down easy but leaves it’s mark. Dry finish with some lingering bitterness.

Crystal clear golden lager, with excellent head production but surprisingly poor retention.

Nose is fairly classic, with bready malts, mild yeast notes, floral hints, and a touch of honey that grows more pronounced as the beer warms.

Very clean on the palate, with honey, pear, banana, bread, and restrained hops; the emphasis is on clean malts, but the balance is solid. Bitterness undoubtedly would be more pronounced with fresher bottles (or on draught). As it is, the malt sweetness from the high ABV only becomes slightly unbalanced as it warms.

Lively, fairly crisp, and certainly more sticky than normal for the style, showing the ABV in the feel, but not in any heat. A pleasant sipper.

This is a very good beer, executed true to style.