Fort Collins Barrel Licked Bock

Brewed by Fort Collins Brewery
Style: Smoked
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

Pours a dark brown body with a light tan head. Smells of smoke, malt, roast, and vanilla. Flavor is malt, roast, toast, dough, vanilla. Finish has some smoke.

Bottle. Dark copper pour with a short, dense tan head. Aroma is smoky notes, caramel, sweet malts, chocolate and wood. Taste is smoky and sweet with caramel, chewy malts, light toffee, raisin, light chocolate, alcohol and wood. Some vanilla as well. Body is medium-full and slightly chewy with a soft, bubbly carbonation. Dry in spots as well. Ends with more smoky malts, caramel, sweet malt, light toffee, dark fruit, alcohol and vanilla. Very good!

Sample at JaBier’s refrigerator reduction tasting on 08/15/09. This brew is a clear dark amber color with a medium thin light beige head that dissipates slowly. Spotty lacing on the glass. Smoky nose with notes of malt and hops. Medium body with flavors of smoked malt and peppery hops along with some dark fruit. The finish is malty with a smoked aftertaste. Decent but not something I would go out of my way to try again.

Bottle at my refrigerator reduction tasting on 8/15/09. Clear light brown pour with a thin tan head. Aroma of booze and smoked meat. Very hammy flavor with some booze and a sweet caramel finish. Meh.

How the heck does a barrel aged Doppelbock get listed as a Smoked beer? Nothing in the listed commercial description or the actual description on the bomber that I picked up from Sam’s in Downers Grove, IL, mentions smoked malts. (It reminds me of an Imperial Stout that I once had that was aged in oak barrels. Most of the raters tasted the Bourbon, although the barrels were virgin.) Anywhat - It’s a nice brew. It poured a clear brown body with red highlights and a manilla head that rapidly reduced to a film. It had an aroma of dark caramel, charred wood, dark dried fruit, and a touch of booze. Very smooth yet somewhat warm mouthfeel. The flavor did have a smokiness to it - old bacon, mayhaps - but the tastes were mainly the sweet dark toffee malt, a touch of the dried fruit, alcohol, powdered chocolate, and a hint of vanilla. The finish was dry with a low alcohol burn.... which should be stronger, in my opinion, if only to remind one how seriously strong this very drinkable Doppelbock is.

Pours a clear amber with a minimal amount of head - medium-smoky aroma, with present (but not overpowering) warm notes of whiskey and vanilla, beachwood - fairly creamy in the mouth - quite sweet up front, with notes of caramelized sugars and charred wood - vanilla and burnt marshmallows - the whiskey shows up late, just in time to compliment some alcohol heat - the smoke comes in behind that fairly strong - finishes with a bit of cherry and lingering caramelized sugar - a bit sweet, but otherwise a decent beer.

Bottle. Pours a deep, active ruby-red brown with a nice off-white head and lacing. Aroma is deep, chocolatey caramel, malt, candy, and root beer vanilla float. Flavor is smoky, sweet meat with a chocolate and caramel glaze. Full and coating mouthfeel; thick and pleasing on the tongue. Stellar effort; I’d put this up against any bock, any day.

22oz bomber, no date from Liquor Max. Pours a clear copper with a one finger beige head, fair retention. Dry smoky malts up front with some toffee and toasted malts behind. The flavor continues with the smokiness dominating and turning slightly meaty, and adds some raisin notes. Dry finish with bitterness at a 2-3, and a devent amount of alcohol, though not overpowering by any means. Medium body with light to moderate prickly carbonation. I’m only picking up on hints of oak and vanilla, which is nice considering how often barrel aging is overdone.