Baron Rumpelstiltskin Rauch Doppelbock

Brewed by Baron Brewing & Lunar Brewing
Style: Smoked
Seattle, Washington USA

Bottle. Nice looking beer, a dark ruby color, with a full, long lasting tan head. Not much too the nose besides some intense smoke. Mouth feel needs more weight and texture. Flavor is mostly sour and doesn’t have any malt depth besides smoke. Too sour.

Bourbon Barrel Doppelbock tap at Brouwers .. hopefully this is the right base beer. Thick brown head on a deep brown body. nose of oak and smoke which is heavy on the taste too. underlying beer doesnt really stand up to these heavy notes, but is a decent bock. touch sweet and coats the mouth nicely. very interesting, best from baron Ive had.

Bottle. Head is fully diminishing. Body is dark brown. Aroma is moderately malty (roasted grain, caramel), with a note of smoke. Flavor is moderately sweet, moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, lightly to moderately bitter, unclean. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation. Ehh.

Pours dark brown with a nice head and some sticky lacing. The aroma has notes of smoked beef jerky with a little underlying sweetness. More strong smokey flavors initially followed by some over ripe dark fruits on the mid palate, a little sweetness, a little tart, and then a long smoke in the finish. For 9.5% it is really light, and easy to drink. Not bad, but not my cup of tea I guess.

Deep garnet with a light brown head. Nice smoked meat Philly cheese steak aroma. Medium body. Strange flavor is sour wheat bread, with glazed and smoked meat and cheese, sort of like eating a Philly sandwich after it sat in your fridg for a week, just not quite as good as a fresh one.

2008 Bottling; Sampled December 2008
A vigorous pour into my 25cl tulip glass produces a tightly beaded, initially three-finger thick, well browned, tan colored head. The beer is an almost black, dark brown color that shows a brilliantly clear, deep ruby / plum color when held up to the light. The aroma brings a smile to my face as it has a nice beechwood smokiness to it. This smokiness is dominant, but is not as noticeable as it could be; in fact the beer could use a bit more malt richness to carry the smoke as it comes off as a bit thin and phenolic at times. The aroma is best if you don’t spend any time lingering over it (something I usually like to do with good Rauchbiers), as you don’t notice the flaws this way.

The beer has a light, but complex sweetness to it up front that is coupled with a malt, somewhat rich body and viscous texture. Notes of raisins up front are then backed by a touch of toasted, almost roasted character that contributes a touch of acidity and then of course a smoky flavor that also contributes to the perceived tartness as well as contributing a soft richness to this beer. The smokiness also helps to dry out the finish quite a bit, though I would never describe this beer as sweet (rich, yes but definitely not on the sweet side). This actually ends up light bodied / drinking quite easily for a beer of this strength. The light, smoky tartness couples with the malt to produce a flavor somewhat similar to prunes.

Not quite rich enough to stand up to the smoke character, at least it is missing that rich depth that I want to see in a Doppelbock. It could use a bit more body as well as the smoked malt seems to thin things out a bit.

Purchased: Liquid Solutions

Bomber from Liquid Solutions. Dark ruby brown color with a transient tan head. Aromas of smoke, dark fruit and roasted malt. Medium body with mild carbonation. Flavor is primarily smoke, with some fruit and malt. Finish is mildly sweet and smokey, seems to get drier with time. Quite rich.

Courtesy Ibrew2or3. Dark brown color, thin off-white head. Nice smoky, slightly sweet malty aroma, smoke is not overboard. Nice smooth taste, mix of rich sweet roast and malt. Not bad.