Beer Spotlight!
Ballad Brewer’s Select: Barrel-Aged Doppelbock
$15.99 for the 16oz four-pack cans
Bourbon Barrel-Aged Doppelbock Style Lager
Ballad Brewing Company from down in Danville serves up another offering in their Brewer’s Select Series, and, once again, it is surprisingly good.
The Brewer’s Select Barrel-Aged Doppelbock is a little more than “let’s throw something into some bourbon barrels.” (Not like, we suppose, any brewing is ever really that easy.) What Ballad does here is brew a doppelbock (a sweet, malty, dark lager) and then play a game of Musical Barrels! For ten months, they age some of the doppelbock in bourbon barrels, some in rye whiskey barrels, and some in maple syrup barrels. (What?!?) They then blend the three batches together to get this brew.
Get ready; the Brewer’s Select Barrel-Aged Doppelbock is an uncomplicated joy. It’s like a shot of caramel or butterscotch. Keep in mind, people usually barrel age stouts and porters. It has to be a challenge to keep the bourbon, rye whiskey, and even maple flavors from overwhelming a lager, but that’s what Ballad has done. Perhaps the blending helps with that. Whatever the case, this brew is a enjoys a nice, even, steady blend producing a great balance between creamy and smooth with a touch of nuttiness.
We don’t know if it’s the beers in this series or a particular facility with barrel-aging or both. We’re just going to keep a lookout for either of those things from Ballad in the future.