HELLES BOCK

AKA:
Maibock, Frühlingsstarkier (spring strong beer)

Pronunciation guide for English-speakers:
"Hell-ess Bock"

Definition:
Helles Bock or Heller Bock Maibock (literally: light Bock) is essentially a synonym for Maibock, the Bavarians' strong, golden lager favored during the brief transition transition between the long Bavarian winters along the northern edge of the Alps and the equally long, hot summers. In spite of its name, this brew is not light in body or strength, just in color. For details about this style, see Maibock.

A quick point of grammar: Both Heller Bock and Helles Bock are correct. The difference rests with the grammatical gender of the implied noun. The word Bock not only designates a beer in German, whose grammatical gender is neutral and leads to Helles Bock; it also means ram or Billy goat, whose gender is masculine and leads to Heller Bock. Thus, if you consider Bock a shortened version of Bockbier (which it is), Helles Bock(bier) would be the correct spelling. The same applies to dark Bocks. These may be called Dunkles Bock or Dunkler Bock.

Related beer styles:
Doppelbock, Eisbock, Weizenbock, Weizendoppelbock, Weizeneisbock