 BleacherBum (176), Blowing Rock, North Carolina, USA
| 4.3 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 5/5 | 8/10 | 5/5 | 17/20 |
Jan 29, 2007 Pour is a deep apple cider brown. Nice silky light tan head. Tons of yeast here. An aroma of sour apple and some pear, also the yeast is shining through with just a hint of that Belgian spice. First sip is sweet, tart, yeasty and lightly carbonated, all balanced very well. Wow. One of the most impressive first sips in my short beer career. No alcohol flavor here whatsoever. I agree that there are perhaps some dark/tart berries in here. Once it warms up, flavors of bread and champagne really kick in. What a wonderfully complex and well-balanced beer!!! Lingering and light finish with just the slightest hint of bitterness. A winner for me now and in to the future as I put a couple in the cellar.
talon1117 (623), Bellvue, Colorado, USA
| 3.8 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 4/5 | 16/20 |
Jan 24, 2007 Pours a dark brown color with garnet highlights and notable sediment; head is beige, rocky, and full with it settling to a fairly small, but steady, frothy head and leaving some random lacing. Nose is faint and dark for a Belgian, toffee, faint coffee, bread crust, plum, maybe some caramelized cherries once it warms, and yeast. Flavor is similar; caramel, light coffee, bread crust, plum, and some acidity with a moderately light bitterness. Hard to really pick out the flavors being such an unfamiliar ’specialty’ Belgian. Palate is medium bodied, moderate carbonation, and a round vinous texture with mild warmth from alcohol. Finishes with bread crust, some dark berries (cranberries, blackberries maybe), and maybe tobacco. As I finish this one, I am speechless; not at all what I was expecting from a strong Belgian. However, it’s dark, and very fruity when it warms and surprisingly to my liking with time to adjust. This one is so much better warm it is unreal.
GG (1640), NorCal, California, USA
| 4.4 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 9/10 | 4/5 | 9/10 | 4/5 | 18/20 |
Jan 20, 2007 NorCal tasting Jan 07 - The contents of this bottle were very hard to describe. It has the best parts of many different beers that I found complex and hard to distringuish. The nose is sweet, acidic, fruity and a touch hot. Flavors were light fruits, some yeast, alcohol but there’s more to it than just that. Overall it’s a a very hard beer to nail down, which is probably why I enjoyed it so much.
jake65 (1725), Williston, North Dakota, USA
| 3.7 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 8/10 | 3/5 | 14/20 |
Jan 19, 2007 Bottle: Ruby colored pour with a big, fizzy tan head that dissapates quickly. Nose is sharp with fruitiness and malt. Even a bit musty. Taste is like no other beer I’ve ever had. Lots of wine and a sharp carbonated finish. Some plum and citrus fruitiness. Very interesting beer, but overall very good.
jefcon (1000), Arlington, Virginia, USA
| 4.1 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 5/5 | 8/10 | 4/5 | 16/20 |
Jan 19, 2007 Deep ruby in color with an immense head which last and lasts. Buoyant aromas of crusty French bread, cherries and plums, and a fizzy blackberry. Lots of carbonation. Acidic and slightly sour fruit... grapes, cherries, pomegranite. Also some deep malts that taste almost of charcoal. Gutsy and assertive. This is a classy beer with great balance and depth.
RedHaze (370), Where the hell am I?, Nebraska, USA
| 3.8 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 3/5 | 16/20 |
Jan 14, 2007 330ml bottle, with no best by, or bottled on date.
Pours a very hazy dark brown with red highlights. The head is two fingers tall, even with a gentle pour, that settles very slowly to a thick cap, leaving behind a thick, chunky lacing behind. The retention is incredible on this one, as the foamy cap never really fades (even a half hour later).
Smell; a bit chalky on the initial sniffs, then turning to a nice fruity bouquet. There’s plums and dates at first, then it shifts to a bit of cherries and surprisingly apples. The malts are very present, with caramel and toffee at first, followed by candied sugar.
Taste; the fruitiness is prevelant with prunes and plums up front, fading to the cherries. There’s a very strong raw, woody earthiness to the flavor, with a little bit of anise thrown in. In the finish there’s a bit of herbal spiciness present, to offset the sweet fruits with an alcohol bite in the finish.
Mouthfeel/Drinkability; the mouthfeel on this one is full bodied, and very creamy, with a bit of bite from the carbonation. Drinkability is really good , but the alcohol bite, and content make this one a sipper for sure.
TheEpeeist (1460), Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, USA
| 4.2 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 3/5 | 9/10 | 4/5 | 19/20 |
Jan 14, 2007 11.6 oz bottle. White cap marked SPEC BREW 2005. Semi-clear brown leaves a tan ring and dusting. Each sip leaves lace. Bananas in red wine with pepper and oak. Smooth and fruity with soft carb. Hints of caramel, orange, cherry and cranberry go sweet to gently sour with a touch of balsamic. Lingering airy porcinis. Beautiful balance and body. Delicious. Must find more of this batch. An enigma done to perfection.
beachbum25 (786), Powellville, Maryland, USA
| 4.3 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 9/10 | 4/5 | 18/20 |
Jan 13, 2007 11.2 oz Bottle- Pours a cloudy reddish/brownish color w/almost no head but some good lacing. Classic Belgian Aroma. Has a yeasty/bready/doughy flavor to it. Somewhat winelike, somewhat like an old shoe-but a comfortable old shoe, not a worn out, old, nasty one. Somewhat sour & oaky w/some carbination. You could drink this all day, very smooth. Don’t taste the high alcohol at all. Long, long sweet finish
|
Rate This
Statistics
Find This Beer (Want/Have)