September 4th, 2026 - Bathory's Doppelbock

 

Hey there evil-doers, headbangers, and craft brew freaks!   Happy Friday!  Your drinkin' buddy the Meista here with another killer pairing for ya... the seminal, infernal, groundbreaking, self-titled debut album by Bathory and a bold and flavorful Becker's Doppelbock from the fine folks at Becker's Beer and brewed by Proper Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Bathory
• Title: "Bathory"
• Recorded: June 1984 at Heaven Shore Studio in Stockholm, Sweden
• Release date: October 2nd, 1984 (1st full-length studio album by Bathory)
• Record company: Black Mark Production / 
• Production: Quorthon aka Thomas Börje Forsberg and The Boss aka Stig Börje Forsberg
• Album cover art: The cover image is a portion of a drawing retouched by Quorthon that was originally rendered in 1981 by Jos A. Smith for Erica Jong's book, Witches.
• Personnel: Stefan Larsson (drums) and Quorthon (guitars and vocals)
• Additional musician: Rickard "Ribban" Bergman (bass)
• Musical style: Extreme metal, black metal, thrash metal
• Sound: Raw, aggressive, definitive... this is groundbreaking and highly influential stuff!  Combining the aggressive and evilness of Venom and the punky speed and ferocity of Motorhead, Bathory was years ahead of their time and creating blackened metal.  
• Major themes: Hell, death, war, evil, darkness, black magic, Satanism, the occult, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Storm Of Damnation / Hades"
2. "Reaper"
3. "Necromansy"
4. "Sacrifice"
5. "In Conspirasy With Satan"
6. "Armageddon"
7. "Raise The Dead"
8. "War"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Becker's Beer brewed by Proper Brewing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: https://www.beckersbeeroriginal.com/ and http://www.properbrewingco.com/ 
• Brew: Becker's Doppelbock
• Style: German-style Doppelbock / Bock Beer
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 8.2%
• IBUs: 25
• Pour: The Becker's Doppelbock pours a dark mahogany red hue with a thin, light mocha head with good retention and light lacing.
• Nose: The nose is characterized by malty, grainy, and slightly boozy and sweet aromas.  There are notes of bready malts, dark toasted bread, dark fruits, hearty barley, a hint of rich bourbon, and burnt toffee.
• Taste: The Becker's Doppelbock's taste, like the nose is malty, bread, and bold.  There are notes of hearty bread, roasted barley, a hint of booze, and sweet caramel/toffee. 
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is very smooth with a slightly sweet and slightly boozy finish with very low bitterness.

Overall pairing: The Becker's Doppelbock from Becker's Beer brewed by Proper Brewing Company is a very bold and solid offering of the style... great to pair with the intensity and heavy metal punch that is the infernal and powerful "Bathory"!  Those bold, hearty notes go great with the darker lyrics and overall aggressive metal attack, while the crushable maltiness is great for the terse and infernal vocals!   I highly recommend both the album and the brew!  'Nuff said!

Cheers and hails!!