Well, my friends, there it is. Another quest has been completed. I’m talking about my personal quest to find Leute Bokbier, of course, a beer that for some strange reason I’ve been wanting to try for a long, long time. It’s not because the beer has some fantastic reputation, mind you. It’s because, well, I saw a picture of it in a beer book, or perhaps it was a magazine, and I wanted to try it.
Bock beers (especially doppelbocks) are my favorite style of beer. That said, Leute Bokbier is not really a bock at all, though it does share some similarities. The dark malt characteristics and strength are somewhat similar to a doppelbock, but this beer is top fermented, making it an ale. True bocks are lagers, at least by today’s standards.
Were early bocks ales? Most certainly. At least one American brewer has tried to replicate those early bocks with Otter Creek Mud Bock Spring Ale. Surely, that’s not the intention here, though. Leute Bokbier is brewed by the Van Steenberge brewery in Belgium, and they just like to do things differently. Here’s what Van Steenberge says about the beer:
Leute Bokbier was produced by brewery Van Steenberge for the first time in 1927. The billy and the hop tendril in the logo refer to the billies of the former brewery-farm and its bordering hop fields. Along with the termination of the farming activities, unfortunately also the Leute Bokbier disappeared and it took until 1997 to be produced again.
Leute is Dutch/German for “people”, making this the people’s bock beer. Or abbey double if you prefer, as I do. Leute Bokbier has an alcohol content of 7.5% by volume, and I paid $3.29 for an 11.2 ounce bottle. A little pricey, but not too bad to enjoy this classic Belgian brew.
Leute Bokbier pours to a dark mahogany color with a thick creamy head of very rocky foam and a dark malty nose packed with raisin and plum notes. Taking a sip, there are some very tasty dark malty notes of sweet brown sugar, toasted nuts and chocolate chip cookies going on, accented beautifully by dark fruity raisin, plums, and cherries. The whole affair is balanced by a gentle hop bitterness that really does no more than balance. Wonderful, a dubbel in my book, not all that yeasty funky but still complex and delicious.
A smooth, creamy, toasty nutty, malty delight.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft