De Dolle Speciaal Brouwsel 20

Formerly brewed at De Dolle Brouwers
Style: Sour Ale
Diksmuide, Belgium

Original rating, july 2004:The easiest 5 for appearance. The orange hue just capts the light and begs to be contemplated for its grandiloquent carbonation. It looks like its alive and a good friend of mine. Take my flesh! Gigantic sized off-white head wears a ton of desiments. Big bubbles keep going up and climbing the glass rather than diminishing. It just stays there, admirative and sticks to the glass like crazy glue with a lacing that can’t be matched. The nose is complex and character loaded. Very oaky, smooth like a diplomat. Nice brett suggestions, mild champaign notes. Leafy hops, basement and cobwebs reminiscent yeast. Cork and cask wood notes... just so many elements I adore in belgians. Mouth presence is much more intense than the aroma. It has this gentle tartness that is just so refreshing in the flanders sour ales and a bit of brett to capt anyone’s attention. Bready yeast, farmy hay, barnyardy, sawdust, cedar spruce, wood... will this ever end? I hope not. Complex fruity undertones (apples, intense riped cherry skin, white grapes). Eternal dry finish follows a funky light bitterness. The mouthfeel to carry this plethora of flavors is of course extremely carbonated, but I’ll be damned if this doesn’t work. Smooth like a night by a campfire and spritzy like a night where you fight the fire. 2 thumbs up to De Dolle for this beauty that has held its stick to the fantastic opponent that is time since this is now 4 yr old. It’s truly a shame that the aroma just doesn’t come out a bit more expressive as this would have been my first 5, I still consider it as my favorite beer up to now though. I’m astonished by the pure elegance displayed by this fine specimen that somehow manages to also count among the most rustic beers I’ve ever sampled. Incredible.
Necessary Re-rate, from 4.9 to 5.0 Wondrous aromas with levels of flavours beyond imagination. Smells of just about everything I love in this world: Joris Pattyn’s cellar(which I never visited, but I know.. I just know), rodenbach’s yeast, De Dolle’s miracles, a fruit rainbow, a 1cm layer of mushroomy and cobwebby dust over an ancient manuscript full of outworldly secrets, the oak.. pure and strong as a lawyer for nature and the life out there.. everything… thrown together in a thick bottle so packed with glory that it can’t help but explode its geyser of grace and elegance upon the world as soon as the screw cage is out of the way. It’s probably the last time I live the dream of savoring this, but whatever happens to me in the future, no one will ever get that memory out. Kris is the best, I don’t really believe in god, but I believe his concept is useful when it comes to describing this beer, this could be what flows in god’s veins.. and he drinks vervifontaine blonde. Okay, I’m in my world, but to me, Speciaal Brouwsel = Perfection.

750 mL bottle shared with Ernest, luckygirl and my wife at Choice City Butcher and Deli in Ft. Collins, Colorado. Pours a bubbly and fizzy amber with a huge rocky-foamy off-white head that lasts forever. Aroma is sweet and sour fragile fruit, but not too much of either, malt and yeast (earth, cellar) and woodsy oak notes. Now, that does not fairly or fully describe the aroma or experience of gently placing your nose into a deep Chimay glass and sniffing indefinitely on this brew. Slightly sour yet unoffensive initial flavor, some sweetness then ensues, malt and yeast enter in, some fruit (apple, pear) notes appear, slight dry finish. Medium bodied, creamy and fizzy-burpy palate.

A Mes rate. Bottle at the Kulminator.
According to Dirk, I managed to prize the last 1981 swing top bottle from his Aladdin’s Cave of a cellar. At some point during drinking this, I realised it was perfect. I spent the rest of the glass savouring it as if it was going to be the last beer I ever had. Each sip left me speechless and staring into space in some sort of zen state. I’ve had this four times. The lowest was was a 4, the previous highest a 4.4 This one however was just perfect. There’s unashamed gushing on the way folks...

The bubbly head died quickly but it’s such an incredible mahogany amber colour it’s a five. The aroma is the most amazing burnt caramel I could ever experience. Vintage port, cognac, fine wine, it’s all there. Amazing cheesy funk to it too. There is a bit of aged alcohol but not a hint of cardboard or anything else that would point to this being twenty eight years old. Flavour... it’s a twelve let alone a ten. Burnt sugar, crème brûlée ice cream, vintage port and surely the most unreal blend of sweet and sour my taste buds will ever experience. It is without doubt the best Flemish Sour I have tasted. There is something odd that I can’t put my finger on. J has offered "minted cassis" and somehow it seems to fit. It sounds wrong but my god, it just tastes so good. Dry yet unbelievably juicy in the finish. It dances round the edge of the palate with effortless abandon. Every sip leaves me struggling to speak. I’m litterally without speech. The blend of sugar and sour is just pant wettingly good. I’ve had most of the bottle and it’s just not enough. The drinkability is completely through the roof. Mouthfeel is even better. I keep having to hold my head in my hands. There is no beating around the bush here. I’m certain that this is the best beer I’ve ever had. The length of sourness is just outlandish. I comes in waves. Just when I think it’s over, there’s another kick that thrills me to the core. Each sip gives a bit more.I can’t believe it. It’s getting better. I have to shut my eyes and think for a few minutes. Everyone at the table went quiet. Even the vibe in the Kulminator was more chilled than usual and fitting for such a moment. The world stopped, it really did. It’s a five. If ever a beer has deserved it, it’s this. I’m not falling onto a hype train here, I’ve had it before, those bottles were utterly superb. This... this is the one. I’ve spent thirty minutes with this divine beauty. I’d happily swap any ten beers from my collection to be able to spend another ten minutes. This is why I rate beer. I have one huge indulgent gulp left...

Shared with BeerandBlues2, Ernest and Mrs. BeerandBlues2 at Choice City in Fort Collins, CO. Poured for us by the sommelier who’s lovingly stored it in his cellar for the last six years. Bless him! Beer poured a hazy light caramel with lots of dark brown yeastie sea monkeys making laps in the bottom of the glass. Head was huge, creamy, mostly lasting and off-white. First impression on the nose was of sweet-sour, stone fruity perfection. (To risk repeating myself, if you didn’t read my Stille Nacht Reserva 2000 rating.) This was a transcendant experience of beauty. The kind where the sum of the parts combine to create a divine whole that overwhelms and makes the world fall away. Food goes unnoticed, conversation sounds like adults on a Charlie Brown cartoon, the room dims and somewhere a violin plays. Ahem... I digress. The aroma was malty with moderate-to-heavy toasted grain, coookie and caramel; Hoppy with a trace of green grass, moderate herb and lemon zest; Yesty with moderate-to-heavy notes of basement, horseblanket; Moderate-to-heavy miscellaneous notes of balsamic reduction, sweet, ripe stonefruit, candy sugar, light oak and light apple peel. The flavor was moderately-to-heavily sweet, moderately acidic and lightly bitter with a slightly grippy, long, moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter finish. The body was medium, the texture was velvety and the carbonation was average. Amen to this, my 500th rating.

Only thing better is the original brew from ’81, I think. Smuggle a couple of those home from Kulminator a few years back. I think those could age forever. This anniversary ale was so great to enjoy a few tmes -- I have not seen it in a while.

October 2000 bottle. Head is initially huge, frothy, rocky, off-white, excellent lacing, fully lasting. Body is murky dark amber, dense particles of all sizes, bottle conditioned. Aroma is moderately malty (caramel, cookie), lightly hoppy (flowers), moderately yeasty (cobwebs, barnyard), with notes of toffee, orange, cherry, licorice, clove, cask wood, and sugar, hints of vinegar and alcohol. Flavor is heavily sweet, heavily acidic. Finish is moderately acidic, moderately sweet, lightly bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, lively carbonation, lightly alcoholic, lightly astringent. This is the best Flanders sour ale I’ve ever had by FAR, and I’ve sampled a lot (all of the top five here, and many more). The only problem is this was only made once. But yes, this is now a 5.0 beer for me. Imagine that, over 4 years after it was bottled and still absolutely incredible.

2000,Corked bottle:Cork explodes off as soon as the cage is turned twice. Penny colored liquid.DENSE,HUGE,head.Delicate aromas(grass,oak,mustiness,). Palate is spritzy,oily,and full.Flavors are balanced to the point of being breathtaking.Sweet and sour mouthfeel are binded perfectly.Caramel,grape,wood,biscuit,and sour flavors.Finish is lightly acidic and has a earthy,sweetness also.Constant bubbles rising to the top.Head subsides til later pours,but doesn’t go away.After yeast pour,got some delicate,spicy,hops in finsh also.This just gets better and better more I drink.Second yeast pour actually,made the sweet flavors more evident because the mustiness hid the sourness a bit.Like my buddy said,serious beer for Belgian beer fans.This would appeal to anyone IMO.Highly recommended.

A hazy dark orange liquor with a huge creamy uneven off-white head. Crisp spring fresh wild apples, musty attics, untamed spices, and a hint of raspberries. A clean sourness that livens the mouth. As much head as this beer produces the carbonation is low. Sourness is throughout, taste of oak, must, aasparagus, and green tobacco. Dry cobweb aftertaste. Wonderful, thankfully I have one bottle left.