EKU 28

Brewed by Kulmbacher Brauerei (Schörghuber)
Style: Eisbock
Kulmbach, Germany

Serve in Dimpled mug, Snifter, Stein

Kulminator, 23 May 2006. Raisins on the nose at first. Light reddy amber body with minimal head. Dried fruit in the aroma followed by alcohol. Medium to full body, syrupy sort of mandarin, caramel, sweet, syrupy but drinkable.

Poured a hazy peachy amber. The head was thick, creamy and a bit yellow (see pic). The aroma showed mellow fruit, plum, fig. Some dry alcohol too. The flavor shows the 11%, some musty fig, and sweet fruit. The palate is dry and warm and the finish goes down warm and heats the stomach.

Sampled at Beerhawk’s Beer Gods in the Boro, aka 1000 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, By God Beer God Gathering, BG1K Tasting. Rich orange amber pour with fading off white head. Sweet vanilla, brown sugar, and alcohol. Not that bad, but nothing crazy special.

33cl bottle from a Leclerc in Colombes, Paris. Gold with a ring of white head; intense aroma of dried fruit - dates, prunes, raisins, apples and pears; the mouth feel is that of a dessert wine, cloyingly sweet, with apricot and marzipan flavours; warming spirit-like finish, reminding me of Calvados or a fruity Speyside malt whisky. A beer to sip very slowly and enjoy.

Bottle; the world needs more eisbocks. Poured a clear amber color; not much head, but really nice looking. Aroma of dark fruit, caramel, grapes, alcohol and sweet malt. I could see the love/hate on this one, although to me it wasn’t extremely flavorful. However, it was a solid, malty beer. Caramel gives way to a burst of alcohol and dark fruit. A lingering toffee like presence in the finish. Not too much alcohol warming, which was a tad surprising, although the alcohol was always evident.

Rating this back-to-back with Eggenberg Urbock, I realized two things: 1. the EKU 28 tastes like a vodka shot; 2. After drinking two beers of more than 9% abv, I'm thinking of taking a long nap. But before I go, I should say something about the beer...it's amber and smells of sweetness and alcohol. The taste is cloying sweetness and massive alcohol burn. If I wanted to sip something harsh, I'd be drinking Johnny Walker Red!

’’Brown 11.2 oz bottle into a large long stemmed sniffer. Appears a bit viscous in the pour. Smells of volatile vanilla extract and it reminds me of some helles beers, with their slender candy background olfactory. Color is a combination of clear red, orange and yellow. No perceivable carbonation. First taste is strong alky, like burning, man. Penetrating alky effect almost like hard liquor was added to the brew. Afraid to take another hit. Immense seat kicking back of throat punch. Rather massive in its own way. Way too much for this session brew lover. Exactly what I thought I’d get. Saw it on the shelf and passed it by for the last two years. Probably should have left it there. Causes the hair on the back of my neck to stand up and at times nearly triggers the gag reflex. No doubt this is one of the strongest tasting beers I’ve had. Yea, sherry or port fer sure. Don’t make this yer first beer if you are a recent pale lager convert. Date code 1872, heheh. Rude crude and at times, just plain unenjoyable for a beer. Hot as brandy without the fruity sweetness. S5L3F1T2O5 EKU28 11% Eisbock ’’

UPDATED: DEC 10, 2008 [bottle - Great European Beerfest 8, Sharp Edge Tavern - East Liberty, PA] The first eisbock I ever had. Poured a deep copper red with a creamy looking white head. Very rich aroma of hops blended with sweet malts, caramel and toffee and some clove as well. Isn’t as sweet in the flavor as I thought it would be. It has sweetness to it, but also a decent balance of hops and alcohol. Very thick and chewy.