Today I'm here to tell you a story about a style of German beer. A story in which you will find goats, stingy nobles and monks who fast by drinking beer. Interesting, right?
On March 21 the arrival of spring is celebrated, and this pagan festival was very important among the inhabitants of central Europe, where after spending a harsh winter, they began to see the first rays of sun and the beginning of the harvests.
This party was also used by the brewers to empty their cellars and make room for the new consignment, which would come after the summer. In Germany, at this spring festival, they mainly drank Maibock, a style with a very particular origin.
Maibock: the beer of spring
Einbeck, currently in the state of Lower Saxony, was already a renowned brewing center in the 10th century, but it was from 1368 with its joining the Hanseatic League that trade experienced a great boom, accounting for the largest city in the world. than half a thousand establishments authorized to brew beer.
Einbeck beers were known to be dark, very flavorful and full-bodied. In addition, one of their most appreciated qualities was that they endured long trips very well. And so they were exported as far away as England, Russia, and Scandinavia.
But it turns out that a nobleman of the time, Maximilian I of Bavaria, thought shipping costs from Eibbeck to Munich were too expensive, so he hired a local producer to come to the capital and manufacture this style there So rich. When he arrived in Munich, the brewer discovered that the water was much more alkaline than in his town and that the malt was better dried more intensively. He also discovered aging in cellars in the Alps, and incorporated it into brewing.
Whether this legend is true or not, the reality is that Bock –and later Maibock- was born from the union of two brewing traditions.
Bock: The Goat's Beer
This recipe gained a lot of popularity especially in Bavaria, in whose local dialect the name of the city was pronounced as "Einbock". Over time, the name was shortened to simply "Bock", a word that coincidentally means "goat" in German. Today many beers of this style still have a goat on their label.
Dark brown in color, it has intense malt aromas reminiscent of cornbread, walnuts and toffee. In the mouth, as in the aroma, the hops do not stand out, with the malt being the protagonist with a rich sweetness. It is a full-bodied and nutritious beer.
Doppelbock: the beer of the monks in Lent
In fact, bocks are so nutritious that the monks of the Order of the Minims, which is called the Paulaner Orden in German developed an even heavier malt version to serve as food during the Christmas fast. Lent. That is, they did not eat but drank beer. How clever the monks!
They called it the Doppelbock, meaning it meant double version. If you want to do like them, in our store we have the Sevebrau Bunny Doppelbock, a strong double that can mislead you with the cute Easter bunnies on its label, but with an intense malt aroma and a high alcohol content.
And if you want to try more beers of this style, we recommend the Yakka Salto de Trigo Hoppy Weizen Bock, which changes goats for tigers now which adds 50% wheat, which gives it an extra complexity.
Be that as it may, and with the beer that you like the most, happy spring day!