New Glarus Unplugged Bourbon Barrel Bock

Formerly brewed at New Glarus Brewing Company
Style: Doppelbock
New Glarus, Wisconsin USA

I’m not sure a bock beer has the fortitude to stand up to the intense barrel aging this beer apparently went through. The nose smells like I stuck my head into a used bourbon barrel - lots as lots of bourbon, vanilla, butterscotch, ether and oak notes overpower the olfactory. The body adds a healthy does of caramel to the mix, but still starts with bourbon and finishes with bourbon. Any characteristics of the beer benath are lost to the barrel. This is one dimensional unfortunately.

more bourbon than anything else. lots and lots of bourbon and some cherry with some butterscotch and some carmel. some interesting lactic acid stuff going on with this stuff. but still very tasty.

Clear light brown beer. Aroma with a bit of bourbon and soft sweet maltiness. A hint of cherry character in the nose as well. Concentrated pale malt, a touch of caramel and bourbon. Flavour has lots of bourbon character, light booziness and a touch of slightly sour earthiness. Malts seem a bit flat and muted. Meh.

Bottle. Thanks to stine for hooking me up. Pours a deep red brown body with thin head. Aroma is vanilla, bourbon, must. Flavor is smooth malty body with light and subtle bourbon qualities. Creamy mouthfeel and a nice sence of warmth. Good beer!

Bottle, at HogTown Harry tasting (courtesy Brigadier I think), September 2007. Mid brown colour. I’m not usually much of a fan of Doppelbock but I enjoyed this one. Lots of chewy malt and fruit with just a touch of acidity to cut through. The woody, Bourbon barrel notes are clearly evident. It is sweet but not too syrupy and sticky. Which is my usual gripe with Doppelbocks. In fact, not too much like a German Doppelbock at all. Which may be why I liked it.

Bottle: Amber/copper pour with a thin tan bubbly ring for head. Mildly boozy aroma, with some chocolate/caramel malts coming through in the nose and leathery hints. Flavor isn’t as developed. The malt character seems drowned out by the barrel. Has an underlying tartness (sourdough) The barrel didn’t offer the flavor anything new. A mild Bourbon back, with earthy undertones (tobacco) and a twiggy finish. Decent, but the barrel didn’t do much for this one.

12oz bottle.
Pours a gorgeous copper-caramel with a poofy white head that quickly settles to a wisp floating in the middle. Aroma is of caramel, vanilla beans, richly sweet caramel, toffee, and a faint hint of bourbon. Flavor is a bit more bourbon-y than the aroma lets on, and the charcoally bourbon is first on the scene. The sweet caramel malt comes in to take away some of the bourbon sourness and ushers in with it plenty of vanilla and toffee. A slight vegetal tone shows up unwanted and seemingly out of place, just strong enough to slightly upset the balance between the otherwise delightful dance of caramel, vanilla, toffee and Beam. Palate is thick and sweet like a doppelbock with a long, dry, charcoal-bourbon aftertaste. After drinking this I’m still not convinced that bock and bourbon-barrel aging go together; it’s not an intuitive match, that’s for sure. But the result of this daring experiment is unique and pleasant enough.

12 oz bottle pours a glowing red orange brown with a tall beige head. Aroma is rauch malts, smoked meat, carmelized pear, red fruit, and brown sugar. Toasted caramelized flavors with lots of fruit. Some alcohol, a little cough syrupy with that fruit, and bakers chocolate. Finishes dry. Nice dopplebock interpretation.