Bock Thread (2023)

I'm drinking a 12oz bottle of:
Valkyrie (Viking) Invader Doppel Bock. from Dallas WI
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/683/3047/
It's tasting good and fresh. It's a little different than most Dark Doppels
This will put me to bed.
http://valkyriebrewery.com/invader/index.html

 

Nabbed some Oak Highlands Tipsy Goat. Unfortunately falls into the same trap a lot of Stateside maibocks do with a lack of balance between the hop bite and malt (this one being just a bit too sweet).

Checked in with Merchant du Vin about bottle distribution for Ayinger Maibock in DFW and apparently nowhere within 100 miles ordered bottles so looks like I'll have to stick to the few places that have it on draft.

 

I see that you have a "Trader" banner so....?

Cheers!

 

Wonder what the backstory is there? Is Ayinger a slow-seller in Texas?

$15 a four-pack probably doesn't help quick pick-ups.

I saw our local big-box retailer put out their leftover Ayinger Oktober Fest half liter bottles alongside the Maibock 4-packs. It'll be interesting to see how that strategy plays out.

 

The reply I got from the Merchant du Vin import manager for our region said the Texas distributor decided to focus on draft for 2023 and wouldn't be bringing in bottles until 2025 unfortunately. No concrete idea why but I'd guess to test the waters on how it sells in restaurants and bars. As far as I know, Ayinger's other offerings come off the shelf pretty well, at least in Dallas.

 

Wow -- going to "test the waters" for 2 years? I'd be concerned Ayinger would decide not to export before then. Oh well, I'm not in the beer biz.

I hope you can find draft to sample.

 

I highly recommend this one if you can find it in your area. Bought 2 bottles, one for personal tasting and one for our neighborhood tasting group and it was well received there, especially by a couple of ladies surprisingly.
Cheers!
Tom

 

Don't recall seeing that one 'round these parts but I'll keep my eyes open. I enjoyed the one I had Sunday. Really grew on me as it warmed.

 

I thought I'd try a couple of primitive Bierstacheln experiments. I stole @AlcahueteJ 's great idea of using the handle of an oven-heated cast iron pan. My wife thinks my silicone oven mitts are ridiculous but I like them and they came in handy here. They look like two shark heads in love in my pic. I tried different levels of submerging the handle. Perhaps the heat alters the flavor of the beer beyond any flavor differences caused by the change in carbonation and temperature... but I sure wasn't going to notice any in this case because the carbonation and temperature differences were too large to make any further comparisons valid. I poured the beers gently to keep carbonation in suspension... and I didn't have any cases of heated foam spilling out over the partially filled mugs. Submerging the heated handle caused a large loss of carbonation in suspension. It also warmed the beer. When I was modest with how much of the handle I submerged, it created a case of cold beer underneath a warmed top portion. The novelty of drinking a beer with dual temperatures was pleasing. I wouldn't have taken this approach without @M-Fox24 's contributions in the "beer poking" thread.

 

Forgive my jumping between threads, but I took this experiment one step further with a NEIPA in the "beer poking" thread for anybody interested.

 

But they do. I had it last September at our local Oktoberfest (in PA). I took a picture of one of the keg labels. I think that you and I and some others had a back-and-forth about it in the 2022 Oktoberfest thread.

I do agree re. HB's Festbier being good. It was one of my favorite Festbiers last year too.


Edit: HB's Märzen was only available in kegs if I recall. Not bottles.

 

I like that line.

 

I know it's not in you neck of the woods, but Breski's has Eiche now and again.

 

Oh, that's right -- I forgot about those rare (9 or 10) kegs!

Since I rarely bar hop anymore I have six-pack blinders on for HB. The one and only place near me that (supposedly) had a keg ran through it in less than a week, so I can't comment on it either way.

 

This looks like a Maibock to me. We don't get many/any out here but the ones I have had a lighter color. I used to think Maibock is a Heller Bock. Lighter, brighter matches my image of spring too. Anyway, this thread has been educational.

 

For folks willing to travel to the Troegs Brewery (Hershey, PA) their Helles Bock should soon be available there:

“Cultivator Helles Bock

Once a Year

6.9% Abv

25 Ibu

Malt: Floor Malted Bohemian Pilsner

Hops: Hersbrucker, Magnum

Yeast: Lager

Color: Pale Gold”

In the good ol’ days when this beer was distributed, I would purchase a case (24 bottles) every spring.

Cheers!

 

Is it brewery only? Thx

 

That was the case in the past couple/few years so it is my expectation it is brewery only again this year as well.

I wish I could buy Cultivator Helles Bock at my local beer retailers but...

Cheers!

 

Just finished a 4 pack of Ayinger Maibock. A bit lighter than a bock but it was delicious.

 

It's actually got more alcohol than Celebrator.