If you drink too much of this drink, you shouldn’t be surprised if your motor skills start to deteriorate. It would not be due to the abundance of roasted malt in it, but rather to the approximately seven percent alcohol by volume that the Ayinger Winterbock has in its mouth. “That’s more than a Hellen beer,” says master brewer Bernhard Neunhöffer with a smile. The Doppelbock has to mature for 16 weeks until it acquires the desired malt-dominant taste. Neunhöffer prepared four brews in the Ayinger brewery this year, the equivalent of 300 hectoliters or 60,000 bottles. He likes to drink it himself, says the 40-year-old, who spent two weeks bottling in Aying as part of his training at the Reutberg monastery brewery and returned to Aying in June 2021 as the successor to the long-time master brewer Hans-Jürgen Iwan.
The special thing about the Ayinger Winterbock, which is only served between November and the end of January, is an elaborate three-mash process and the use of four types of malt, including roasted malt, dark Munich malt and caramel malt, which gives the beer its chestnut brown colour. says the master brewer. The bock beer gets its sweetness from the residual extracts of the malt. If your taste buds are well developed, you will also taste other aromas: “Dark chocolate, espresso and a hint of liquorice,” says the native of Tölz, whose hobby is playing the drums in the Munich rock band Jan solo project is. “The first drink is mildly rich with an accompanying coffee note, which is dominant in the aftertaste. A true taste experience for winter evenings by candlelight and an open fire,” says the brewery’s website.
According to Neunhöffer, the winter buck can do more than just quench thirst and dull the senses. For example, giving Christmas dishes a special touch. He says it’s great for roasts with a dark sauce. But he can even spice up desserts like vanilla ice cream with apple strudel. And so it is also part of the kitchen in the Ayinger Bräustüberl. Does “his” Winterbock taste the same as that of his predecessor Ivan, or has he changed the recipe a little? He changes nuances with other beers, “but you don’t turn the big lever on veteran beers,” says the master brewer.
In the series “My number” the SZ presents people every day until Christmas, in whose life a number has a special meaning – from 1 to 24 like in an advent calendar.