Eisbock
Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company (Downtown)

Imagine my surprise while sitting at my table chowing down crawfish and jambalaya, when one of the hosts of the Fat Tuesday celebrations announced that they were going to tap a new concoction for us to enjoy in addition to the Velvet Hammer which had been tapped not a few minutes prior for the "Blessing of the Bock." Once I heard it was an Eisbock I immediately ran to the bar to grab a glass. Knowing the Dane's reputation for amazing bocks I knew this couldn't be bad.

Served in a non-descript snifter glass. Pours a crystal clear, dark brown color with ruby highlights. The off-white head was quite small but hung around for most of the beer consumption.

The aroma consisted of a balance of rich malts and a mild alcohol aroma, with some dark fruits in the background.

Flavor was predominated by very rich sweet malts with just a mild chocolate flavor. As with the nose, some dark fruit esters make a definite presence. Alcohol was evident, but remained subdued in the background just enough to let you know this was a strong beer. Very warming on the way down.

Wow. This was such an amazing beer. It really was the highlight of the night for me. So complex and strong, yet so easy to drink. People who don't drink lagers are definitely missing out on some awesome beers.

On tap at the Blessing of the Bock.

Wow, this beer is really something this year. Definitely warrants a second review.

Pours into a snifter a near black, purple brown with a thick and decent lasting off white froth. Marvelous to look at.

Wonderful vinous aroma of dark fruits, rotten bread, black cherries and plums, oak and toffee.

Taste/feel really go together with this one. The feel is all encompassing, ominous, rich and smooth. It’s delightful on the palate and despite its strength, it does not come across as too bold. The fruit character in the flavor serves to lift up this beer to a lighter more palatable place. The taste is loaded with fruit, cherries mostly, and chocolate chip banana bread, and lots of toffee, and some cloves, and maybe a touch of cinnamon too. Plenty of nut flavor also.

Drinkability: Dangerous. I could just sip this into oblivion.

On-tap at the Downtown Dane for their Fat Tuesday Blessing of the Bocks.

Pour: dark, dark purple/brown, opaque and with a finger of off-white creamy froth leaving rings of lacing down the snifter.

Nose: not quite as pungent as the JJJHSDDHWB, but deeper and richer with port-like characteristics of dark fruit, fermenting bread, must and spice.

Taste: cherries, dates, raisins, banana bread, walnuts, clove and musty yeast bracketed by an apparent, but not distracting booze.

Feel: just amazing on the tongue, rich and creamy, smooth carbonation.

Drinkability/Overall: an amazing eisbock that, like the JJJHS, can stand up to its Aventinus cousins. Rich, dark and creamy, a treat of a beer. I was lucky enough to find a free beer token in my slice of king cake, which certainly sweetened the deal as well.

Burnt golden bodied, with a surprisingly supple cream topping.
Nose of tobacco, prunes, pineapple, and tendrils of alcohol.
Taste begins with notes of charred peaches and gummi fruits. The fruit tones and brighter and different than most (i.e. it doesn't rely so heavily upon prunes and raisins). This morphs into toffee sweetness then to a oaken woodiness. A light dusting of cocoa powder and provides a background, accompanied with black cherries. Turns grainy and coarse towards the finish, with a scorching burst of bitter alcohol, which is more thrilling than off-puting.
This is a huge beer, but it stays astonishingly dry, relatively unsticky and incapacitatingly drinkable.
A well done bruiser, although I am disappointed that they wouldn't fill my growler with it....I guess it is probably for my own good.

update: After two additional samplings, I've nudged the numbers up a bit. This is a real jewel. Love it.