Online Tasting: Bocks (April 23-25, 2021)

Much later to the party than many of you but I’m here now and ready to rock out with my bock out.

Fortunately my Total Wine delivery came through in the clutch, early enough for me to get these beers chilled, plus saved me the couple hours minimum it would have taken me to drive to the store find and buy these, and drive home. Was pretty productive in that time too, got a few things down around the house, got a bit of exercise in, watched some hockey. A nice little Saturday so far, and I’m sure it’s not going to get worse by drinking a few tasty beers.

So starting with this one, 7-8 month old Celebrator. Pours brown with some hints of dark amber as it rests, translucent and ruby when held to light. Dense light tan colored head has great retention and leaves some nice lacing. Essentially a perfect looking beer. Aroma is huge. Biscuity, sweet bread, dark fruits primarily dates and some raisin, some balancing spice and earthy floral notes. Taste is more roasty, not as rich or sweet as the nose implied. Some Nobel hop bitterness and subtle spice. A bit of black coffee bitterness. Dark fruits are quite subtle to my palate. It’s quite earthy and somewhat herbaceous. Mouthfeel is full bodied, carbonation appropriate, for me this is not as drinkable as the others I’ve recently had in the style. Probably specific to my palate but the combination of bitter/roasty/earthy just limits this one for me. Overall, it’s def a tasty beer and I understand it’s the G.O.A.T. for the style (see what I did there), but personally I like some of the others I’ve tried recently more than this one.

5/4.5/4/3.75/4





You say it looks like rain today, we say what a day to be living!


Cheers Bock-loving Brethren!

 

Hofbrau Maibock

4.21/5 rDev +7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

One of my favorites from Hofbrau. A 11.2 oz. bottle (Jan 21,2021) poured into a pint glass with a deep amber/honey color, quickly receding 1 1/2 inch head and decent lacing. Smells of caramel malt, dark fruit, and spice. Taste follows aroma with notes of fig, sweet malt, toasty bread and some earthy hop spice. Medium body with good carbonation. Clean and crisp with a slightly sweet aftertaste. Alcohol is well hidden. Highly recommended.

Cheers!

 

Adding a Doppel to the Bock. Wolves at the Door from Edmonds Oast Brewing.

 

Back with a slightly lesser-known German Doppelbock. I had this for the 1st time about 9 months ago, but it has already become one of my favorites.

Riegele Ator 20 – Pours a beautiful dark brown with fairly nice head. It actually is normally a bit fluffier than this, but maybe I poured it wrong this time. Regardless, the taste is just as great as always. It is pure malty goodness. Has some sweet caramel, a bit of roasted coffee and dark chocolate, and some lovely toffee notes. It can be a little bit on the brusk side at times, but the sweetness balances it out rather well. The mouthfeel is slightly thick, almost like a weizen. For a doppelbock, it actually has a nice complexity to it, while still being dangerously easy to drink. A truly outstanding doppelbock.

 

starting Saturday with my first ever Weizenbock. It was not quite what I expected, but to be fair I didn't really know what to expect. Still enjoying it thoroughly. Full thoughts below. Cheers!



3.97/5 rDev -7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

L: hazy old gold/tangerine. Poured at 48 degrees F into a tulip. Creamy white head 1.5inch takes a long while to recede.

S: cooked bananas, sweet breads, clove, candied ginger, banana toffee. Awesome balance grain and yeast. Substantial and enticing.

T: prickly, sweet and sour arrival. More tart than I was expecting. Both ripe and green banana, green apple, fresh cloves, grain-sour complex. Long spicy and sour finish

F: medium-full bodied

This is the first Weizenbock I've ever had. My only standard for comparison is a few hefeweizens. The aroma reminds me of a souped up and dialed in hefe. I was expecting the taste to follow suit with those bready and banana-ester characteristics, but it stayed rather sour with those aforementioned notes sticking in the background. I'll be seeking more of this style out to form a broader base for comparison

 

Now, for today's #2, and the second traditional (but not too traditional as it turns out) bock of the day.

Schell's Stag Series Black Bock
Bock - Traditional
ABV: NA%
IBU: NA



This beer was distributed only as part of the brewer's Peacock Pack - a sample 12-pack that also included the maibock I'll get to tomorrow.

The "Stag Series" moniker is applied to a series of one-of beers from Schell's, which has included some very tasty beers in the past.

Good aroma - dried fruits, slightly sweet, a bit floral. No toastiness, though.

Dark walnut color, clear, with abundant carbonation rising to a 1 inch tan creamy head with OK retention. The head recedes to a thick cap within a few minutes and leaves no lacing.

Wow!. Very flavorful. The initial hit is the dried fruits, followed by a mix of sweet bread, a touch of toast, and the floral rounding things out. The floral adds an open-air freshness that is unusual for bock beers, but it works quite well. There is no bittering at all. The middle and finish continue the mixture of flavors already noted, and the finish / aftertaste is smooth. It's not dry or crisp, but it is not into sweet territory, either. Very enjoyable and light. As I drink, the dried fruit flavors become more prominent, with a touch of caramel making an appearance, while still retaining the floral lightness.

The mouth feel is smooth and light.

Overall, a quite enjoyable take on the bock style. It is a bit deceptive, though. The dark color would lead you to expect a heavy or roasted beer, but it is almost the opposite: light and floral.

L: 4.0 | S: 3.75 | T: 4.25 | F: 3.75 | O: 4.25 | Rating: 4.07

 

My friend lives in maryland and this is on my want to visit list. Looks like cool brewery. Have you been?

 

When a brewery has been around for just shy of 1,000 years you gotta figure they know what they're doing.
Weltenburger Kloster Asam Bock Dunkler Doppelbock.

The usual sweetness, but there's a lot more going on here. Roasted malts, dates, figs, dark caramels, brown bread, a touch of coffee, a hint of chocolate, subdued hops to dry out the finish and prevent the sticky aftertaste.
This is a damn good doppelbock, maybe the best I've had.

Hhmm, @b9d9 has a different (newer?) label on his. Can anyone decode 119K1101?

 

Oh, god! Did I use the contraction for you are?!?

No, but it’s now on my list, too!

 

Maibock (Heller Bock) is probably my favorite style second to Oktoberfest. Lakefront has been a long time favorite since my home-brew club began frequenting their brewery back in the late 90s. Again, no apologies to being a fan of some great, customer driven brewers.

Lakefront Maibock. Best by June 16, 2021. 6.9 ABV. Again poured into my .5 liter Becher.

L -- Clear, deep gold to near orange with a (sadly) minimal, sudsy, off-white head that settles quickly to a thin cap (after the pic posted). 3.75

S -- Herbal hops up front, light lemon to peach citrus and yeasty breadiness back. Peppery alcohol with warming. 3.75

T -- Lightly sweet, honeyish, bready malts up front. Herbal hops balance the sweetness and a crusty breadiness finishes the mouthful. Bitterness and malts linger through the aftertaste with peppery alcohol becoming prominent with warming. The herbal hop bitterness is balanced perfectly by the luscious sweetness of the malt (and vice versa) -- a true concerto. 4.5

M -- Mouthfeel is soft and smooth with that distinct, malty chewiness. Body is medium. 4.0

O -- A bit lacking in appearance, but the whole of this beer is its marvelous strength (no pun). Delicious and inviting for another bottle. Which I obliged. 4.25

 

It was my favorite of the local Maibocks and I will enjoy the remaining ones. The Fermentorium was a close second.

 

Well I guess I'll join in with this standard bock.



Smooth lightly hopped brew, and I will pair with baby back ribs later so cheers.

 

This is the beer that I think of when I think of bock beers. I first drank it in my hotel room in Arlington Texas, in December 2010. I was getting ready for a Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys Sunday night game. The next night was Milwaukee Bucks at Dallas Mavericks. The Philadelphia Eagles won that game, but then totally blew that season later, and the Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl in Arlington, Texas, a weeks later. The Milwaukee Bucks won the following night, but then the Dallas Mavericks won the NBA championship a few months later. The caramel scent and flavor, the unique, smooth mouthfeel, and uniquely Texan feel to this beer, will always be an important milestone of my life's journey!

 

Einbecker Ainpockisch Bier 1378 by Einbecker Brauhaus

A new beer and brewery to me! A nice light and easy drinker. The taste is 'very yeasty' for my palate and that flavor is not really in my wheelhouse. At times, there was a citrus flavor that I couldnt quite put my finger which was enjoyable but this one was not for me

 

Last night cap down here. Actually polishing off a couple pils (I am thirsty -slight hungover-), and about to open a Celebrator I bought in the morning, which I can´t wait for in a childish way even if I can do this any day.



The thing I like the most about Aventinus is its versatility; as it works both as an 'experience' and just as a well-done, comforting and accesible beer you can enjoy without much thinking.

On one side you have as many complexities as you want to look for, from that particularly beautiful chocolaty nuttiness -easily reminding of Abt 12-, to the earthier, fruity dryness you might associate with sherrys and/or white wines (ok, that was maybe pushing it a bit too much). On the other side it works 'simply' like a (very classy) beefed up dunkleweizen with the usual clove, banana, wheat and loads of spices at the wheel. So no matter the mood it is actually difficult to go wrong with this beer, even if it is on the heavy side of both weight and sophistication.

It is also great value at around 2 euros the big bottle (beer shops) all things considered, which is another reason for it being a regular in my rotation lately in a similar way Vitus is.

I am not alone and might miss some posts, but I am thouroghly enjoying this event!

 

Wait, cans? @MNAle -- different dating on this packaging?

 

Here is Maibock/Bock #7:

Hard to judge this one. This sixer was beat up so handling could be an issue. Got home from the store and one bottle was broken in the pack. It happened a long time ago because it was dry. I live too far from the store so just going to make sure to check for breakage next time.

It is hard to judge also because it comes right after the King "Celebrator". I am making a big soft pretzel so maybe that will cleanse the palate. Need to get back out on the deck. Phone just said rain is coming. It's 65 now, 40 tomorrow but 80 by Tuesday.

 

Troegenator Doublebock by Troegs Brewery

Troegs is a staple brewery in PA. I'm embarrassed to admit that I have not had this one in years (maybe 2016 when I visited the brewery)!. My allergies arent allowing me to detect scents very well so I smell nothing. The taste is chocolate forward with light maltiness and caramel. No booze detected for 8.2% abv. Even so....Celebrator is the winner over Troegnator!!