Amsterdam Spring Bock

Brewed by Amsterdam Brewing Company
Style: Dunkler Bock
Toronto, Canada

Serve in Dimpled mug, Snifter

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Tap at Volo
Poured ruby with brown accents, good large creamy head. Visible carbonation, fragmental lacing.
Sweet malty nose with gentle strokes of hops. Fruity scent of sweet ripe red apple.
Medium light bodied, fruity front with slight tart and medium full roasted brown malts. Soft sweeter substance around. Alcohol well covered. Softer at edges which is welcomed (more like malty Czech strong dunkel) . Good attempt yet nothing sticking out of crowd.

Dark mahogany with a decent head and some lacing. Fairly thick, somewhat syrupy. As far as scent and aroma, it’s one-dimensional, sweet and malty with maybe some spice, but drinkable and somewhat tasty. Very metallic aftertaste. Didn’t blow my mind.

Draft at Shoeless Joe’s. I’m not an experienced Bock drinker, but I’m glad to read here that this is not considered a great one. I found it thin and a bit sour.

Draught. At Smokeless Joe. Blankboy wouldn’t let me leave until I tried this - I’ll get him, OH, yes I will ... Poured clear mahogany with a small beige head. Very mild nutty roast malt aroma, stale hops in there somewhat, a bit sour too. Flavour quite nutty and peaty, slightly sour malt, some light stale dry hop bitterness and oddly, thin from-concentrate orange juice - a bit burnt too. Mouthfeel flat, burnt, slightly harsh - not really too bad, but definitely a sub-par bock.

UPDATED: MAR 6, 2011 Re rating this beer after it’s resurrection as a 7% dopplebock, and re packaging in silk screened pint bottles. Pours a clear dark brown with gorgeous ruby highlights, 2 finger cap retains well and laces....moderate carbonation. Nice malty nose..roasty-toasty garins with fig and plumb undertones. Decent malt presence in front, toasty and some roast, earty noble hopping, ber goes more to roasty in a long finish that ends up fairly clean and dry. A really approachable easy drinking bock with a good flavor profile....they should sell lots of this on tap.

Bottle at Bar Volo. Pours a clear reddish-brown with a spare diminishing off-white head. Very mild aroma of malt and some burnt elements. Watery flavour of burnt cola and burnt caramel and what I like to call that ’Amsterdam flavour’ that is present in every one of their beers. Shit aftertaste. Thin bodied. Wow, this is very poor attempt at a Bock, I passed it around to three other people and none of us liked it. Crap.

Cola-ish dark brown with slight hints of crimson, soapy bubbles with little to no head retention.
Coffee and caramel, with a leafy, grassy hop smell. There might be some Saaz in there, but something else I couldn’t pin down.
Smooth carbonation, thin dark brown malt middle and a hop finish I felt more on my tongue than on my palate. Not too sweet, quite well attenuated in fact, it didn’t taste too boozy either.

very dark brown colour. Appropriately better than average carbonation, well-malted, and a significant amount of smoke.

Draught, Smokeless Joe’s. Dark brown colour with a cream white head. Not much aroma at all, which is surprising on the first sip, as there is an intense caramel sweetness - it is like they wanted to make sure the flavour came through in a big way - mission accomplished. Unfortunately, I think they went overboard, as I usually love sweet malty beers, but found this to be tough to finish by the end. Typically thin and watery from this brewery. I will give good marks for effort though, a valid attempt at the style.

Draft. C’est What. Dark red brown body, small creamy beige head. Muted aroma of sweetly alcoholic malt. Flavour is similarly alcoholic, with initial sweet malt and a very dry finish. Average palate, lingering aftertaste. Not bad.