What's the deal with Bocks?

My local chain brewpub has a hopped to beat-hell Bock, so maybe?

 

An IPB?

 

I've had this beer! I can't really speak to whether or not it's "to style", I'm more than a little surprised it can be found outside of its hometown of Frankfurt, though. I remember liking it.

 

You shouldn't really think of Germany as a whole entity. German beer can be very regional, so beer that is popular in Bavaria might not be as popular in, say Baden Württemberg or Berlin. There is one schwarzbier that can be found everywhere, that's Köstritzer. Mönschhof was not ubiquitous like Köstritzer, but you could find it. Otherwise schwarzbiers were probably limited to their region (like lots of beers). Markisher Landmann Schwarzbier was common in Berlin, I don't think I ever saw it anywhere else. Altbier, similarly, is hard to find anywhere outside of Düsseldorf (unless you count Diebels, which is sort of the macro alt). Dark lagers are popular in Bavaria, but were more obscure in Heidelberg, where I lived. HD was mostly Pils/Export/Weizen country. I never saw many Bocks (i.e. non-dopplebocks) on the retail shelves in HD. Einbecker was a seasonal release. Andechs' Bergbock Hell was year round, otherwise I'm hard pressed to think of any.

 

Check out the Europe board here, and click on the Germany tab for some informative posts. If you want to know anything specific then just start a post of your own- the German users are very knowledgeable.

 

I've also seen Schumcker Marzen and Schumcker Schwarzbier, but only once.
I have a german/mexican friend who travels often to Germany and the last time he brought a Grevensteiner to share, and I loved that landbier. Is Grevensteiner easy to find in Germany? That beer should be easy to find anywhere!

 

Here is a pdf file from the German brewers association with statistics for the years 2009/2010 with a national and regional breakdown.

 

Thanks. If you don't mind: What kind of beers are in the categories Malz and Lager? Where does today's Oktoberfest beer fit... is it Export or Hell or something else?

 

isn't the brewery you guys are talking about spelled Schmucker?

http://www.schmucker-bier.de/index.htm

 

Malzbier is a low alcohol malty beer.

Lagerbier is a rustic lager that I have had around Bamberg. Sometimes a country lager or Landbier. New Glarus Two Women lager is this type of beer.

Not sure about the Oktoberfest.

 

I wasn't really talking about a specific brewery in that reply -- it was about the old beer-drinker's tale of Bock being the made from the dredges cleaned out of the brew-kettle every spring.

 

I was not referring to you, and not sure how that fits in as you didn't mention a brewery, or the one those guys were talking about. I just wen't back and looked.

 

> shrug < You quoted me, so I'd call that reference of some kind. Keyboard slip?

 

@zid. Being in New York you get Jack's Abby right?

If so, their House Lager (now in 16 oz. cans in four packs) is labeled a Landbier.

 

Damn, I will blame that on not being able to drink coffee this morning. My bad.

 

That one's at least over a century old:

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(I was always amazed that it was still going strong even when bock beer itself was all but extinct in most markets).

 

I can't remember where I first heard it, but I can remember repeating it (somewhat skeptically) in the early '80s.