Bock: Ale or Lager?

I would associate the word Bock with Lagers, although bringing up Weizenbock is a good point. Generally any German beer over 6.5% can be classified as a Bock.

 

ale....

 

In Germany, yes.

 

If I were to theorize, I'd guess it originated here in the U.S. from people afraid of the dark, (supposedly) thick, beers labeled Bock that appeared traditionally in Spring. How else could they make such ugly looking, viscous, bitter stuff without using the dregs of the brewing vat?

 

Don't know the origin, but it's been around in the US a long time. Here, a reporter for the Providence Journal (reprinted in the San Antonio Light and Gazette), quotes a bar customer in pre-Pro 1917:


I tend to think it came, in part, from so many brewers stressing the "long aging" of their bock and customers misinterpreting it. Some US brewers used to start advertising their bock in the late fall, stating that they'd brewed their bock beer and began aging it but it would not be available until Easter/the first day of Spring/Ides of March/May 1st (the start of "Bock Season" in the US moved around a lot...), and would even continue such ads through the winter and early spring ("Only 30 more days until Bock Time - Lucky Aged-Mellowed Bock").

Until, finally, Bock Beer arrived. But, without today's "social media" how would you know? Well, an ad in the local paper from all the local brewers:

 

Nowadays Bock's are generally bottom-fermented,while Weizenbocks are still Top-fermented.

Back in the days, they likely used an ale yeast while lagering it in cold conditions (Hybrid,like Kölsch or Altbier).

 

Love the history lesson here, fellas!!
I believe bocks are generally lagers... But what I really want to know is why bocks seem to always have some sort of ram on the label???

I'm hoping one of you guys could shed some light on this...

 

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/32/

 

Looks like its related to astrology, beer and spiritual rites seem to go together well.

 

Per Google Translate, two of the English translations of "bock" are ram and he-goat, which may also have something to do with it.

 

Bocks originally come from Einbeck, which, in the Bavarian accent,* sounds like "ein bock," which means "a billy (i.e., unneutered male) goat" (or other small, male horned or antlered animal; related to the English "buck"). Putting "a goat" on the label of "[Ein]bock" is a visual pun.

* Einbeck is not in Bavaria, but the goat symbol became associated with bocks only after they were brought to Munich, which of course is in Bavaria.

Added: "Ram" usually refers to "male sheep," although it can refer to "male goat." Bocks more commonly have male goats on the labels than male sheep. In German, "bock" apparently can refer to the male of a variety of species, including goat, sheep, or deer. Perhaps a German speaker could clarify.

 

What about Falter Altermoiser?It is not brewed anymore since the brewery sadly closed its doors in 2008, but it was really tasty, and it was a bottom-fermented beer with wheat. To quote the old text:
"Aitermoser - benannt nach dem ehemaligen Brauereibesitzer der Brauerei Falter - ist eine Besonderheit unter den Bieren, da es nach einem über 90 Jahre alten Rezept gebraut wird. Es ist charakterisiert durch seinen eigenwilligen, kräftig spritzigen Typus: es ist eine Art Weizenbier, allerdings mit einem speziellen Hefestamm angesetzt, untergärig eingebraut. Der geringe Kohlensäureanteil präsentiert die hefetrübe Spezialität ungemein rund und süffig."

 

The Michael Jackson Beer Hunter is stronger, but, yes, I did Google to confirm and add detail (especially about the goat/ram confusion).

 

Damn American brewers - no respect for tradition!

Of course, one of Ortlieb's crosstown rivals was Hornung, best know for:

(Also, the only brewery run by a woman in the immediate
post-Repeal era).

 

My reference here is Ron Pattinson's write up.
See item 1 under German beer law.
http://www.europeanbeerguide.net/reinheit.htm

 

Ahh with all things beer its starts and ends with Yeast.
I think we agree that Bock is just a descriptor of abv.
We agree that "lager" orginaly means to keep(celler)?
I think we can also agree that the Reinheitgebot states only barley, water, and hops are allowed in beer. (with a few exceptions for Royalty). A decree from 1487.

Now since the Reinheitgebot makes no reference to the real brewers of beer (yeast) one can assume that what ever strain of yeast was dominant in the brewery would produce a beer of either Top or Bottom fermentation kind of a luck of the draw.
So post fermentation they would keg up with strong bier and roll it into their "lagering celler" until it matures enough for sale. Now good brewers would be in demand and most likely carry with them their mash paddle or a stirring stick richly embedded with yeast of past brews as they traveled and thus aiding in the spreading of bottom fermenting yeast from

That most likely continued to happen (depending on the quality of the beer) up until the1870's when a german man named Max Rees found that Top and Bottom fermenting yeast cells were different. He learned that bottom fermenting yeast are a hybrid of two pure strains of Saccharomyces all through the wonders of a microscope and the ability to culture yeast.

So in the end hard to say what type of yeast were used because they had no record of pitching a culture and thus the modern classification of 15th century bocks were. Modern bocks have the benefit of yeast banks and being able to grow a culture and thus classify it as a lager.

**just my opinions on filling in the gaps in history(may or may not be accurate but possible)**