Celis Pale Bock -- It's Baaaaack

Since this spring, Celis Pale Bock has been available on draft at selected fine establishments around town, such as The Gingerman. Tonight, while visiting Central Market, I saw it in bottles on a store shelf for the very first time. To that, I say: woo hoo!

For those just coming into the story, Celis Brewing Company was a small craft brewery in the Austin area that made a number of Belgian styled beers. Their beers were distinctive, which meant folks tended to either love them or hate them. I, actually, was not a fan of their stuff, except for the Pale Bock, which I went nuts over.

Let's back up, because you need to know about the relation between bock beer and Austin. Bock beer is a pungent almost skunky brew that's been a local favorite. I couldn't stand the stuff when I first moved to town, but after a while it grew on me.

Shiner Bock used to be the local benchmark, but their recipe got pretty bad over the years, leaving a gaping void in the bock universe. Then Celis popped up, started brewing their own bock, and all was right with the world again.

Every good story needs a villain, and the villain in this one is Miller Brewing Company. They bought the Celis brewery, only to abandon it a few years later. I guess they didn't know what to do with a beer that didn't have rice in it.

But the story has a happy ending. The Michigan Brewing Company acquired the Celis recipes. They started with the white (ehhh....not a wheat beer fan) and the bock soon followed. It's still a bit hard to find, but it's out there and that makes me happy.