Paulaner Salvator Double Bock
By John & Dad on February 19, 2007 @ 8 PM (4 Comments)
Note: The Paulaner Salvator Double Bock was reviewed by both John and Dad on different days and originally posted as two separate reviews. We usually do our combined reviews together in one post, so this post has been edited to bring you both reviews on one post.
Son Beer Love Review (February 19, 2007):
Call me sentimental, but the Munich beers just seem to touch my heart. The Salvator Double Bock is a benchmark beer for me – one of the beers I use to compare all other beers. It’s that good. Everything about this beer makes you understand why you love beer in the first place.
I had my first Salvator when I was home for Christmas visiting my family in late 2006. Dad had raved about the beer for some time but I was unable to find it in Charlotte at any of my beer locales. I told him before the trip that was one I had to try while I was home. He accommodated my request and as soon as I tasted it I fell in love.
The great thing about beer is there’s no one right answer. What’s right for me may not be right for you. This beer was the answer and the other beers we tried that night paled in comparison. I had to try it again but still couldn’t find it in Charlotte. So, when my wife’s parents decided to come visit for the weekend I had my dad run over a 6 pack of Salvator to her dad so he could bootleg it across 5 states to get it here. Fugitive beer.
Some background on the beer before the review – the Double Bock (Doppelbock) is defined as a stronger bock brew (a regular bock is defined as a stronger lager). Back in medieval days German monasteries would brew a strong beer for sustenance during their Lenten fasts – this stronger beer was a symbol of better times to come (Gotta love those monks!). The names of double bocks commonly end in -ator in honor of the original, Paulaner Salvator (Latin for Savior – and how true). Yes – Salvator is the original double bock.
Six pack in hand from my wife’s dad I put it in the fridge and wait a day. A long wait. The next evening finally comes and I’m ready. I crack open the bottle and pour the beer. The color is dark amber with a creamy white head. The smell is part of the mystique – a terrific sweet smell with caramel, brown sugar, bread, honey, toffee and every other good thing you can think of. The taste is complex – rich and full – you primarily pick up the caramel. I love caramel so this is probably why I like the beer so much. The only knock I’ve ever seen on this beer is the sweet edge, but that’s part of why I love it. You also pick up roasted malt, toffee, maple, coffee and a touch of fruit of some kind that I can’t place. Also a little bit of hops. It feels terrific in your mouth and gets smoother the longer your drink it (perhaps as it warms up?). The finish continues to be smooth and sweet and clean. The beer itself is 7.9% ABV – a pretty good number. You feel the impact of the beer but not so much you’re dizzy. You just feel warm and cozy, like you’ve been enveloped by a beer blanket. A delicious, perfect beer blanket.
Father Beer Love Review (April 13, 2007):
Beer temperature 49.8 F. Pours medium amber and clear, caramel aroma, light tan head doesn’t hold well. Slightly sweet with caramel malts and light hop flavor. Brewed as a spring bock with higher alcohol content. 7.5% ABV helps shake off the winter chill. Unfortunately we went from winter (such as we had) to summer – 87 F. and humid. Our friends from Munich, Fredrich and Christy told us the high alcohol beers even hit them hard and those people can really drink. I miss them. Just the perfect sweetness, anymore would be too much. Reminds me of a weak sweet stout. Hard to find any secondary flavors other than caramel so will comment on carbonation which is weak but I had this one probably a year but no date on it. Still has a beautiful harmony to it like I found in most Bavarian beers. It’s one you must try. Around here it’s available if you can find it definitely try it.
Repeatability one at most. It will make you tired.
I am presently enjoying a Salvator. About half way through, all my pains dissapeared and I am feeling really good. Excellent beer. I was just telling my wife that more than one of these would be too much. I feel both comments from John and Dad do an excellent job describing this beer. I try to keep a Spaten Optimator, a Weltonburger Kloster Asam Bock, or a Paulaner Salvator around to remind myself to smile. Wunderbar.
Mike, Thanks for your comment. I later found the Ayinger Celebrator doppelbock boot legged to me by John to be as good or even better. Ayinger makes some really impressive brews, plus you get the little goat/ram plastic do-dad. This is an excellent treatment for old age aches and pains, which I becoming an expert on.
Before I even found this site I jotted down a few notes on this beer. Thick, very weak head, dark amber, molasas, pepper, frothy texture, bittersweet chocolate. I didnt notice the toffee till you mentioned it, I smell it but cant taste it.
I lived in Dielheim, Germany, South of Heidelberg for 4 years while working as a technical contractor with the US Forces. I drank every brand and style of German beer I could get my hands on, some exceptionally great, most very good, some swill. The Dopplebock’s from Paulner and Spaten were among my favorite dark beers, and at 15-20 marks per case (20 1/2-litre bottles), about $12-14 depending on the currency exchange rate at the time, a real bargain. Those were the days. I can find Spaten Optimator locally now for $8.99 a 6-pack, and keep it in stock at the house for occasional indulgence. Paulner is very scarce. The Belgian ales are the rage these days, but the Dopplebocks are ‘where it’s at’ for me.