Chocolate Bock

I was at the local grocery the other day and they had a 12-pack sampler of the Sam Adams Winter Collection on sale.  I had tried a few of the selections before.  I have always found the Winter Lager to be one of my all-time favorite beers.  Also included in the collection was Old Fezziwig Ale (named after a Dickens character in A Christmas Carol), Winter Ale, and Holiday Porter.

Chocolate and beer may seem to be an odd combination, but this combination does have historical roots.  The Aztecs brewed a type of beer from the cacao plant.  One of the byproducts of this fermentation was cocoa, which we now make into chocolate.

The Chocolate Bock tastes seems to have a dark porter base.  Dark roasted grains play heavily in the flavor.  There is a deep, dark chocolate flavor as well.  There is no noticeable hops flavor, and, given the bitterness of the chocolate, very little should be needed to balance the sweetness of the malt.

I pull this beer out of the fridge and poured it into a glass.  I found the flavor to improve after the beer had a chance to warm up.  I'm guessing the ideal temperature for this brew to be 45-50 degrees.

I wouldn't necessarily look to pair this beer with any particular food, including dessert.  However, I would be inclined to serve this as a dessert with a sampling of dark chocolate, particularly those with a high (65-70%) cocoa content.

Enjoy.