JosephsBrau Winterfest

Pours with an initially two-finger thick, lightly browned, tan colored head that sit on top of a dark, burnt amber colored brew that shows a brilliantly clear, concentrated cranberry color when held up to the light. Malty smelling, though not nearly as rich as I might have expected from a Doppel Bock; the malt smells a bit fruitier and without that thick, chewy malt complexity and richness that is typical. The aroma smells of rum soaked raisins, prunes, some dusty cocoa hints and some herbal hop spiciness. Fairly simplistic for a Doppel Bock.

Somewhat light bodied up front, but it does pick up a heft to it as it moves across the tongue. Sweet, with a concentrated fruit character reminiscent of prunes & dried figs. A touch of dark malt adds some sharpness, a touch of cocoa and a hint of roast astringency to the finish. Some herbal hop notes and bitterness also adds to the light astringency in the finish. A bit creamy textured, but a light carbonation cuts through that sensation a bit. Hints of vanilla, rum and melanoids add some depth to the flavor. This really does have a nice, quite noticeable, though certainly supporting, hop character to it; I like the herbal notes and even the lingering, even biting bitterness in the finish adds quite a bit of balance to the dominant malt character.

The flavor is not nearly as week as the aroma made me thought it would be. It is perhaps not one of the best examples of the style, but is certainly a good example and much better than others I have had.

12oz bottle. Dark red with a small beige head. Full, malty aroma with some nuts and raisins. Flavor is malty and sweet with a lot of nuttiness, and pretty prevalent roasted bitterness, with little hop presence. Medium body, carbonation, and some lingering sweetness and bitterness in the finish. Alright overall, but I don’t tend to like average doppelbocks, as their less than stellar flavor can bring the drinkability down considerably. (3.1) Rerate: Seems too sweet and worty to me. Hard to drink.

Poured a deep amber color. Smelled and tasted of caramel. No hops to this beer, just a ton of malty carmel flavor. Great for a winter beer.

Thick head upon the pour and a full tasting lager, this brew is excellent for a winter lager. It had strong flavors of caramel and malt. Very good.

12-oz bottle available at Trader Joe’s. Pours a clear, deep ruby color with fine bubbles and a thick tan head. Musty aroma. Medium-bodied, full creamy mouthfeel and an interesting blend of flavors: caramel, spice, very subtle hops and a slightly dry finish. Somewhat rich and easy-drinking for 7.5%.

12oz bottles acquired in multiple trades. Poured a medium and clear mahogany color with a small sized off white head. Aromas of nuts, toffee, toasted malts, and some dark fruits. Tastes of caramel, citrus, and toasted malts.

Thanks to hopdog for sharing this. Pours a mostly translucent brownish ruby amber with a smaller bubbly off white head. Aroma of sweet toasted malts, dark fruits, some caramel, touch of citrus. Flavor of sweet lightly fruity notes, some toasted malts and on the thin side.

I think this is simply the Trader Joe’s version of Gordon Biersch’s Winterbock, which I only realized once I tasted its cherry sweetness. Funny how spending a couple dollars more per six pack makes folks rank beers higher!