Holsten Festbock - Hanseatische Getränke-Industrie (HGI) Holsten-Brauerei AG

LampertLand

British Columbia (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +13.3%

02-18-2013 01:33:42 | More by LampertLand

patre_tim

China

3.75/5  rDev +13.3%

03-31-2013 03:09:58 | More by patre_tim

JokineAugustus

Manitoba (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

03-15-2013 00:49:19 | More by JokineAugustus

Vandelayindustri

Alberta (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

03-12-2013 22:12:50 | More by Vandelayindustri

Scrylol

Alberta (Canada)

3.13/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a dark copper color with a one finger creamy head.

Slight grassy hops and caramel malt on the nose, some slight sweetness to it.

Big caramel malts and grain notes come forward on the tongue, slight hop bitterness throughout the mouth. Some hints of earthy notes. Leaves a dry, bitter aftertaste.

Bit too much carbonation, but the body felt right; medium body.

First time I've tried a beer from Holsten. Not much going on in this beer, but it wasn't too bad.

Serving type: can

11-30-2012 06:24:03 | More by Scrylol

cfalovo97

Ontario (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

11-13-2012 01:48:31 | More by cfalovo97

CurtisD

New Brunswick (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

10-31-2012 21:37:28 | More by CurtisD

Ivanhoes_Backpack

New Brunswick (Canada)

2.75/5  rDev -16.9%

10-05-2012 00:54:02 | More by Ivanhoes_Backpack

andrenaline

Ontario (Canada)

3.38/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

A random can I picked up on the east coast.

A - Pours a dark amber colour, finger of head with little retention and no lacing.

S - Scent is dominated by toffee and caramel, raisins and toasted grains.

T - Much like the nose with the toffee and caramel flavors dominating, the fruity flavors come through on the finish alongside some burnt toast which lingers.

M - A tad thin and watery, could use a carbonation lift.

O - A tasty bock and a pleasant surprise from this brewery. Te flavors fit the style, but there's a few tweaks needed to make to push this into the next category for points.

Serving type: can

08-31-2012 22:22:23 | More by andrenaline

joefinnigan15

3/5  rDev -9.4%

05-25-2012 05:22:45 | More by joefinnigan15

ThinkAgain

Ontario (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +13.3%

05-16-2012 04:08:32 | More by ThinkAgain

500MLperWeek

2/5  rDev -39.6%

04-22-2012 03:55:36 | More by 500MLperWeek

aceparadis

Alberta (Canada)

5/5  rDev +51.1%

04-13-2012 13:50:15 | More by aceparadis

RedAleMan

Ontario (Canada)

3.25/5  rDev -1.8%

03-10-2012 02:14:24 | More by RedAleMan

Stocean1

Ontario (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A surprisingly decent bock from a generally poor brewery. Poured a two finger head upon an amber body with some patchy lacing. Quickly melted a thin collar of foam.

Smell is earthy hops, sweet molasses, licorice.

Taste follows the nose with some carmelized sugar coming through and dark fruit.

Light to medium bodied with some carbonation there is little in the way of bitterness. Very easy drinking and the alcohol was well masked.

Again, not a bad brew from Holsten and worth a try.

Serving type: can

02-21-2012 00:35:35 | More by Stocean1

Brianhophead

Alberta (Canada)

3.05/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A- Festbock is the color of burnished copper. Head is dense, mousse-like and enjoys decent, if not great retention.

S- Aroma starts off with giving me notes of caramel and butterscotch. In this way mlatiness dominates the nose. Somewhere in there are aromas of alcohol. Not surprising, given the beer's strength. Alcoholic notes lend an unpleasant aroma reminiscent of nail polish remover. Thankfully, that's more in the background so it doesn't completely ruin the aroma. Behind all that might be the grassy aroma of hops, but it's kind of hard to tell for sure.

T- Unfortunately, flavor very clsoely follows the nose. Festbock starts off medium bodied and smooth. Flavors start off malty, with flavors of caramel and butterscotch. Center is rounded, coming in noticeably on the butterscotch. Finish is somewhat sweet. And again, I'm getting those hints of nail polish.

Holsten Festbock is kind of a disappointment. It's got some nice enough qualities but doesn't carry it's alcohol well. Alcohol contributes those flavors of nail polish. Although subtle enough, the flavors are present enough to detract from the beer's overall quality.

Serving type: can

02-14-2012 23:45:57 | More by Brianhophead

oldp0rt

Quebec (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

02-10-2012 19:38:22 | More by oldp0rt

schopenhauerale

British Columbia (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

01-19-2012 05:43:10 | More by schopenhauerale

irishkyle21

Ontario (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

01-17-2012 15:42:28 | More by irishkyle21

tbeckett

Ontario (Canada)

3.35/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a dark golden colour with tons of carbonation. Bright. One finger of light beige head on top that looks like it has staying power. No lace with a half finger of retention.

S - Dark malts, sugar, toffee, bread.

T - Caramel, sugar, toffee, less bready. Sugar is pretty strong with some odd earthy tones. Perhaps some honey as well.

M - Nice carbonation, a medium to full body, and a slightly rough finish.

O/D - A touch sweet and unstructured with some off bits, but alot better than expected. Some nice complexity hanging around with some rich malt character. Not bad.

Serving type: can

12-27-2011 23:23:24 | More by tbeckett

bigox420

Ontario (Canada)

3/5  rDev -9.4%

12-01-2011 06:08:05 | More by bigox420

marty21

Manitoba (Canada)

4/5  rDev +20.8%

11-20-2011 00:53:38 | More by marty21

JohnnyBarman

Ontario (Canada)

3.28/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

The sound of ompah bands are in the air around KW, so Oktoberfestering is just around the corner - figured a bock was in order. Used to drink a lot of this, but I haven't in a while. So now I will.

Poured into a dimpled mug for added classiness, enjoyed on a warm fall afternoon. A dark ruby chestnut brew, thin white head subsides quickly into a fine ring. Some lacing.

Nose is caramel, toffee, dark fruit (figs), a bit of rye bread. Quite nice.

At first the Festbock is quite nice and hearty, a good kick in the ass courtesy of autumn, but after a few sips, it starts to get a bit cloying and the mouthfeel becomes a bit oily and less pleasant. Still, you could do worse bock-wise, and considering the dearth of bocks in regular rotation in Ontario, this one works for when you need one in a pinch. Sweet, a bit of nuttiness, that bit of rye and booze.

It's okay, better than the Maibock, but certainly not among the best bocks I've encountered. But if getting sloshed Oktoberfest-style is your aim, you could do worse!

Serving type: can

10-06-2011 21:37:09 | More by JohnnyBarman

Tford

British Columbia (Canada)

2.88/5  rDev -13%
look: 5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Pours a nice, dark golden-brown colour with a two finger pale yellow head; it is a very good looking beer.

S: This is only a 7% ABV beer but it smells like it is 17%. This may be because there are no other scents to go along with it.

T: You can taste fruit and hops with a little spice; however, it seems a little watered down. Unlike the smell of it, the alcohol isn’t too noticeable

M: It has a medium body with a bit of carbonation, a pretty good mouthfeel.

O: Festbock has the potential to be a really excellent beer, but it isn’t. Although it looks pretty and has a nice mouthfeel, it lacks in the smell/taste categories, which are the ones that count.

UPDATE: Dammmnnn. Be sure to drink this beer cold! My last two mouthfuls warmed up while I was writing the review, and now it tastes like STRONGLY fermented athlete's foot.

Serving type: can

06-13-2011 07:50:54 | More by Tford

thehyperduck

Ontario (Canada)

3.1/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Served at slightly warmer than fridge temperature, this bock pours a dark copper brown colour; mostly translucent. A finger of creamy beige head lasts a few minutes before reducing to a collar around the edge. Carbonation looks a little high but looks can be deceiving. Smell is mostly roasted caramel malts without much else.

Taste is cloyingly sweet with an odd hint of some flavour I can't quite put my finger on in the finish (coffee? licorice? burnt brown sugar?) in addition to a very faint bitterness from the hops in the aftertaste. The finish is weird, but it gives character to a brew that is otherwise dominated by sweet malt character, i.e. boring and kind of cloying. Feels a little heavy/chewy in the mouth, with low-to-moderate carbonation. The alcohol is hidden fairly well, at least until the beer starts to warm, at which point the ethanol and sweetness combine to give a rather unpleasant, sticky feel to the beer.

For a cheap bock or high ABV single can that's easy to find even in liquor-board-controlled areas of Canada, this isn't too bad, but I'd never specifically look for it. Doubt I'll get it again.

Serving type: can

05-17-2011 03:45:32 | More by thehyperduck