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Doppelbock: A Cold Glass of Bread

May 08, 2015

If you were to give up solid foods for a little over 40 days, what could possibly satisfy your hunger during those days? How about imbibing a Duck-Rabbator Dopplebock for your daily nutrition? According to German history, our modern day doppelbock is derived from an earlier version of strong bock bier. In the 17^th century, this carb-rich, malty beer took the place of solids for German monks as their so called “liquid bread” during the Lenten fast. Since their practice is to abstain from solid foods during Lent for 46 days, they concocted a much stronger beer (double bock) using grain instead of producing bread. That, then, sustained the monks during their fast. We now have our version of this double bock beer: the Duck-Rabbit Duck-Rabbator. With an ABV of 8.5%, this is definitely a beer to be enjoyed slowly.

Why did we dub this brew Duck-Rabbator you ask? The German monks named their doppelbock beer “Salvator” meaning “savior” since it provided them with the daily nutrition needed during Lent. Since there has been numerous interpretations of this particular beer brewed, and the name Salvator is trademarked, breweries add the suffix “ator” as an homage to the first known brewers of this beer.

Also, if you are curious about word origins and ever wondered why a goat is represented on many doppelbock beers, it is taken from the word “bock”. Since bock beer originated in the town of Einbeck, Germany, the name Einbeck was simply mispronounced as “ein Bock” which then translates into “billy goat”. So now that we have some of the known history, let’s move on to what types of delicious foods you can enjoy along with your beer!

Since this beer is truly a meal in itself, one might wonder what types of food would pair well with it and not go into a carb-induced coma. Think about the flavor of this beer for a second. The malty, sweet, roasty flavors are dominant in this beer. One might simply say that this would go well with a spicy dish since the notable sweetness would cut right through some intensely spiced up dishes like in Thai cuisine. For me, a grilled hamburger with some swiss cheese is a fantastic compliment to this beer. The rich malty sweetness of the doppelbock is a wonderful partner to the mild nutty sweetness of the swiss.

Now that your mind is full of a little beer history, are you a little parched and hungry? I would suggest getting out and about to have a one of a kind Duck-Rabbator Dopplebock and try something spicy or keep it simple and go for a burger like I do. Go on and reward yourself!

Prost!

Demy Nickens

Resources:

http://www.germanbeerinstitute.com/Doppelbock.html

https://www.beerconnoisseur.com/articles/style-studies-german-style-doppelbock

http://berghoffbeer.com/blog/what-is-a-doppelbock/