Epic Brewing Double Skull Doppelbock Lager
22oz Bomber, 8.3%
Pours coppery, rusty color. Very little head. Malts and that “lager” smell on the nose.
Hops – 5 Slightly on the nose, not an unbalanced malt finish.
Malts – 8 Grains and caramel and malty sweetness. You get that lager taste and then you get caramel and sweet and it’s fantastic. An excellent example of what a good lager can be.
Carbonation – 6.5 It’s bubbly, but no real head to it. Hold it in your mouth, you can feel the carbonation but it’s not overwhelming.
Character – 8.5 It’s malts. There’s a slight hop balance, but it’s a “super lager”, so it’s gonna be grainy, slightly yeasty and sweet and caramel. And it is.
Palate – 9.1 It’s a really good “super lager”. 8.3%, yet there’s no alcohol on the finish. If Yuengling were normal people, Double Skull would be Superman. Better, stronger, etc. Everything you need in a lager x5, with nothing disagreeable happening in it.
Overall – 8.7 I feel like I’m betraying my roots giving a lager such a high score but it’s a BIG LAGER! Sweetness, malts, caramel, and some yeasty flavor to it. Super Lager, indeed. Buy it, try it, no one will be disappointed. It’s not sweet enough to turn anyone off, and it’s not bitter enough to turn anyone else off either. It’s a buy and NOT share, if you can find it.
Bottom line, this is a fantastic doppelbock. Buy it, drink it, love it.