Kaufbeuren Buronator Doppelbock

Brewed by Aktienbrauerei Kaufbeuren
Style: Doppelbock
Kaufbeuren, Schwaben/Bayern, Germany

Pours a shade darker than Mahogany ..head settles to cream colored speckles on top . Nose as vibrant notes of nuts, toffee, chocolate, pumpkin spice, and bread with an underlying smokiness. Flavors are malty with notes of chocolate toffee and nuts and have a nice meaty, smoke character to them as well. The body seems a little less than it needs to be to carry the flavors..but the finish is quite nice as the chocolaty toffee and meaty smoke flavors seem to get more refined and linger. Just seems a little flat in the middle at times. Tasty regardless.

Bottle 33cl. @ home.
Clear medium to dark red brown color with a average, frothy to creamy, good lacing, mostly lasting, beige head. Aroma is light heavy malty, roasted, caramel, chocolate, dusty nutty, brown sugar. Flavor is moderate to heavy sweet and bitter with a long duration. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft. [20091102]

50cl bottle - fizzy ruby pour that fails to kick up a head - lightly oxidized aroma - nose of raisin, cherry, date, rum, dark breads - very smooth - low to medium carbonation - quite a bit of toffee, raisin, burnt sugars - this is tempered by a light tartness and some late bitterness - finishes with some warming and peppery alcohol - an enjoyable doppelbock.

Bottle (labeled St. Martin Dunkler Dopplebock) and served in snifter, next to Allgäuer Cambonator Doppelbock, Weltenburger Kloster Asam Bock and Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock (the baseline bier):

App: All three had a mahogany hue with the Buroator and Asam bocks displaying a bit more reddish highlights as well as a darker more tannish creamy head and better lacing. Cambonator gets the lowest score of 3, the others 4 each.

Aroma: Buronator, heavy caramel malt, bready and alcohol, some prune and fig along with a touch of peaty like smoke, brilliant. The Cambonator displays a walnut tone long with caramel, brown sugar and grape juice, interesting. The Asam bock has the weakest nose of the three with notes of caramel, wood, tobacco, grains, and a hint of raisin.

Taste: Rich and sweet caramel malt is front and center as expected in all three biers as is a hint of molasses. The differences are found with the undertones: Buronator has a figgy and roasty tone along with a dash of mineral water. It seems despite the heavy malt to be the most balanced of the three. The Cambonator has a very slight acidity (again grape juice) and some ashy notes. The Asam has more of a bakers chocolate tone and is more earthy and tobacco like, the most complex of the three.

Mouthfeel: Buronator, creamy and lively, Cambonator, lively and oily, a bit thinner, Asam lush and heavy, dry mineral finish.

Overall: While all three are well done and similar in the basics, the difference of enjoyment and complexity gives Buronator a slight advantage over Asam Bock with the Allgauer Cambonator my least favorite. This is interesting since the Buronator has the lowest ratebeer score of the three. Now when compared to the standard bearer of the style, and Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock ( 4.2), I found both the Buronator and Asam close companions but still a second cousin, The Cambonator was not even in the same zip code. Ahhh, the wonders of the horizontal tasting.

Bottle 50 cl. Pours a clear warm orangey brown with a light brown head. Sweet aroma of roasted malt and pumpernickel. Quite full-bodied with sweet accents of roasted malt, pumpernickel and dried fruit. Subdued bitterness. Excellent Doppelbock. 100709

Smooth...dark brown with little head. Aroma and taste are well balanced between sweet and bitter.

50 cL bottle. Pours clear and golden deep hazzlenut brown with a small tan head. Aroma is roasted breadish, light caramel note. Smooth dark breadish and caramel/toffee flavoured. Rather crisp and vibrant hops balance. Smooth roasted breadish finish.

(33cl bottle) Clear, colour with a big but collapsing beige foamy head. Sweet and moderately roasted malty aroma with caramel and subtle floral hops in the background. Sweet flavour, full bodied with an almost flat carbonation, that makes the brew rather sticky. Syrupy malt character with burnt elements, caramel and traces of dark chocolate; sweet and slightly sticky malty finish with a noticeable and also quite burning alcoholic note. Surely a flavourful brew, but it still lacks balance (17.VII.09).