EKU 28
No ratings yet — be the first to log it.
Tasting Notes
The aroma opens with rich dark fruit — raisins, prunes, a hint of dried fig — layered over warm bread and a subtle alcoholic warmth that's noticeable but not harsh. On the palate it's full-bodied and syrupy, with deep malt sweetness, toffee, and a faint molasses character. Hop bitterness is minimal, present mainly to keep the sweetness from becoming cloying. The finish is long, warming, and slightly boozy, with lingering caramel and dried fruit that reflects its unusually high ABV for the style.
About the Brewery
EKU is a German brewery based in Kulmbach, Bavaria, a city historically significant in German brewing. The brewery was long famous for producing some of the strongest lagers in the world, and EKU 28 was for decades marketed as the strongest beer commercially available anywhere — a claim that has since been surpassed many times over. The Kulmbach brewing tradition runs deep, and EKU's high-gravity lagers were a genuine engineering and fermentation achievement for their era.
Food Pairings
Roasted pork shoulder works well because the beer's malt sweetness mirrors the caramelized exterior of slow-cooked meat. Strong aged cheeses like Gruyère or aged Gouda hold up to the beer's intensity and find common ground in its nutty, caramel notes. A dense chocolate torte or brownie pairs naturally since the beer's dark fruit and toffee character runs parallel to bittersweet cocoa. Braised short ribs benefit from the beer's body and sweetness cutting through rich fat. Blue cheese offers a sharp contrast that makes both the food and the beer taste cleaner.
Style Guide
Doppelbock is a strong German lager style that originated with Munich's Paulaner monks in the 17th century, who brewed it as liquid sustenance during fasting periods. It's defined by a heavy malt presence — typically bready, toasty, and rich with dark fruit — very low hop character, and an ABV range that generally falls between 7% and 10%, though examples like this one push considerably higher. Unlike its cousin the Märzen, doppelbock foregrounds sweetness and body over balance, and unlike barleywine it achieves its strength through lager fermentation, which produces a cleaner, smoother alcohol character without the fruity esters of ale yeast.