Goose Island Aviator Doppelbock

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company
Style: Doppelbock
Chicago, Illinois USA

Draft: Lightly hazed russet brown. Dense, tan head. Rich, meaty, sugared malt aroma. Wafts of chocolate, dried plum, and tea leaf along with some fruity hops, dough, flowers, and fig. Firm, grainy body. Tiny, sandy bubbles scrub the palate. Stellar malt display right away with the rich, doughy, slightly caramelly caravienne leading the way, touched by sugary sweetness and and soft pale malts. Continually plummy and waxy underneath. Reserved chocolate, caramel notes with a touch of coffee and nuts. Ends with lingering starfruit hints amid a plethora of succulent, rich malts. Stunning example once it fully warms.

Draught [2003 version]: arrived in a snifter with a brilliant ruby-black body and a generous dark brown-bubbled head. (It also arrived freezing cold, but I had time to wait this one out . . . and boy, was it worth it). Stunning aroma: soft milk chocolate, raisins, roasty nuts, sweet caramel, and some light mocha. Simply amazing mouth-feel; soft, creamy and full. Great chocolate malt flavour along with roasted hops, plums, chewy raisins, and thick caramel add up to one of the finer Goose Island offering I have had.

On tap at Clybourn, listed as 7.6% ABV on the board: Deep brown hue with a purple highlight, topped by a small creamy head and good lace. The nose detected plum, fig, blueberry, caramelized and toasted malts, mocha, grassy hops, and a dusty yeast ester. The taste was sweet and fruity with a lot of carmel and chocolate notes. The finish displayed a touch of smoke and some nutty qualities, very subdued bitters. The feel was quite lush and sliky smooth, the alcohol was very well hidden. Oh so yummy once it warms up (served too cold at first). A must try for warming up on those cold Chicago days.

Starts out with a nice fruity and chocolate taste, but not too sweet. Then we have a hoppy, malty taste fallowed by a bitterfinish. Its seems like you could drink 10 of these without a problem but then the alcohol actually finds you.

Dark brown with hints of deep ruby sparkling beneath the creamy, off-white head. A rich, pleasant aroma of dark, ripe fruits, fresh dough, cocoa powder and a touch of hops. Full and deliciously thick mouthfeel. A wonderful flavor profile that shows strong malt character. Plenty of fruit, nutty caramel, chocolate and a light smoke character towards the end. This is one fine example!

Sampled at Clybourn brewpub. Dark garnet with impressive tan head. Light hop & chocolate malt aroma, with bits of bittersweet chocolate and green grape. Bitter coffee flavor is not overpowering, and finishes malty sweet and alcoholic. Very rich with many stout like flavor qualities.

Tasted in the fermentation area at Brewpub with Wil Turner (brewer): The alcohol in this is insanely well-hidden! Deliciously sweet and dangerously drinkable. Some guys at the bar were bemoaning the fact that this was no longer on tap the day I visited, but the resourceful brewer, Wil Turner, hooked me up with his emergency Doppelbock stash. Oh yeah! Insanely malty with little hops. Its achilles heel, if it has one at all, is a slight lack of complexity. Well done.

Draft at GI Clybourn. Pours a dark brown with a tan head. Medium carbonation. Aroma is of malt, spice, chocolate, and caramel. Taste is very rich malt, spice, brown sugar, raisins, chocolate, and caramel. Long lingering alcohol warmness. Mouthfeel is surprisingly light given the alcohol content. Has a malty, alcohol soaked finish. Damned drinkable.