Schell's Bock...it's back!

Here comes the confusion. Years ago, this was "Bock" from Schell's. I wrote the following nearly eight years ago:

"Color is a clear, dark amber, and the head is sturdy and bubbly, an off-white hue. Aroma is clean, with small hints of caramel and nuts. Sweet and silky smooth on the palate, with some fruitiness coming in on the flavor, through the malt. The caramel/toffee/nuttiness also reappears and contributes to a very delicious taste. Nice, sweet finish. Overall, a very good bock.
This my first time tasting this one in 3 years, and the last experience was not good. Maybe I had a bad batch before, or if the beer didn't change, maybe I did!

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 04-14-2003 11:28:59"

That last experience eluded to was a keg we had on tap back in '99, or '00, and it was murder to sell and serve. No one was into it.
That bottle in '03 was an improvement, but instead of keeping that going they dropped it in favor of something called Caramel Bock. Yuck, a miserable mistake. The doppelbock was also discontinued for a period, another head-shaker. Well, things are changing at Schell's to be sure. I've heard raves about the new, re-continued brew, now referred to as "Schell's Bock". Wrote the following last night:

"Schell's Bock highlights a rich and storied history of brewing authentic beers for a century and a half by August Schell Brewing Company. A harmonious blend of 10 different types of malt and noble hops, create this rich, smooth-tasting beer. Medium in body and dark copper in color, Schell's bock is everything you'd expect from America's second-oldest family-owned brewery."

In Michael Jackson 2000 "Great Beer Guide", in the course of writing on the DoppelBock, he describes the regular bock, that previous one, as "Tawny and rummy". Tawny, yes in this this one, rummy, not very much.

Clear, dusky amber, nearly brown boy, small, but lasting white ring rests on top.

Earthy, nutty, malty aromatics. Nearing sweetness, but well-tempered, evenly tuned. Right on target.

Taste: Rich, warm malty flavor floods the mouth, swims about, exits clean and gracefully. Actually, this is surprisingly delicious. Just enough hops in here to keep it all in balance. Extraordinary drinkability. Can't find a damned thing wrong with this. Long, malt-tastic finish.

I can't recall ever liking Schell's Bock this much. Next up, let's see some magic done on the Doppelbock.