Online Doppelbock Tasting - February 4th

I really enjoy Doppelbock's and Bell's Consecrator is finally hitting my area but at $19.99 a six pack, hard to bite at that price when I can get Troegenator anytime for half that.

 

Wouldn't a pale doppelbock fall more in line with the style of a maibock or helles bock?

 

But a stronger one, to make the Doppelbock classification.

 

Just stuck my nose in bjcp guidelines, I see the difference, good looking out.

 

I didn't look at the BJCP so let me know if I say anything that contradicts it. To add to @TongoRad 's comment about strength, as far as I know, pale Doppelbocks are generally considered to be maltier and not as hoppy as Maibocks. The other thing to consider is time of year. It might seem really strange to someone on this site that a beer style is linked to a specific time of year... so much so, that I'm guessing that it's not outside of the realm of possibility that two similar strong-ish pale bocks could be considered different styles depending on the month they were supposed to be enjoyed. I don't know how much of that thinking is anachronistic in today's Germany. I always liked what Michael Jackson said about German beer in The Beer Hunter show - there's "a beer for every season and an occasion for every beer."

 

Both beers are described as having little to no hop flavor and aroma. The big difference are gravity and maillard flavors and aromas from what I was reading.

 

From the 2015 updated BJCP Guidelines:
4C. Helles (sic) Bock
Overall Impression: A relatively pale, strong, malty German lager beer with a nicely attenuated finish that enhances drinkability. The hop character is generally more apparent than in other bocks.

9A. Doppelbock
Overall Impression: A strong, rich, and very malty German lager that can have both pale and dark variants. The darker versions have more richly-developed, deeper malt flavors, while the paler versions have slightly more hops and dryness.

 

Both aroma and flavor descriptions include the term "little to no hop".

 

It's all relative, I suppose, but Heller Bocks generally do come across as hoppier. Compare it to a Pale Ale, though, and that won't seem to be the case.