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Maibock\u2014sometimes known as heller bock or helles bock\u2014is a strongish German lager on the paler end of the bockbier spectrum, with less of the rich melanoidins that define the darker ones. Hops tend to be more prominent. Many brewers go too heavy on malt character, using Munich for at least half their grist or even adding melanoidin malt (or something like it) to further bump those malty notes. Respectfully, I think that\u2019s a mistake. What those brewers are really making is a traditional bock that looks somewhat paler. They\u2019re also throwing away an opportunity to distinguish their maibock from others in the family. There\u2019s room for interpretation here\u2014use it. <\/p>\n
I use Munich in my maibock, but nowhere near half. My base is 40 percent pilsner, 40 percent Maris Otter, and 20 percent Munich.\u00a0That\u2019s right: British pale malt in a German lager. It contributes nice doughy-bready notes without being heavy. Increasing the Munich or Vienna could bog down your flavor profile; this lighter blend makes that nearly impossible. No specialty malts\u2014this grist should give you everything you need. Some brewers like to add a touch of acidulated malt for a slight lactic \u201czip\u201d and to lighten the color a touch. I don\u2019t, but I don\u2019t think it would hurt. Meanwhile, I aim for a starting gravity around 1.075\u2014we\u2019re going to put that alcohol to work. <\/p>\n
Hops present another opportunity to deviate from the norm\u2014no need to use them only for bittering. I like moderate hop flavor and aroma in my maibock, but from a specific variety: Mt. Hood. This classic American variant on Hallertauer has a fine dose of floral notes, but it\u2019s also relatively high in myrcene, associated with piney-resinous flavor. The piney, floral, and bready characters mesh beautifully, especially in conjunction with the spicy notes from the higher ABV. Besides the bittering addition, I add for flavor at 15 minutes and aim for 25 IBUs. You can go higher, but you don\u2019t want bitterness to take over the flavor. <\/p>\n
For yeast, either Wyeast 2206 Bavarian Lager or White Labs WLP830 German Lager will treat this beer well, with good attenuation and clean fermentation character. <\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve read enough of these columns, you know I mash basically everything at 152\u00b0F (67\u00b0C)\u2014same here, but you could go lower. You don\u2019t want a heavy beer\u2014you want a lot of nice, simple sugars for your yeast to consume. The lager fermentation also is pretty straightforward: A good starting place is 50\u00b0F (10\u00b0C), with a slow rise of a degree or two per day starting on the third day. Give it plenty of time to finish\u2014we want to lighten the body while getting a lot of good (not hot) ethanol into the beer. For lagering, you don\u2019t want to touch this one for at least six weeks. <\/p>\n
Maibock should be dangerously drinkable despite its ABV. While it\u2019s not a by-the-liter quaffer like festbier, you should still want another when you empty the glass. The flavors, meanwhile, lend themselves beautifully to food pairing\u2014and this style is a great companion at Thanksgiving or other holiday meals. Maibock: It\u2019s not just for May anymore.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n