Well folks it’s not even Thanksgiving yet and I just picked up my Samuel Adams Winter Favorites 2013 sampler 12-pack. Last year, of course, the sampler was called “Winter Classics”, if that makes any different for you. This year, the sampler features the return of one tasty holiday brew that premiered last year, three classic favorites, and two new beers. Along with Samuel Adams Cherry Chocolate Bock, the beer I’m tasting tonight, you’ll also get two bottles each of:

Samuel Adams Boston Lager

Samuel Adams Old Fezziwig

Samuel Adams Winter Lager

Samuel Adams White Christmas

Samuel Adams Juniper IPA

I was most excited about the Cherry Chocolate Bock. How could one not be? I’ve loved Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock since it debuted in 2004. That year, it was introduced in glorious black glass 750 ML bottles with ornate silver foil embossed labels, and just in time for Valentines Day, too. It has of late become a Christmas beer, and I just happen to have a bottle from the 2012 winter 12-pack in my beer fridge for comparison purposes.

But first, some more on Cherry Chocolate Bock. Boston beer says of it:

This special release is brewed just for the holidays. For a new approach to a classic favorite, we added cherries to our traditional Chocolate Bock for a sweet, slightly tart note. Aged on a bed of dark cocoa nibs, the malty, chocolaty, and dark fruit flavors create a rich, complex beer perfect for winter

Samuel Adams Cherry Chocolate Bock has an alcohol content of 5.8% by volume. It’s brewed with “Samuel Adams two-row pale malt blend, Caramel 60, and Munich 10” malts (per the Sam Adams website, Spalt and Tettnang hops, cherries, and cocoa nibs. I paid $14.99 for my 12-pack sampler, two dollars more than I did last year.

Samuel Adams Chocolate Cherry Bock pours to a dark black (but not opaque) color with a thick creamy tan head formation and a sinfully enticing nose of dark cherry and milk chocolate. Taking a sip, I get a medium bodied beer that quickly delivers on the cherry notes in the nose. Dark, sour cherries I think, at least they aren’t at all sweet, mingle perfectly with dark bittersweet chocolate and powdery cocoa notes to remind me of a Christmas cherry cordial candy, except with better chocolate and without all that cloying sweetness. The cherry seems more prominent in the nose, but I think that’s a function of the chocolate really kicking in when you sip. The beer finishes nicely balanced with a little roastiness and dry cocoa flavor.

Just for fun, I popped my last 2012 Chocolate Bock to see how this one compares. I could go back to my tasting notes, of course, but it will be interesting side by side to gauge the impact of the cherry here. Otherwise, they are the same beer I think. To be fair, the Chocolate Bock has had a year to mellow, but it pours to the same dark color and creamy head with a fine dark chocolate nose. Taking a sip, I get dark chocolate and powdery cocoa just like with the Cherry Chocolate Bock. The cocoa really comes out in the finish, dark and dry, and although this one may have mellowed just a tad, it’s fascinating side by side to see the cherry come out all the more after drinking the straight chocolate bock.

I love Cherry Chocolate Bock, it’s the best iteration of this beer since I bought the original Chocolate Bock in a 750. Delicious, 4.5 stars, and a beer that needs to be sold in six-packs for sure. It’s like Christmas in my mouth, a chocolate covered cherry cordial for adults. I’m saving my second bottle for Christmas Eve, and hoping they release this one in six-packs. I’d sure buy a lot more of it if they did.

Update 11/24/2017: If memory serves, Samuel Adams Cherry Chocolate Bock was not offered again after the 2013 sampler. Lucky me, I saved a bottle that I'm enjoying four years later. With a few years on this it is amazing! Chocolate covered cherry cordial nose, chocolate and bright cherry fruit in the palate, cocoa, a liquor filled chocolate cherry candy. Wonderful! Bring it back, Sam! We want more!