Trader Joe's Winterfest

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

12oz bottle -

A really nice beer, that for anywhere from .50 a bottle to $1.00 a bottle is a great buy. Toffee-like aroma, light brown sugar with a touch of vanilla and Coke. Flavor has a little more roasted malts that what the aroma may lead you to think about the beer, Tootsie Rolls also are found too. Medium sweetness helps this beer be quite enjoyable and really brings out flavors the different malts bring to the table. Very nice.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Nice maple, caramel, yeast and roasted aroma with a decent two finger head that dissipated slowly and left little lacing. Full bodied mouthfeel, with a sharp, spicy, metallic and bitter maple syrup flavor, and a slightly roasted aftertaste.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

can't beat it for the price, and this is among the best of their 6-pack line. As far as comparing it to the best of the style, it's boring, but compared to similarly priced beers, it's a steal.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Pours a dark brown color. Decent head, leaves a good lace. Aroma is sweet, malty, chocolate. Mouthfeel is creamy and full. Tastes a little sweet, carmel/toffee malty.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Labled as JosephsBrau Winterfest
Pours with an initially two-finger thick, lightly browned, tan colored head that sit on top of a dark, burnt amber colored brew that shows a brilliantly clear, concentrated cranberry color when held up to the light. Malty smelling, though not nearly as rich as I might have expected from a Doppel Bock; the malt smells a bit fruitier and without that thick, chewy malt complexity and richness that is typical. The aroma smells of rum soaked raisins, prunes, some dusty cocoa hints and some herbal hop spiciness. Fairly simplistic for a Doppel Bock.

Somewhat light bodied up front, but it does pick up a heft to it as it moves across the tongue. Sweet, with a concentrated fruit character reminiscent of prunes & dried figs. A touch of dark malt adds some sharpness, a touch of cocoa and a hint of roast astringency to the finish. Some herbal hop notes and bitterness also adds to the light astringency in the finish. A bit creamy textured, but a light carbonation cuts through that sensation a bit. Hints of vanilla, rum and melanoids add some depth to the flavor. This really does have a nice, quite noticeable, though certainly supporting, hop character to it; I like the herbal notes and even the lingering, even biting bitterness in the finish adds quite a bit of balance to the dominant malt character.

The flavor is not nearly as week as the aroma made me thought it would be. It is perhaps not one of the best examples of the style, but is certainly a good example and much better than others I have had.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

This beer is actually from JosephsBrau in San Jose, CA. But I figured it was easier this way. Pours a dark brown colour with a small vanilla head. Light and slightly hopped, a noticeable almond flavor with slight chocolate and a very full mouthfeel. well carbonated, little toffee. Nice winter warmer.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Poured a translucent, ruddy brown that looks orange when held to light. The aroma was lemony and yeasty with a hint of sweet fruit. The flavor was sweet and tasty, bitter but not sharp. It's warming, but not heavy. Could stand to be smoother. Decent, at this price, for everyday drinking.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 5

Another average Trader joes brew. It has a nice appearance and aroma but it just lacks a lot of good flavor. The beer goes down alright but it has a lingering aftertaste.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Wow! A six pack of doppelbock for 5.49! Wait...it must taste like crap, right? This just doesn't add up...I'm suspicious...but thirsty. Fine, I'll get a sixer. Hmm...not bad, not bad at all. Malty, sweet aroma, dark brown body, smooth and clean, this Doppelbock is for real. Its not the greatest I've ever had, but for that price, I think I'll be back. A really enjoyable beer without being punished come bill paying time.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Nice mahogany brown colured, with a large super dense frothy/bubbly dark tan head. The aroma is of course very malty and quite pleasant, with some funky milk chocolate aspects. Good dark roasted malt taste with a nice dark fruity end. Quite good on the palate, smooth with a grt long lasting bitter fruit aftertaste. A good American attempt at a doppel-bock, not as good as most available german examples , but again a great bargain beer