Mendocino Spring Seasonal Bock

Brewed by Mendocino Brewing Company
Style: Heller Bock
Hopland, California USA

pours a orange/gold with a medium sized creamy off-white head. aroma is sweet of honey and malts with some butter. flavor of butter, toasty caramel, and peanut brittle. very malty. i love this one. what a treat.

Bottle. Aroma with toffee, grit, and a smidgen of caramel with a little sour funk in the corner. Harvesty grain aura, perhais a cornfield or barley field (I’m not suggesting the presence of an adjunct). Light citrus to boot. Pale orange body with a lovely, rocky, tiny-bubbled beige head. Taste is bitter though not terribly hoppy, with a bit of grainy dirt, natural grass, lemony citrus, and rocky, minerally funk. Earthy and down and dirty, really nice in how radically this departs from everything I’ve been drinking lately! Sweaty gym socks are a huge plus here, too. Faint crackers and stronger pale malts that approach apple juice but never get there (yes, this tastes very fresh), with notes of floral honey and toffee, lavender and a hint of pineapple. Green, seeded grape. Rye, too? There’s a ton going on here, and this activates parts of the palate that aren’t normally operating, even when exposed to the same hops. Medium body seems chewier than that, and the malts/water here are soft and smooth. Superb experience, had no idea this was coming!

12 oz. Red-copper with a medium-sized, lasting head. Spicy sweet corn and molasses aroma. Earthy spices and dried wood on the front; chocolate, toasted nut, molasses and corn on the back-end. Just a hint of a sour note and some alcohol provide additional balance. Medium-heavy body is creamy smooth and just dry enough.

Poured from 12oz bottle into pint glass. Aroma - Malty with notes of toffee, dried figs and a little bit grassy. Appearance - Dark copper in color, slightly cloudy, with 2 finger off-white head. Flavor - Lots of flavor. Malt, toffee, dried fruit. Some grassy hops and a bit warming on the finish on the finish. Palate - A bit slick. Low carbonation. Overall - This is very tasty. Has a fresh quality about it. You don’t really notice the slightly higher (7%) ABV.

Murky amber color with a thin off-white head and good lacing. Aroma is fruit (hint of apple) and caramel malt. Sweet taste up front, followed by a rich malt, then finishes dry and tangy.

Bottle. Reddish amber with the barest fizz. The aroma’s fairly intimidating with a hint of sugary alcohol. This certainly drinks with a bit of strong alcohol, but it’s not overwhelming. There’s a bit of a fruity hoppy bite here too. Certainly a enjoyable example of a strong spring beer. (#3362, 3/30/2008)

Can’t remember who shared this one. Copper color with a thin head. Lots of Munich and Vienna malts in the aroma, coupled with orange marmalade. Rich malt flavor, rounding off with caramel. Finishes with a nice floral hop. This is really a great bock.

Pours hazy copper with a fluffy white head and medium lacing. Aroma is sweet caramel, toffee, and a mild vanilla note. Flavor reflects the aroma well, initial sweet caramel notes give way to a bready warm middle, excellent balance of character, a bit of an alcohol astringency, more crusty bread towards the end, and a lingering bitter finish. This beer is highly underrated IMO.