Grand Teton Double Vision Doppelbock
February 4th, 2010 beckelGrand Teton Brewing as one might guess is located at the base of the Teton Mountains in Victor, Idaho. Making a number of solid ales including my favorite so far Black Cauldron an Imperial Stout, which I’ve been meaning to write about for some time. Double Vision is one of four bottled (and one limited draft) ales released in their Cellar Reserve series of 2009. While milling around The Four Firkins during their incredibly packed Unibroue tasting a few weeks ago I got to talking about the Cellar Reserve series with Sean and unable to make up my mind about which one to sample he suggested the bottle I have before me, Double Vision Doppelbock. Packaged in a lovely and very large 1 Quart 1.8 fl oz flip top bottle complete with a fancy tag with an additional description of the brew. Informing us that this ale was brewed to highlight the brewery’s “wonderful glacial spring water and was brewed in strict adherence to the Reinheitsgebot”. Which for those of you who do not know is the German purity law that requires beer to be brewed with only the four fundamental ingredients: hops, malted barley, water and yeast. They further go on to describe their proper bottle conditioning technique (Kräusening) of blending fully fermented ale with newly fermenting ale to create continued fermentation in the bottle as it ages. As well as some more statistical information such as its date of February 11 2009, its Original Gravity of 24° Plato (1.096), 18 IBUs, 8% ABV and last but not least its color of 46° Lovibond. If some of those numbers don’t mean anything to you a quick Google search should shed some light. While not necessary I always enjoy when brewers happily share additional information about their brews, be it simple statistics, ingredient information or even a little bit about their process. Onto the good part. This ale pours a very dark amber-brown hue that appears completely black in the glass until brought to light. Head is an attractive light chocolate brown color that starts with almost four fingers of tight silky bubbles that slowly fade leaving you with a small ring of carbonation around the glass but almost no lacing. Smells very much as I like a strong Scotch Ale or Doppelbock to. Full of sweet complex caramel and toffee esters, intense notes similar to malted milk balls, chocolate, soft coffee esters, gentle roasted malts and very light alcohol esters. Flavors are incredibly rich, dark pitted fruit esters are upfront, dates, plums & raisins, followed by a myriad of roasted malt esters, gentle bitterness, semi-sweet chocolate, molasses and a modest does of alcohol, particularly as it warms. Delicate hop esters are present but almost unidentifiable due to the rich dark flavors. With an 8% ABV this ale is appropriately alcoholic but has more than enough flavor to make you forget. Body is heavy and the mouthfeel is wonderfully thick and creamy but surprisingly smooth. Definitely one delicious Doppelbock that any fan of the style should appreciate and further encourages me to sample more of their Cellar Reserve Series. It may also suit the fancy of those into dark Belgian Strong Ales or even complex Scotch Ales. A lovely sipper for anytime of the year, particularly these colder months. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
