Bock And Roll All Night

Despite a blustery first week with rain and snow across Alberta, May is turning out alright, so I spent the weekend sitting out on the sunny patio, partaking of my annual tradition of cracking open a can of Maibock, an ancient beer style historically brewed in the winter and released for consumption on the first day of May each year.
Back in the middle ages, Bock was traditionally brewed in the Winter or Spring seasons, using dark roasted malts and very little hops. This resulted in a slight caramel flavor in the beer, and very little bitterness.
Bock beers were originally very dark in color and had a relatively high alcohol level. In the 14th century, Bock beers were brewed and consumed primarily by Catholic monks. As the monks were required to fast during Lent, they soon found the sweet and malty Bock beers to contain more food energy than lesser beers, and began referring to Bock as liquid bread, which was able to sustain them without becoming sickly with malnourishment during their long fast.
Remember, this was in the days before refrigeration, so beer could only be brewed in the colder months, as the wild yeasts and microorganisms in the air during the summer would spoil the beer.
That’s where Maibock comes in. In preparation for the coming of spring, a large batch of beer would be brewed up around Easter, then saved for the spring festivals to celebrate the arrival of the warmer seasons. Since this beer was cracked open at the beginning of May, it became known as Maibock.
Eventually, a particular style evolved for this first beer of spring, with a much paler color than the traditional Bock beers. Like other Bocks, Maibock is still a high-alcohol beer, generally around 6-7% ABV. While all Bocks have a relatively sweet taste, Maibock is slightly more hoppy, with a cleaner and slightly spicy and aromatic finish.
The true origins of the Bock name have been lost in the beer-soaked mists of time, but the most popular assumption is that Bock is a corruption of the word Einbeck, the small Bavarian town that invented this particular style.
Interestingly, Bock is also the German term for a male goat, so the high-alcohol brew is often assumed to have the kick of a billy goat. Further in line with the whole goat mythos, Bock is normally brewed while Capricorn (aka the goat) is ascendant in the heavens, so you’ll just have to pick the story you like best.
Fortunately, many Alberta breweries are producing one-off seasonal Bock beers, so you will not have to go all the way to Munich to try one. My local favourite is the Foedered Lager Damnation Maibock from Blindman Brewing in Lacombe, which despite its name, I found to be heavenly rather than infernal.
Weighing in at a hefty 6.8% ABV, this one-off seasonal release from Blindman Brewing poured a deep amber into my glass, with plenty of caramel malts on the nose, and a complexity on the palate from the Foedering process, aka aging in a giant oak barrel rather than a stainless steel vat. Blindman Brewing is one of the only breweries in Western Canada that ferments in Foeders, which unlike stainless steel, will extract yeasts and flavonoids from the porous barrel, making each batch unique.
Maibock beers are only released once a year, so find one quickly at your friendly neighourhood booze merchant or drinking establishment while you still can!