JosephsBrau Winterfest (WinterBrew)

JosephsBrau Brewing Company’s Winterfest is a rich, dark bock, inspired by the beers Bavarian monks brewed to lift their spirits during the long fasts of Lint. Dark roasted Munich and caramel malts worked wonders for hungry monks. Our Winterfest is sure to do the same for you. 7.5% alcohol by volume, 28 bitterness units.

Formerly known as Trader Joe’s Winterfest.

3.2

291 reviews

Monrovia, United States

Community reviews

3.6 12 oz bottle from Trader Joes. Label says brewed in San Jose, CA, with no mention of Gordon Biersch. Different label and listed as Winter Brew, Dark Bouble Bock Lager. Pours brown with head and lace. Aroma of dark roasted malts. Significant carbonation and mouthfeel. Flavors of dark malts, slightly burnt caramel, minerals, slight oak or earthy flavors. Overall rich, hearty, decent.

2.6 Bottle. Nose is slightly bitter and spicy. Taste is extremely spicy, and it overwhelms everything else.

3.1 Pours clear brown with little head. Malty, caramel aroma. Flavor is roasted malt and caramel with a metallic finish. Medium body with soft carbonation and slightly sticky texture.

3.2 12 ounce bottle poured into a pint glass, pours auburn red color. Moderate creamy beige head with some long lasting lacing. Rich roasted malt nose has sweet notes of caramel and chocolate cherries, sweet roasted maltiness. Aroma has some dates and raisins, a hint of chocolate, a touch of maple syrup. A rich satisfying toasty malty Doppelbock Lager. Would recommend to my friends.

3.0 Bottle, Ann Arbor, MI via Trader Joes. Slightly hazy medium brown. Metallic caramel aroma with some chocolate. Sweet, more chocolate powder flavour. Slight bright hop finish. Decent but nothing overly interesting.

3.0 Clear dark Amber - nose of highly caramelized sugars, raisins, cookie dough, rum balls - sugars in the flavor are overly caramelized/burnt, but not terribly so, I guess - slight bitterness - raisin, cookie dough - alcohol comes on strong in the finish - overall not that good, but drinkable.

2.7 Some roast malt and lots of caramel. Pours black with ok head. Not bad considering the brewer. Light sweet finish. Bottle.

3.4 Sweet, malty aroma. Clear, deep auburn. Non-deScript label, standard longneck. Tasty, I liked this one, generally, but there was an astringent flaw in the finish. Lots of dark/dry fruits, sweet. Has a straw/molasses overtone. Slight mineral notes in the finish as well. Trader Joe’s, Tallahassee.

3.8 12 ounce bottle. Mahogany red color. Moderate rocky beige head. Rich roasted malt nose has sweet notes of caramel and chocolate cherries. Sweet roasted maltiness. More chocolate and dark cherries upfront. Chewy sticky mouthfeel brings nutty dark fruit in midtaste. Some resiny hops in finish. A nice interpretation of a Bavarian Doppelbock. A great value at $1.17 per bottle at Trader Joe’s in Princeton, NJ.

3.4 Tallahassee, Fl - Trader Joe’s - 12 oz bottle. Hazy dark auburn pour, light but persistent eggshell white head. Aroma has some dates and raisins, a hint of chocolate. Solid doppelbock flavor with just the right amount of sweetness, a touch of maple syrup, brief chocolate notes, some bubble gum accents in the back end. Mouthfeel has a decent thickness to it. Good winter warmer.

4.4 I didn't take any extra notes when I tried this beer for the first time but I'm gonna try it again and update my comments.

3.4 Dark amber with off white head - Dark malt aroma - Sweet malt body with some caramel flavours - Malt finish with hints of bitterness in the back - This was nice

3.4 Altogether, a more than acceptable winter beer. Nice little malt and caramel buster, body not too thick. Good for TJ’s buget line. Serving size: multi 12oz bottles.

3.4 Type: 12-oz. bottle Glass: Stone Ruination IPA pint glass From: Trader Joe’s in La Mesa (San Diego), Calif. Price: $5.99 for a 6-pack Purchased: Dec. 19, 2014 Consumed: Dec. 19, 2014 Misc.: Best consumed by April 28, 2015 at 10:50 a.m. Poured a dark caramel, auburn, clear color with 1-to-2 fingers of dark khaki tan head that thinned out rather quickly. Some bubbles coming up from the bottom of the glass. Below average spotty lacing on the sides of the glass. Below average retention on the top. (Sight - 3.75) First whiff on the nose was a pleasant sugary caramel smell. Also got a good dose of toffee, roasted malts, some Oktoberfest elements, brown sugar and molasses. (Smell - 4.00) Tasted similar to the nose, maybe slightly worse. Got roasty bitter malts, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, light maple walnut, tobacco notes and raisins. Also nutmeg and cinnamon late. (Taste - 3.75) Medium body. Sticky texture. Average-to-soft carbonation. Abrupt finish. The 7.5 pct. ABV is well-hidden. (Feel - 3.88) This was a pretty good Doppelbock, although most Doppelbock’s taste pretty good to me. (Overall - 3.75) 3.81 86 B+

3.2 Deep bronze pour, decent off white head. Nose is malt, malt, malt. Sweet. Middle is more of the same, mountains of caramelized malt. Finish shows a little alcohol chased by spicy hops to end. Decent.

3.3 12oz bottle from T-Joe’s. Pours nice enough, clear brown, no lacing. Aroma is very good, very approachable. Nice enough taste, but definitely middling for the style. Kind of the diet coke of dopplebocks. Good, but not hard to find better. See: Paulaner Salvator.

3.6 Pours amber/brown with small tan head out of bottle. Aroma of sweet caramel and malt. Flavor of roasted nuts and caramel. Pretty good beer.

3.3 355ml bottle. Hazed reddish burgundy brown color, quickly dissipating head. Aroma is quite floral with a hint of tangy furit and bready malt. falvor is clean, lightly peppery, toasty, not much int eh way fo caramel, slight fruity tartness, a clean and drinkable doppelbock that lacks malt depth and complexity.

2.4 Faint aroma of roasted caramel and malt. Deep amber color, with hint of deep red. Thin tan head. Sweet rich roasted caramel malt. Bready in flavor with hints of toffee. Finishes with a licorice like bitterness, somewhat unbalanced. Slick mouthfeel, finish is a bit off. Not the best.

2.8 Pours opaque dark brown with a medium brown head that lingers. The nose is spicy. The body is medium-full. The taste is spicy with some malt..

2.9 Not really my style but very enjoyable in the fall and winter months. This one is malty and dark pouring with decent lacing and a good head.

3.8 12oz bottle - A really nice beer, that for anywhere from .50 a bottle to $1.00 a bottle is a great buy. Toffee-like aroma, light brown sugar with a touch of vanilla and Coke. Flavor has a little more roasted malts that what the aroma may lead you to think about the beer, Tootsie Rolls also are found too. Medium sweetness helps this beer be quite enjoyable and really brings out flavors the different malts bring to the table. Very nice.

3.0 can’t beat it for the price, and this is among the best of their 6-pack line. As far as comparing it to the best of the style, it’s boring, but compared to similarly priced beers, it’s a steal."

2.7 Bottle into glass on dek... pours dark red clear.. rotten fruit aroma taste is prune and malts .. not my style but I will drink it all..yay

3.0 It poured a brown color with a tan head. The aroma was of toffee, nuts, caramel, alcohol and some roasted malts. The taste was of burnt malts, toffee and light chocolate.

3.2 This one is labeled Winterbrew, but is still a doppelbock. Nice roast grain flavor with a touch of coffee bitterness. Nut brown with creamy beige head. Aroma of burnt toast, nuts, dark bread. Not too bad

2.7 Pours deep amber into a Sam glass. Mocha head with medium retention recedes leaving spotted sheets. Sour malt aromas. Crisp with sour caramel, bitter nutty earth and burnt toast.

1.6 I admit that I don’t care much for this style, so from the first sweet sugary sip I winced trying to get this down. Fortunately, my wife was in need of some beer for a recipe so it didn’t go to waste. If drinking simple syrup is your thing you might like this as this stuff lacks any complexity or depth of flavor.

2.7 Bottle->SA. Bright medium brown. A: cheap wet grains and malt, some nuts. T: bittersweet caramel malt, nuts, earth. Taste is vastly better than aroma, but still not particularly good.

3.4 12 oz. bottle. It pours a dark amber red color with an off white head. The aroma is syrupy and fruity. The flavor is pretty much the same. Dark fruit and syrup with some herbal bitterness. Pretty decent, but a tad harsh on the palate. Good for the price.