Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock - Privatbrauerei Franz Inselkammer KG / Brauerei Aying

lackenhauser

Maryland

4.95/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is one of my all time favorites.Pours a muddy red color with little head and carbonation.The aroma screams malt with a hint of alchohol.The aroma is backed up by the taste of malt with just a slight bitterness and warming.Makes my mouth happy-I could drink this one all night.I thought it was a lot higher in alchohol then it says so its nice to have one on the lighter side that still smells and tastes like a much "bigger" beer.And the goat around the neck is a nice,classic touch.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2003 16:03:47 | More by lackenhauser

Rastacouere

Quebec (Canada)

4.95/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

In a Fin Du Monde tulip. It's very dark brown with a huge frothy tan head, slowly, but steadily diminishing though. Aroma is not as intense as I thought, but definitely complex and appealing with its chocolate and numerous fruits notes. Now that's malty. This beer is as complex as any other beer. Period. Rich roasty black chocolate, some caramel, lots of plum esters, blue grapes, cherries, pecans, coffee, yum yum, butter notes as well as robust earthiness every couple of sips (sometimes, the malt reminded me of Rogue Hazelnut Brown nectar). The palate is as good as it gets, thick, full, round, velvety. Long aftertaste once it warmed a bit that varies from a sip to the other, once it will be the dark chocolate, the other time it will be the roastiness and next time you'll remember those juicy plums, subtly bitter at times. In my eyes, it's fully worthy of these high ratings. That's precisely the type of beers I adore, a big malty phenomenon with a body to back it up. Only critic I'd adress it is the palate fatigue (or I just want the moment to last forever) I get after just one bottle, maybe the sweetness is too much although I never found it stickingly cloying, I wouldn't have two in a row, hell I'd never deserve two i a row! Glad I've got another one of this rare treat. Thanks to both Erics!

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2003 23:27:41 | More by Rastacouere

Rootdog316

Virginia

4.95/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

The aroma is strong, sweet with notes of prunes, brown sugar, citrus, coffee, malt, and bitter chocolate. The color is deep red-brown and it has a beutiful lasting light brown head. The flavor is sweet malty with very strong roasted notes; coffee, roasted bread, combined with caramel, alcohol, citrus, and more - great complexity. The alcohol runs prickling over the tongue and gives it a good palate.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2008 01:03:56 | More by Rootdog316

DaftCaskBC

British Columbia (Canada)

4.95/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A: As black as tar with extremely dark brown tones. Half an inch of creamy looking head.

S: The malt is what really stands out.

T: Malty and semi-sweet. World class taste.

M: Thick and full bodied. Medium to low carbonation. Very pleasant aftertaste.

O: Hands down one of the best beers in the world. So incredibly well rounded and unique, any time I have the chance to have one I take it.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 02:10:50 | More by DaftCaskBC

Rob315

Kentucky

4.95/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured from a bottle into a tulip

Look: Pours a deep dark umber / almost black color with a two finger butterscotch colored head that leaves lacing all all over the glass.

Smell: Dark fruits, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, sweet maltiness, bready notes.

Taste: Wonderful. Brown sugar with caramel notes, followed by dark fruits and candied sugar. Extremely creamy and chewy, leaves a slight bitterness in the after taste, that fades into sweet again.

Overall: Amazing. Incredibly complex, honestly had trouble finding words to describe some of the nuances. One of my all time favorites, perfect.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2012 00:26:53 | More by Rob315

BeerBob

Nebraska

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

The bottle label says it all... “Finest Bavarian Double Bock Beer”. Commanding and assertive, this is one double bock not to miss.
Bittersweet chocolate, toffee, licorice and very dark blackish red, if there is such a colour.

"alc 6.7% vol." was read from the back of the 330 ml bottle.

This beer is almost better then sex... almost...

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2002 18:00:57 | More by BeerBob

Boto

Connecticut

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Pours a very dark brown, and almost syrupy. Thick tan head which doesn't linger long. Some roastiness to the nose, but also a very sweet aroma. Very sweet taste. It is really malty. Lots of chocolate. Some subtle fruitiness. Alcohol somewhat evident, but not the overpowering taste. This is very complex. This is great!

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2003 13:57:22 | More by Boto

GnomeKing

Pennsylvania

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This brew perked to attention in my chalice glass, foaming into a large head of medium-sized bubbles. The color was deep brown with a little red when looking down into the glass, and black/brown when looking at it from the side.

The smell is strong and enchanting, a siren call to drink the beer. There were strong aromas of caramel and chocolate, among other scents, that promised a strong malt character in the beer.

The taste is rich and hearty, with caramel being most noticeable in the early swigs, then chocolate coming through strongly at the bottom of my chalice glass. By the end, there were also some hints of, could it be, grapes and strawberries? Along the way toward finishing this magnificent beer, there were also hints of coffee and devil's food cake. Yeah, and black licorice too. And maybe even nuts. All the tastes were blended perfectly.

It is a good world, that has Celebrator in it.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2004 03:13:47 | More by GnomeKing

guitarmage

Oregon

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Nearly black, hints of red orange light pass through if held up to the light, tan ring around the glass.

Smell: Big malty, molasses, licorice, chocolate, alcoholic esters when swirled, mild medicinal notes.

Taste: All the smells in your mouth, toasty malt and molasses and unsweetened chocolate, low alcoholic and hop presence, just enough bitter to balance it about.

Mouthfeel: Lightly carbonated, full bodied and smooth, goes down very easily, lightly coats the mouth.

Drinkability: This is a great beer, so flavorful, so drinkable, complex and tasty. It would be good with a number of things, sweeter items but also other bold flavors to contrast.

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2006 06:08:01 | More by guitarmage

jasonjlewis

Texas

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured into a small little flute glass with two fingers of head which is pretty impressive for such a small glass. Nice brown color. I can barely see my fingers through the glass. Nice retention. I poured into another glass for the rest of the bottle. The appearance becomes insane.

Smell is of apple phenol with THICK ass caramel malts with some chocolate malts in the back with some raisin and grape.

Taste is rich and robust. Caramel malts are aggressive with a nice touch of chocolate malts. Raisin and fruity undertones come out as well. Some grape notes come out as the beer warms. Hop bitterness is mild and just there to cut the sweetness alittle bit. Holy shit. This is the best double bock that I've ever had.

Mouthfeel is smooth as hell with a delicate creaminess. WOW!

Drinkability: A beer worthy of the Gods.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2007 07:59:42 | More by jasonjlewis

Saunapoika

Florida

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A: Very dark brown with only the slightest hint of ruby hue when held to light. Nice brown head that held up for a bit and continuted to produce nice lacing all the way to the end.

S: Caramel, molasses, and a slight raisiny note. Maybe some date-style aroma in there as well. Outstanding.

T: The very best. Malty, caramel, molasses, sweetness balanced out with an unnoticeable hop prescence. Completely balanced.

M: Perfection with the carbonation. Slick feel to it. Very easy to drink.

D: The definition of a dopplebock. My favorite style of all time and I would arugue is possibly the best dopplebock in the world.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2008 00:40:09 | More by Saunapoika

ash111

Virginia

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

I read about this beer in the NY Times when the wine and beer guys did a bit on Doppels. My local store had the 4 pack of bottles for $12, which took me a while to warm up to.

Wow! Was it worth it. This is probably the best beer I've ever had. The flavor is intense, complex, but not overpowering. And I was particularly impressed with the smoothness of the beer.

Compared to other Doppels like Optimator or Troegs, I'd take the Ayinger any time.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2009 03:30:21 | More by ash111

generallee

New York

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 11.2oz bottle into a stange glass. The back label lists the abv at 6.7% however there is no freshness date.

Appearance: The body has a very dark brown color in the glass and when held up to light it has nice garnet highlights. Some small bubbles of carbonation can be seen in the highlights and near the edges of the glass. On top sits a tight head of light brown foam which slowly settles down to small cap that hangs on till the last sip. Lacing is slick and slides right down the glass as I drink.

Smell: In the nose I get notes of sweet caramel, fresh sweet bread, ripe fruit and a kiss of German hops.

Taste/Palate: The flavor has a sweet overall character with moderate hoping that comes through in the end to finish things up without becoming too sweet or cloying. Up front are the caramel candy, brown sugar, light molasses and brown pear like fruit notes. Towards the finish bready notes become more toasted and mix with some light hop flavors to temper the overall sweetness. The finish is short and still on the sweet side but in a good way. Carbonation is lively enough to lift the palate of the solid, smooth, and full body and leave you wanting that next sip.

Notes: All I need to say here is outstanding!!! When I think about Doppelbock beer this is the beer I will think of and compare all others to.

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2010 20:57:53 | More by generallee

CourteManche

Virginia

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured from a 12oz. bottle into a Celebrator flute.

A - Very deep, dark black color with hues of ruby red along the edges; beautiful, light-brown, one-finger head; appears to be slightly carbonated with very small bubbles; head retention is low, only slight lacing throughout drink.

S - Big nose! Very complex. Explosion of malts up front, with coffee & chocolate. Subtle hint of roastiness.

T - Thick malts with an explosion of chocolate; subtle hints of coffee and caramel. Intense dark chocolate finish with a hint of sweet roastiness. No heat.

M - Medium-bodied; cool carbonation that tingles in your mouth (and on your mustache).

D - Fully drinkable. World-class Doppelbock. A must-try!

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2011 22:42:22 | More by CourteManche

jbonapar

Ontario (Canada)

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Wow... I mean.. this is a beer! I love dark malty beers. I love beers with a balance of sweet, bitter, roasted and rich. THIS IS THAT BEER. Amazing.

Pours a dark almost black with a reasonable head. Lacing all around.

Smell: Malt. Malt and More malt. But...with a dark chocolate zing.

Taste: Starts almost tangy while quickly progressing into a dark and rich chocolatey sweet malt with a hint of dark dried fruits, just a hint. Molasses and rye bread. Pure bliss. As the flavor develops, you sense the bitterness which eventually fades into a roasted malt finish. Just fantastic. I am shocked how good this beer is.

If you really want a meal in a glass, find one of these!

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2011 00:18:52 | More by jbonapar

BerkeleyBeerMan

California

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Beer soup. A monk's dinner. One of the world's greatest doppelbock's and more. Let's review the beer that pours from the beautiful bottle, celebrator.

The beer pours a very dark brown with hints of dark red. This is so beautiful to admire. I think a rare dark brown is a hard quality to achieve. The tan head is frothy, like rich espresso the oils slowly erode the head. what remains is some light lacing that are like fingers dragging me into this holy elixir.

The aroma's remain strong in this bottle. I have no idea how long this has been on the shelves but it smells like it was just cooked up in a cloistered abby by a jolly red faced monk. I imagine the bald friar's nostrils flaring at the smell of caramel, candied sugar. The sugars resound in a symphony of chocolate, dried fruit, apricots. Is it Christmas in August?

This beer taste like it was cooked by a fireside, chestnuts, spices. The nutty dark roasted malts become a nice banana bread flavor in my mouth. The subtle hints of sourness and bitterness lend a punch to the beer. The beer finishes with a mild cocoa flavor. This is terrific.

The mouthfeel is really good. It taste like beer soup oils and malts fill my stomach and a light alcohol presence warms my head.

I love this beer. I am glad it is so widely available. This is the go to doppelbock. It's also a beer to reflect on. To slowly savour and appreciate the miracle of life and beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2011 05:07:51 | More by BerkeleyBeerMan

beergoot

Colorado

4.93/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This doppelbock has it all. Rich, dark color; fat, dark fig and date and currant aroma with all the associated dark malt goodness in the smell and taste; additional tastiness in the bittering and excellent mouthfeel qualities. I doubt I can expand on any other rave review of this beer. So I'll just leave it at one needs to try this beer at least once in their life. It's that good!

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2012 23:49:17 | More by beergoot

QXSTER1

Pennsylvania

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

I sought this out due to it's superlative reviews on the site and wasn't disappointed. Chewy is an adjective that always escaped me but this beer brought the sensation home. Not as sweet as I imagined it would be, but perfectly balanced and full-bodied. Had this on tap and can't wait for the next one!

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2002 09:23:26 | More by QXSTER1

ipogios

Cyprus

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Pours deep brown colour topped by a beautiful thick head. The aroma of the beer is chocolate, coffee and caramel hints. The taste of this fine doppelbock is malty and moderate caramel flavour. Celebrator Doppelbock, in my opinion, is the FINEST German Doppelbock Style beer

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2002 02:15:36 | More by ipogios

Ueberales

Tennessee

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

An outstanding beer that defines the dopplebock style. Powerful malty nose with a crystal clear deep red appearance. No hop aroma to speak of, although there is sufficient bittering hops to balance perfectly the malt bill. Feels smooth as silk, but the high alcohol and fullness definitely make this a beer for sipping and savoring instead of the centerpiece of a drinking session.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2002 18:01:05 | More by Ueberales

moulefrite

Massachusetts

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Man-O-Shevitz this beer is deeeelicious! I'm skipping dinner as I'm having it now! No kiddding! The color of this brew is subtley dark, complex in color with orange, red and deep brown intermingling. Aromatics are heavenly and hint at the best chocolate-bitter in the most elegant fashion. The taste is all over the place-black licorice, Bittersweet chocolate, mocha, sweet malt, espresso-this is a meal. A highly satisfying drink that I can honestly say rates up there with some of the best things ever to slip across my tongue. It is good to be alive! I'll have another, turn on some Red Garland, and call it a night. Wow!! You have to go find this beer tonight!

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2003 01:37:24 | More by moulefrite

BadBadger

New York

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

An absolutely amazing doppelbock. Actually an amazing beer of any style. Pours a very deep and dark color-I guess mahogany would be the descriptor. Nearly opaque. Nice brown head stays present all the way done. Smells great. Tastes malty, sweet. Sweetness is not overwhelming. There is something dancing on the taste buds? Very pleasurable.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2004 02:36:03 | More by BadBadger

Domingo

Colorado

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Quite possibly my favorite overall beer.
I tried it about a year ago at Old Chicago and couldn't recall the name of it...until I saw some bottles with the trademark plastic goats hanging around the neck.
Looks dark...not quite murky, but like a cola but still very clean.
When you pour it, the head will stick around until it's finished.
Super-malty...unmatched in this regard, actually. I've tried hundreds of beers and I still haven't found a maltier brew than this one. I'd describe it as having a chocolate flavor, but with raisin and date highlights.
I can't say enough good things about this brew.
If you're a fan of doppelbocks or even just darker brews in general, this is a must have.

Edit:
After drinking this brew many many more times, I have to say that this brew holds up to a changing palate amazingly well. I enjoy it now as much as the time when I first tried it...perhaps even more. While I've had 15-20 other doppelbocks that are all wonderful, only the Andechs and Korbinian can keep pace with Celebrator. The chocolate/raisin profile is unique and simply amazing. I think this beer is an easy candidate for the best overall in the world.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2005 22:03:37 | More by Domingo

Manosbeeroffate

Maine

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Jesus H Christ I love this stuff, I'm not sure how well I can really describe how much I love this stuff, but here we go. Pours extremly dark brown, almost like a porter. Smells a bit malt syrupy, but good. Taste is...wow!! Malt, cocoa, some mild dried fruit, slightly bitter but again of cocoa. Mouthfeel is nice. Drinkability is excellent. Though you want to sip on this i can go for more again and again. The best I have had so far.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2006 02:29:17 | More by Manosbeeroffate

jwc215

New Jersey

4.9/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Comes with a cool plastic goat around the neck of the bottle and a highly decorative label.
Poured into a Celebrator glass.
Poured brown with ruby highlights, especially when held to the light. The creamy, slightly off-white two finger head slowly went to half the original size and remained for the long lasting drink.
The smell was a blanced mix of chocolate, caramel, and hints of rich coffee. There was a slight fruity aroma in the background that enhanced the delicious aroma.
The taste was superb. It was layers of rich, dark chocolate, robust coffee and caramel. As the drink slowly progressed, flavors of berry-like fruits came through to form an extremely well-balanced taste.
It was rich and creamy in the mouth. It reminded me of eating a rich chocolate cake with raspberry or strawberry filling.
If it weren't so rich/filling after a while (and not inexpensive) I would want to continue drinking these. It's one of my all-time favorites. Heaven in a bottle. Exceptionally smooth and delicious!

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2006 18:15:21 | More by jwc215