Blom (641), Odense, Denmark Nov 9, 2007 Updated: Jun 22, 2008 [Vintage 2003, tasted 2008]. I am totally convinced that there was a major decline in Chimay Bleu between 2003 and and 2004. The 2003 vintage is amazing today - almost as good as Westvleteren 12, but the 2004 and forward are weak.
The 2003 pours a brown ale with a low head. It has an amazing strong aroma of plume, walnuts, caramel, spice, madeira, port and liquorice. The flavours are all spicy, vineous and well combined. Too bad I don’t have more left of this amazing year in the cellar. [The rating is based on the 2003-vintage]
Palidor19 (1276), Brandon, Florida, USA Aug 28, 2008 the best of all three main version, it is strong with lots of fruity malts and a high alcohol content, lots of rich flavors. a must have for the beer snob. tarheels86 (25), Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA Aug 28, 2008 I mean does it get any better than this? 750 mL bottle. Pours a dark maple, hazy color with visible particulates from the yeast. Huge brown head that goes down quickly. Aroma is very sweet- almost candy. There are tons of cloves in the mix there too. Very creamy going down. Almost like really good spiked apple cider. Alcohol is very nicely covered up by the malts. Yeast flavor permeates until the aftertaste, which is slightly dry and malty. I still like Chimay Rouge better- but this is fantastic. nqualls (185), Tennessee, USA Aug 28, 2008 Bottle. Poured a dark brown with a huge brown head. Aroma of dark fruits and malt. Flavor shares the sweet malt and dark fruits, with a bitterness at the end. Creamy on the palate. Great beer that is overlooked most of the time. JCB (1001), Durham, North Carolina, USA Aug 27, 2008 750 from Fresh Market, Raleigh. Another one of those beers that’s so ubiquitous that we beer geeks overlook them in the quest for the new. Dark brown pour with a very vibrant body, lots of carb and an abundant head. Slightly fruity in the aroma, and it’s there in the flavor too. But this is a sweet malty beer through and through, with a smooth velvety mouthfeel. Just a hint of bitterness comes on late to make things interesting, but this is basically a lush, warming malty beer. patrickfannon (3), Marlton, New Jersey, USA does not count Aug 26, 2008 Served in very cool bottles, especially the 25 oz variety. A nice, heavy beer with a slightly sweet finish. Pairs nicely with pomme frites that I usually drink it with at a local Belgian beer bar. Highly recommended.
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