Faxe Fest Bock - Royal Unibrew A/S

thehyperduck

Ontario (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +15.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

500 mL can. Pours a very dark brown colour with some ruby red highlights. Leaves a one inch, tan head which lasts a few minutes before it vanishes to lacing. Smells very much like malty caramel with a touch of alcohol.

The taste is very sweet and rich, with a roasted coffee or caramel flavouring. Lots of malt here. There's also a slight hoppy flavour which I presume is responsible for the slight bitterness. Feels rather heavy in the mouth, but not creamy. Carbonation is fairly low. You can tell the alcohol is there, but it is by no means a dominating factor.

It's a very tasty beer, and quite filling. While the high alcohol content is definitely helping me cope as the Leafs again manage to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, it probably hurts the drinkability of the brew. I like this, and will pick some up again eventually.

Serving type: can

04-08-2007 00:51:47 | More by thehyperduck

Haydn-Juby

Quebec (Canada)

3.9/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served from a can to a German style boot glass

A: Deep brown color with a two finger head. Minimal lacing. Retained itself quiet well. Looks very appetizing overall.

S: Toasty malts and some yeast character in the smell too. Nothing really to search for in the smell its nothing exceptional.

T: Biscuity, bready malts, with some nice yeast charachter too. Hop bitterness is low to normal but that's how its often supposed to be with a Bock. Some rather slight raisin flavor is also present as well.

M: Very crisp and refreshing lager but still manages to remain quiet filling. The alcohol is hidden so well its astounding. An almost 8% beer going down like a 5% could spell trouble very quick.

O: This was a pretty good beer and one of the better Bock offerings I've had. I would consider buying it again and it would make a nice beer for the spring in my opinion, even though most see it as a winter beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2013 01:32:44 | More by Haydn-Juby

mick303

Ontario (Canada)

3.2/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

ABV 7%. 500mL can from LCBO.
Poured quite a head of medium tan foam, leaves solid lacing. Beer is a quite dark ruddy brown.

On the nose, this beer has dark rich caramel and roasted notes. Boozy plums as well as a light refreshing spiciness.

The taste initially seems quite unbalanced. A host of heavy roast malt flavours and dry caramels vie for the most attention. The maltiness kicks in late to bring a bit of lightness. A lot of flavour here, but it seems a bit all-over-the-map and a bit astringent. The finish is dry and slightly bitter, and bread comes through.

Mouthfeel is slightly heavy with the alcohol contributing body, yet retains a slight lighter side, despite all the heavy flavours.

This beer has a lot of heavy flavour, and the unfocused nature leaves a bit to be desired. Maybe saying it is a chore to drink is being too harsh. It is a big beer though.

Serving type: can

07-05-2012 03:36:16 | More by mick303

RedAleMan

Ontario (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev +2%

04-11-2012 04:48:57 | More by RedAleMan

irishkyle21

Ontario (Canada)

3/5  rDev -12.5%

01-17-2012 15:41:13 | More by irishkyle21

NightINgale

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev +16.6%

12-13-2011 17:43:14 | More by NightINgale

oldp0rt

Quebec (Canada)

3/5  rDev -12.5%

11-24-2011 02:59:33 | More by oldp0rt

dbaker61

Ohio

3.25/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

500 mL can. Brew date April 9, 2011; Best By date July 7, 2012. Can says 7% ABV. 16.6 degrees Plato.

Appearance: Dark brown with a trace of red, quite clear. Two fingers of frothy, dense, sticky-looking, light tan head. Foam stayed around several minutes, leaving tons of lacing.

Smell: Slightly musty, sweet malt, fresh grass.

Taste: Light coffee note, more bitter than sweet, carmelized sugar, slight metal twinge from the can.

Mouthfeel: Doesn't feel too heavy. Could use a bit more carbonation. Sticky.

Overall: A decent beer. Better than the other Faxe beers I remember having. I think it would be better later this fall in cooler weather.

Serving type: can

08-29-2011 13:04:04 | More by dbaker61

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.33/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

500ml Can

Appearance – Reddish brown colour with a very large size frothy beige coloured head. It’s hard to make out the carbonation level due to the darkness and there is some really good lacing. The head lasted for 5 minutes or so before it began to dissipate.

Smell – Malts, dark fruits, roasted nuts, breads/grains

Taste & Mouth - There is a very low amount of carbonation and I can taste malts, roasted nuts and some dark fruits. There is also a bit of a butterscotch flavour and I can taste the alcohol slightly.

Overall – The beer has a fantastic appearance in the glass. The taste is nice but nothing spectacular. It would really benefit from even just a little bit more carbonation. I wouldn't buy it again but I'm happy I gave it a shot. Also, my version was only 7% rather than the 7.7% can in the picture.

Serving type: can

06-24-2011 16:46:11 | More by spinrsx

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

2.45/5  rDev -28.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Can from the Beer Store, 500ml into a pint glass. Best before Sept 22, 2011.

Pours a dark mahogany, with some deep red wine colours appearing in the light. Tan head, with good retention and lace. Nose has some mild chocolate, dark bread, burnt caramel, mild anise notes. Taste has more of the same, chocolate and some mild sweetness. Unfortunately any other flavours were completely dominated by a strong metallic flavour (don't know if this can be attributed to the can or hard water) which lingered in the mouthfeel. Offensive but not enough to warrant a full on drainpour. Mouthfeel was a bit sticky, and some alcohol comes in as the metal begins to fade from the mouth. This one had some potential, but was brought down by a major flaw. I'd give it another shot with a fresher can.

Serving type: can

03-25-2011 15:56:55 | More by liamt07

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.43/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Nice 500ml green, red, and gold can - very much in the Christmas theme - except maybe for the Viking overseer...

This beer pours a clear, very dark brown colour, with reddish highlights, and two fingers of thin foamy pale beige head, which leaves some nice consistent spidery lace around the glass in its wake. It smells of orchard fruit malt, brown sugar, and a bit of warming alcohol. The taste is sweet malt, some molasses, stewed dark fruit, some apple tartness, and a spicy hop bitterness. The carbonation is moderate, the body a solid medium weight, and smooth but for a slight boozy edge. It finishes still sweet, but with a prominent drying note, the booze and hops staging a mutiny.

Well-flavoured, to be sure, but just, um, strong-tasting. The alcohol is masked, but still creates an uneasiness as the can is drained...

Serving type: can

12-21-2010 23:57:49 | More by biboergosum

tdavie

Manitoba (Canada)

4.43/5  rDev +29.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: When viewed indirectly, it appears black like a cola soda. Held up directly to the light, it displays a rich orange/brown color.

Smell: Smells like pears, pineapples, grapes, toffee, and eventually a fresh brewed coffee taste. As it warms up from 4C to room temperatures (20C) it ends up smelling like a Tim Hortons 'Double Double'.

Taste: Is very complex. I tasted it fridge cold (4C) and constantly as it warmed up. The initial taste was very estery; pineapple, banana, clove and cinnamon (?). Warming up, the malt starts to show through, providing a nice biscuity, coffee chew.

Mouthfeel: Fairly thick, chewy and velvety: The carbonation could be a little less and I would have rated it as a 5.0

Drinkability: I like this beer. A lot. Especially coming from other Faxe variants such as Strong and Royal Export. I honestly was not expecting a lot. Had I not consumed this at 1 am, I perhaps would consider this more drinkable.

Overall: I had been wanting to try this beer for about 5 years. Finally found it July 9/2010, although I had overlooked it 3 days earlier. Comparing it to Doppelbocks such as Celebrator or Salvator does it a disservice; this beer stands on it's own. At $1.95 Cdn, this is quite a bargain. Wish it was available in Winnipeg.

Serving type: can

07-10-2010 10:30:40 | More by tdavie

RyanBelle

Ontario (Canada)

3.1/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I think this is a fantastic beer. My first beer from Faxe and my first Dopplebock-type beer. I really appeciated the complex flavors that were present in this beer compared to the standard slew of lagers, pilseners, lights, and ales out there. At 7.7% ABV you would think this beer would be somewhat bitter but that is not the case at all. It has a sweet taste with a head that is quite impressive, and it stays for a while. The nose is medium in strength and consists of dark roasted hops and hazelnuts with a little bit of alcohol coming through as well. Very pleasant throughout the entire beer and it finished quite well with no lacing left in my Czech Pilsener type glass, however I've heard this beer can leave quite the astounding amount of lacing so take my observation with a grain of salt on that one. Overall, this beer certainly surprised me, and I will buy it again!

Serving type: can

08-28-2009 04:58:53 | More by RyanBelle

ZorPrime

Quebec (Canada)

3.1/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Tasted at the end of 2008. My tasting notes reveal:

Pours as a brown ale with light head. Mainly the smell is malty, and so is the taste. I taste roasted malts but it is so light that it is almost watery. Good beer but not great. Mouthfeel is refreshing, light and thin.

Overall, a good beer that would benefit with a more "punchy" taste.

Serving type: can

05-11-2009 11:43:08 | More by ZorPrime

01121987

Quebec (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A- pours very dark but very clear. exceptional head!!!a+

S- smells of sweet malt and slightly of alcohol.

T- very smooth. sweet malt and a little warming alcohol. finishes without much sweetness.

M- again, very smooth. perfect carbonation. silky.

D- this beer could be dangerous it's so smooth!

starts to taste more alcoholic as it warms

Serving type: can

04-08-2009 23:14:25 | More by 01121987

bloberglawp

Quebec (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev +20.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served in a Pilsner glass at 10c.

Pours a clear dark brown with reddish hues, huge frothy head that sticks around nicely and laces the glass. Aroma of continenetal malt and fresh cut hay. Very delicate aroma, not a trace of anything out of place, a good natural smelling lager. Flavor of malt, cristalised candy, apple and pear flesh and a hint of spice. Middle devellops a lager-esque aquaous note that I got alot from fresh pilsner in Germany. Aquaous in the sense that its a refreshing pause in the taste, not a watered down beer taste. Finishes clean and dry and leaves your tongue with a burnt crisalised homemade candy taste.

Alcohol is subtle and clean, I'm amazed this one did not come from Germany. Awesome dopplebock beer. Not as complex as Paulaner Salvator but its close.

Serving type: can

12-25-2008 01:28:02 | More by bloberglawp

rodenbach99

Quebec (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev +17.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

500ml. can

bought at the SAQ

A: nice reddish-brown colour with a nice beige head, good head retention.
S: very malty, some green apples, nice equilibrium, doesn't seems too sweet.
T: nice clean round taste, some swetness helps balance, some hops, good beer.
M: round
D: Nice doppelbock, perfect winter brew

Serving type: can

03-16-2008 21:29:53 | More by rodenbach99

jaz58

Ontario (Canada)

3.9/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

When poured in the glass this bock was very effervescent.

A nice dark brown, as dark as a cola.

A very thin head which disappeared quite quickly.

Smell - a soft subtle yeast with a hint of brown sugar.

Taste - a balanced bitter throughout.

Mouthfeel - soft leather followed by effervescense and finished with a balanced bitter.

A very good bock in my opionion. Not too heavy as one may expect. A satisfying brew.

Serving type: can

02-14-2008 03:15:42 | More by jaz58

MTNboy

Missouri

3.35/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Appearance- Dark red almost looks like a caramel colored soda pop. A thick and tan head that makes for a lot of lace as you drink it.

Smell- Sweet roasted fruit like.

Taste- For a canned beer I was greatly surprised. You can differentiate the flavors and it more complex than one would think. There are some nice roasted malt flavors to this beer. It is not that bitter but there are some hops and they don’t taste cheap either. The aftertaste is a little tart but bearable.

Mouthfeel- Medium bodied and well carbonated but no fizz burn.

Drinkability- A very easy going anytime kind of beer.

Serving type: can

01-05-2008 13:25:54 | More by MTNboy

drinkininthewood

Ontario (Canada)

2.98/5  rDev -13.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Served from a 500ml can into a pint glass. BB 2009

A- Very dark with a purplish red hue. Small head disappears quickly leaving no lace. By the halfway point the beer has no head whatsoever.

S- Malty sweet with some fruity, alcohol aromas.

T- Is decent. I was expecting something much different. Fairly malty sweet with some roastyness and slightly spicy hop profile as well as some nice flavors of dark fruit. Alcohol is fairly hidden.

M- medium bodied with light carbonation, slightly metallic.

D- fairly good considering the high ABV%

Overall I was expecting something along the lines of crest super or something like that but to my surprise i found a decent beer that i will probably pick again sometime in the future. Worth a try.

Serving type: can

11-20-2007 00:25:21 | More by drinkininthewood

vwahaszee

Quebec (Canada)

3.6/5  rDev +5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Brown color, came out with a decent looking head, but then it went away pretty quickly. I tried, but I couldn't really smell much. However, I enjoyed the taste. The rather high alcohol content was pretty well hidden under a nice roasted sweet flavor. Went down smooth. Left a bit of a cloying aftertaste but this beer was not too overpowering.

Serving type: can

11-18-2007 01:52:03 | More by vwahaszee

Viggo

Ontario (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev +2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a clear reddish brown, nice thick tan head forms, nice lacing, decent retention, settles to a thin ring. Smell is sweet and malty, some chocolate, caramel, grassiness, bit of alcohol. Taste is sweet, caramel and alcohol, some chocolate roast, bit of citrus, more alcohol, bit overpowering but what would I expect from Faxe. Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied with medium carbonation, alcohol warming. Not too bad, malty doppelbock type of beer, pretty cheap too.

Serving type: can

05-08-2007 01:52:25 | More by Viggo

funkengruven

Ontario (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev +19.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked this one up out of curiousity and being the second from this brewery I've had, I'm still not disappointed.

This one had a best before date of 1/23/08

This pours nice and dark with a head that quickly dissipates, there is some caramel malt in the nose which I found quite nice. Taste is sweet and malty, with a touch of hops in the finish that balances the flavor very nicely. The smoothness of this beer is surprising, also this is pretty easy to drink. I'm quite impressed.

I've noticed that some brewers gain a very bad reputation for puting out a high gravity high alcohol product, and because of that one terrible product their other much better products get overlooked (Wells is another example of this with their Crest super lager, however their Bombardier Ale is extremely good). The verdict with this beer is that it is a great tasting cold weather beer that will always find a place in my fridge on those cold days.

Serving type: can

03-10-2007 23:52:15 | More by funkengruven

DrJay

Massachusetts

2.75/5  rDev -19.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Clear, dark ruby colour with purplish highlights. Thin tan head, fine bubbles, some lace. Malty aroma with some grain husk, mild alcohol, and herbal/floral hops. Very sweet with low bitterness and slight hop flavour. Grainy, slight chocolate and yeast character. Not quite appealing all together. Medium/full body with low carbonation. Some astringency. This just didn't come together for me and it definitely became less drinkable as it warmed slightly.

Serving type: can

03-30-2006 02:35:06 | More by DrJay

CAMRAhardliner

Ontario (Canada)

2.95/5  rDev -14%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a very dark brown with amber glints. The tan head has moderate retention and leaves lots of lacing on the glass. The aroma is grainy with a big dose of fusel alcohol and some herbal notions. Malt dominates the flavor. Theres chocolate, fresh bread, and barley husk flavors. Hops are light and grassy. Alcohol is more modest in the taste than the smell. The mouthfeel is medium and even slightly oily. Carbonation is lower than I expected. The finish is malty and alcoholic.

This is a decent doppelbock. It has lots of malt layers. The only flaw is high amounts of alcohol flavor. Definitely, this is the best Faxe beer Ive tried.

Serving type: can

03-25-2006 05:53:55 | More by CAMRAhardliner