Not long ago I received a bottle of The Bock Hog, a rye whiskey barrel-aged doppelbock from Harpoon Brewery, which collaborated with WhistlePig Rye Whiskey. It’s a bit of a high-concept spin on the lager style, and since it’s doppelbock season, it’s a good time to review it.

Here’s a snippet from the press release about the beer:

Fans of both brands will immediately recognize the play on words [in the name], as Harpoon’s Doppelbock – a strong, flavorful, malty lager – is conditioned in Spanish Oak and South American Teakwood barrels that previously housed WhistlePig’s The Boss Hog VII: Magellan’s Atlantic, which was inspired by the first recorded circumnavigation of the globe.

With the base notes of the Doppelbock including toasted rye, toffee, rum raisin, and cacao, the Spanish Oak and South American Teakwood barrels add complexity with top notes like holiday spice, roasted nuts, vanilla, and char. Brewed at 9.0% ABV, this lager will warm you on cold winter nights at home and whisk you away for an exploration of flavors.

You can view Harpoon’s details on The Bock Hog here. It’s 9% ABV with 21 IBUs, with what looks like a fairly straightforward ingredient formulation.

Appearance: Deep amber with reddish-copper highlights, almost the color of brown bottle glass. Tan head with good legs.

Smell: Spicy-sweet with old leather, tobacco, burnt brown sugar, raisins, smoky pipe tobacco, charred oak, cinnamon-spiced nuts. Smoky notes persist.

Taste: Smoky-sweet with a spicy wood char, the rye whiskey is evident but almost drinks like a scotch. Quite rich with deep caramelized malts, and smoked nuts glazed in bruléed sugar. Toasted grains, cedar, pipe smoke that lingers at the back of the tongue. Boozy but not hot, smooth and smoky. Layers of caramel and toffee malts with a smoked oak spiciness. Quite complex.

Mouthfeel: Medium full-bodied with an almost-smoked oily-ish coating that sticks to the tongue, almost creamy in texture.

Overall: An excellent beer, it’s rich and complex, smoky and spicy, with burnt sugars and booze but not hot. Terrific.

Pick this beer up if you can find it; Harpoon mostly distributes in the eastern half of the country as well as California, but you’ll have to use the brewery’s beer finder to try to locate it near you.