| Ayinger's
Celebrator
by Kevin R. Kosar I recall the first time I tasted Celebrator Dopple Bock. I was in the basement bar at Bernie's Bagels, a bar and eatery in Columbus, Ohio, right near Ohio State U's campus. It was the second to last beer on my beer tour- a special this bar offered where if you drank something like 125 beers [minimum one per month] upon completion you'd get a pewter mug with your name on |
| it and your name on a small brass
plate on the wall. You also got cheap refills on tap beers like Stroh's
Dark.
Tradition held that after you drank your Celebrator you took the little plastic rearing goat (which hangs off the bottle by a loop of thread) and saved it. Once you completed the tour and received your mug, you'd tie the goat to the handle of your fat mug. Each time you finished the beer tour again you'd hang another goat from your mug. I recall seeing one crazy man who had five Celebrator goats hanging from his mugged. Rumor had it he has the record for finishing the beer tour- 12 days, which means over 10 beers per day. I poured my Celebrator into a glass
mug and my eyes nearly popped out. It was black as night, but not
mud thick. Once it warmed up it had a rich coffee-chocolatey taste.
The sweetness was balanced by a bitter roast. It was and is a wonderful
beer, if you like dark beers in the least. I know I will enjoy Celebrator
until my dying days.
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