From the Wall Street Journal - FOOD & DRINK
APRIL 2, 2011
Half Full: Bock
Rock the bock and celebrate spring with a beer that can shoulder the seasons
Rainy one day, radiant the next, spring is a tough season to stock a fridge around. What you need is a beer strong enough to shake lingering winter doldrums but crisp enough to feel light and celebratory come the first glimmers of summer. You need a bock.
Smooth, clean and potent, bock has always been a springtime beer. First brewed in the north German town of Einbeck, they were made in the winter and cracked open around April. ("Bock" is German for goat’a reference to the beer's alcoholic kick, perhaps, and also not a far cry, sonically, from Einbeck. At least not after a pint or two.)
During pre-Easter fasting, 17th-century Munich monks brewed an especially dark, strong bock to keep the hunger pangs at bay and, presumably, to lighten the repentant mood. They dubbed it Salvator. Nowadays, a goat on the label means the beer isn't just a Lenten loophole, but a good all-rounder to have on hand, no matter what the weather.
’William Bostwick
Narragansett Bock
When it's finally time to celebrate winter's passing, get outside and crack open one of these. The 'Gansett bock is creamy and refreshing, topped with a hefty, bone-white head and an aroma of buttermilk biscuits. Plus, in a tall-boy can, it's perfect for picnicking. 6.5% ABV