Weltenburger Kloster Asam Bock

Brewed by Klosterbrauerei Weltenburg
Style: Doppelbock
Kelheim, Niederbayern, Germany

Garnet red/brown, head is rich, thick, long lasting and takes up half the glass. Aroma is heavy malt doppelbock goodness. Body is sublime raisin bread with an excellent palate. A great surprise.
Rich, warm amber brown with light tan, latte-colored head. Abundantly malty, sweet caramel, pumpernickel dough, medjool date, molasses and black sugar aromas. Creamy mouthfeel is luscious and gorgeous like a dessert. Bursting with rich malty flavors. Sweetness lingers on tongue. Bread crust finish. Also hazelnut-chocolate.

This is a wonderful doppelbock, that really shows off the fact that these do not have to be sickenly sweet in style. This has a nice rich, and medium bodied, flavor that is somewhat dry on the palate. Granted it is bittersweet, but not sweet to the point of irritation. Caramel maltiness, with an even amount of roastiness, somewhat earthy, but very clean, with a lingering finish of black tea and cooked grains.

I have a strong interest in monasteries, and given the beautiful sights on the monastery websight--plus a love of sweet doppelbocks--I was ready to give this a very high score. My expectations were too high. The aroma is indeed a wonder, with strong fruit essences, particularly plum, in addition to a good stock of caramel with a hint of licorice. The mouthfeel is nice, slightly frothy with carbonation but rich texture. The flavor produced something that I found uncomfortable, hinted at in the aroma but stronger on tasting--a candy/caramel flavor that also carries a lingering bitterness, plus some saltiness. The alcohol is well hidden. Very enjoyable, no doubt, but short of greatness. Oh, and after I had tasted this I started eating dinner, and somehow the flavor clashed horribly with the walnuts in my salad.

50cl bottle - slightly hazy, dark red beer, with an impressive, frothy lace - aroma of fig, raisin, cherry, prune, light caramel, some mild tart, fruit skin character - wonderfully inviting - smooth, creamy body - the flavor is heavy on the raisin at first, with a hint of rum, minus the booziness - notes of brown sugar, rolled oats, roasted nuts - the roasted qualities become stronger as the sweetness dissipates, and very light hints of anise and vanilla ride the drier roasty flavor through the finish - this beer is great.

The aroma is sweet and rich with toasted malt, toffee, and chocolate. The appearance is dark brown with a tan head. The flavor is like the aroma plus licorice cola. The palate is a little thin but OK. Overall it’s very good.

50 cl. bottle. No yeast at the bottom. Dark brown colour with a small head. Sweet and malty aroma with hints of alcohol. Nice smooth flavour of malt, sweetness and hints of roastedness too. Very enjoyable.

(Bottle, Stockholm Beer Festival, 26 Sep 2009) Deep ruby colour with frothy, beige head. Malty, slightly roasted nose with notes of raisins and prunes. Malty, roasted taste with dried fruit, raisins and dark bread. Well balanced and smooth finish with a mild, spicy bitterness. More than medium body, balanced sweetness. Lovely balance with a solid malt character makes this a very enjoyable, slow sipping beer.

The label describes this beer as a dunkle dopplebock; The rich "dunkle" maltiness is clearly evident, delightfully tasty, and less sweet than many other dopplebocks which results in a more genuine maltiness; Mild bitterness helps balance the beer in the finish; The higher alcohol content is masked very well; Like the flavor, the nose is malt driven; Very pretty beer to look at; Deep mahogany color; Large light tan head is creamy on top, but bubbly underneath, and only leaves a modest amount of lacing on the glass