 wulfhere (217), Billings, Montana, USA
Apr 27, 2004
Bottle.
Deep amber colored with a decent head of foam that lasted a couple of minutes, leaving a bit of residual head that draped lace all down the glass as I drank. A few solidified yeast floaters made the appearence a "iffy," but that comes with the old and cellared Belgian territory.
Nose was insatntly of pungent vinegar, yeast, must and sweaty horse. There's a stable smell to it that reminds me of the barn when i used to crawl up in the hayloft.
Complex flavors--caramel, malt, clove, nutmeg, apple cider, and overall a yeast presence.
Finish is medium dry and tannic.
Really nice!
DrnkMcDermott (1595), Downers Grove, Illinois, USA
Sep 5, 2007 <i>750 ml bottle.</i> Found at Sam’s Wines in Downers Grove, and kept it for about a year. Finally opened to find a rusty cage and a dry, almost shrunken cork, so I’m worried some air may have gotten in. Pours a deep brown with no head, in fact except for a few strggly bubbles, the beer is almost still. The smell of aged malts is nice, though. First taste has iron to it, like I had poured over the residue of the cage or foil. Taste is of beef broth and reisling over heavy dark malts. Gotta admit its pretty good, just don’t know if it’s what the brewers intended.
kp (6300), Woodstock, Georgia, USA
Sep 1, 2007 <b>Date:</b> 10/21/2006<br />
<b>Mode:</b> Bottle<br />
<b>Source:</b> Tasting<br />
<br />
opaque yellow, whispy white head, huge tart granny smith apple aroma, good body, lots of apple flavor, nice gritty sweetness, light tartness keeps it balanced, <br />
<br />
<b>Aroma:</b> 7/10; <b>Appearance:</b> 6/10; <b>Flavor:</b> 7/10; <b>Palate:</b> 6/10; <b>Overall:</b> 15/20<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 3.5/5.0<br /><b>Drinkability:</b> 9/10<br />
<b>Score:</b> **4<br />
bu11zeye (3887), Frisco, Texas, USA
Aug 25, 2006 (750ml bottle) Pours a cloudy orangish-brown body with a spare off-white head. Aroma of apple, dustiness, and light herbs. Flavor of caramel malt and apple.
frankenkitty (1832), Oak Lawn, Illinois, USA
Mar 9, 2006 750ml bottle with a (dry cork and oxidized cage) pours a good looking mahogany/vermillion with a cream-colored head that fades fast to halo. This has basement yeastiness with sour vinousness... moldy aromas are overpowering to the point where I fear my allergies will act up! Flavor finds defined maltiness that is caramel in nature before opening up to white wine and vanilla. Ends sour with fruity esters. Enjoyably different and a good value at $5.99/750ml.<br /><br />
<b>Note:</b> Everyone keeps mentioning the "1984 Vintage", and while my bottle displays a 1984 Merchant du Vin <u>copyright</u>, I seriously doubt that’s the same thing... it’s probably the year they copyrighted the name or the label. You may be able to copyright a recipe, but you can’t copyright a beer.
<br /><br /><font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp?PlaceID=20><u>Foremost Liquors</u></a>, Oak Forest, IL 60452<font size=-1><br />
aspidites (1268), manteca, California, USA
Nov 16, 2005 Someshat tart and sour nose with some off notes. Grassy hop notes and a touch of Diacetyl and Urine. Barnyard notes lead into an earhy almost moldy not. Toasted malt and cookies come thru on the palate with a touch of banana and mango. Finishes acid and sour with some residual spice.
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