Cambridge Benevolence

Brewed by Cambridge Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Cambridge, Massachusetts USA

(GABF05) Murky red-brown body with minimal beige head. Aroma is moderately sweet, vanilla, peat, alcohol. Taste is very sweet, syrup, vanilla, alcohol, peat. Full body with some acidity.

Barrel Draught from the jug at the GABF, Colorado Convention Center 29/09/2005 Dark coloured and very strong in alcohol. Some fruit and chocolate flavours. Slightly bitter whisky finish.

(Draught) Pours a murky dark reddish brown body with a small beige head. Aroma of raisins, dates, vinous, honey, and cherry. Flavor of raisins, dates, cherries, candi sugar, light funkiness, vinous, caramel, light honey, and some vanilla. Nice complexity in this high abv Belgian Strong.

Deep reddish brown pour with quickly fading head. The nose is immediately heavily vinous, shaping a date and grape richness that is only matched by the equivalent earthiness. Bourbony influence shines among the vinous nature, adding a generous dose of complexity, smoky and oaky to the already massive brown Belgian. Nutty, chocolatey, caramelic etc. maltiness has to cope with a fair bit of roastiness that, while it rounds the alcohol out nicely, may not have been the most competent complement to the liquorous and strong acetic environment. Sticky full body, very sweet. Decadent stuff.

My Bottom Line:
This grandiose achievement in brewing harmoniously marries bourbon, sour cherries, medjool dates and wild yeast flavors into a luxurious body worthy of meditation. This ambitious project has bloomed into a most marvelous osmosis of Flemish Sour, Fruit Beer and Barley Wine.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A slice of foam surfs the mahogany-tinged dark brown.
-Alcohol seems to vary a lot from batch to batch; from 8.6% to over 12%!
-Vinous fruitiness, tartness and wooden dryness meld beautifully into the vanilla sweetness.
-Alcohol is remarkably well hidden for a 12% brew.
-The soft tiny bubbles are effervescent, making this a very classy, easygoing sipper despite all the present flavors.
-Complexity here is endless, yet all flavors seem to coexist on the same plane. Very impressive!

On tap at the brewpub.

A nice reddish amber ale with a thin creamy moka head. A wonderfully pleasant dark fruits in aroma, molasses, treacle and maderized porto, enticing and intense. In mouth, an interesting mix of dark candy cane extract, sour molasses, and raisins. Challenging in a good way. Rich and warming. On tap at brewpub, July 1, 2009

GABF 2005. Body is medium brown. Aroma is moderately malty (roasted grain, caramel), with notes of cherry, sherry, and wood. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Medium body, watery/syrupy texture, soft carbonation, moderately alcoholic. Had several samples of this due to the buzz surrounding it on the floor, but could not form an affection for it. Aged too long or improperly (fairly strong oxidation that took away the charms it may have had). Looks great on paper, but rather disappointing to sample.

Woody, minty, herbal, maple, tart aroma with some Belgian yeast character, dates and raisins apparent. Opaque muddy brown body with very low, off white head that recedes to ring. Chocolate, raisins, dates, fig-like fruit flavours with some funky vinous character and some alcohol. Tart in the woody, bitter finish. Medium body is quite dry with lively, lightly prickly carbonation. Sampled at GABF 2005. This gets my vote for top overall beer at the festival for this year!