Achel Extra Bruin (de 3 Wijzen)

Brewed by Brouwerij der Trappistenabdij De Achelse Kluis
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Hamont-Achel, Belgium

Medium sized, tight beaded tan head, good retention and a lasting, sticky lace. Hazy brown color, light red hue. Complex nose of honey, fruit and alcohol plus hints of banana and raisin. Med/full body. Good malt flavor, caramel and a hint of clove, alcohol as it warms. Dry, fruity finish.

On the pour:more floaties then I have ever seen in a store bought beer...good start. The colour is piss yellow,and cloudy,proteins? off white small head...sweet nose noted,a little Carmel a little dirt. On taste:vanilla banana and a warm alcohol if you let it sit on your tongue,if swallowed quickly it is Carmel and malt. There is no fruit in this beer,but people will say plums and pruns the flavour to me is vanilla Better body then some have stated a long lingering taste and warmth of alcohol and sweets,a great winter beer. If I had not let this beer settle on my tongue you could drop the rating a whole point.

Poured a murky brown with reddish hints. Dark fruits, grapes, raisins, and caramel on the nose. Full and slick mouthfeel. Raisins, oranges, catamel, dark fruits, spices, and port on the tongue. Nice lingering aftertaste. There seems to be a lot going on in this beer, but this beer didn’t make me think "wow! what a great beer." It’s a very nice beer that’s worth seeking out, though.

Bottle. Cloudy brown colour with a brownish head. Soft nut- and caramel-like aroma. Very wine-like flavour - port. Acidic-sweet. Caramel. The alcohol is nicely integrated in the flavour. Very complex. Two words that struck me was ’overwhelming’ and ’bombastic’, since this is my first quadrupel. Should be enjoyed in little sips, I think.

Sampled at the Kulminator in Antwerpen, Belgium. Ruddy Brown. Fairly subtle nose with notes of hay, clove, banana, vanilla and plum. Achel is learning how to brew. What kept the 8 Brune from being a sensational beer was that the intense fruitiness was not balanced by any dark maltiness whatsoever. With the Extra, this is surely not the case. It was soft and very mellow. Dark fruits, mainly cherry and plum were present but were balanced so well by a deep maltiness of chocolate, caramel and cookie. I am expecting some incredible things from Achel in the future............................................ July 2005. Achel has really improved, turning this into an undeniably world class beer. I love the well extracted, vinous fruit flavors and the unbelievable mouthfeel. I bought 6 bottles today and plan on aging them. Pure experimentation, but we’ll see. Can’t get enough though. It’s an amazing beer.

Pours a clear brown color with a ring of offwhite lace. Excellent aroma and flavor of raisins, chocolate and malt. The body is light to medium with a liquorous texture abd gentle carbonation.

Dark brown, reddish hints. Good-sized sticky off-white head. Very malty aroma, good yeast dose. Very fruity (dates, grapes), but also has various other malty tones (chocolate, caramel). Gentle alcohol vapors. Rather acidic taste in a yeasty-fruity kind of way. More dates and green grapes. Achel yeast doesn’t provide any dryness. Sweet and closing to licorice at times. Honeyish, herbal. Mostly malty from the beginning until the end. Finish could use some punch. Highly carbonated, medium bodied. It’s just not very exciting and feels like it has been done already.

Lite brown with a great creamy head. Somewhat sour nose with some Gran Cru like spiciness. Slightly watery and oxidized. Some metallic flavors too. Maybe a bad bottle?