De Dolle Stille Nacht Reserva 2000

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

[I had this one at the Kulminator in March 2004] The aroma is fantastic - dominated by sweet fruit notes; berries, cloves, and alcohol. The color is a slightly hazy amber with a small disappearing beige head. The flavor is very much like the aroma but combined with the alcohol prickling the tongue. This is truly a fantastic beer.

Bottled, 2000 version.
Pours thick and deep amber with no head. The aroma is heavenly and arousing. It strikes like a fina muscat wine, there’s notes of wood and cherry and so much else I couldn’t keep track on. As it warms it becomes more port like and developed peppery notes. There is loads of malt to balance it, and the body is firm and dense and with tremendous depth. It is sweet, sure, but never strikes me as syrupy or sticky just perfectly balanced. The finish is velvetty and oaky. This is as close to perfection as it goes, and this is arguably the best beer I’ve ever sampled.

Golden amber; winey nose - sweet oak, cork, deep fruit and light alcohol. A tough beer to rate. It was one of those beers where you like it, but can't think of too many things to say about it. It's all about the Bordeaux aging, calling up hunger for Colston Bassett Stilton. In fact, it is so winey, that although I enjoyed letting it wash over me, I sat thinking a) where's the Stille Nacht? and b) this is surprisingly one-dimensional. Maybe I'm trying to evaluate this the wrong way, but this seemed to be satisfyingly unsatisfactory.

Corked bottle, bought at Kulminator, Anvers
Hazy amber color. Porto like, a bit woody, raisins... (aroma and flavors). Excellent!

Clear orange amber with small head that leaves right after the pour. Aroma is sweet, raisin, some yeast, and red wine alcohol. Taste is moderately sweet, raisin, anise. Bordeaux is evident, at times dominant. Light carbonation. The alcohol is fairly strong, and leaves a medium burn. Definitely a sipping beer.

Huge thanks to egajdzis for sharing not only this but also the 2005 version side by side! Do you want to take my 1st born - seriously, I can use the sleep! Pourd a medium amber color with a small sized off white head. Quite a vinous and complex aroma. Red wine giving way to grapes, light yeast, vanilla, wood, plums, and raisins. I could smell this one all night. Tastes of red wine, grape skins, brown sugar, vanilla, light wood, dark fruits, and I was getting a light cookie doughiness. Vinous all the way around. Alcohol content well hidden. As good as this was, it continued to grow on me as I drank and smelled it leaving me wanting more.

Bottle-conditioned, obtained thanks to my newest great buddy sprinkle (the holy grail! Finally!): cloudy dark orangey amber. Minimal lacing on disappearing head. Woah that nose! This has to be one of the best smells ever. Extremely vinous and potent. The Bordeaux wood really comes through, basking its glory into an already capable beer. I’ll sound like I’m just enumerating, but this is an equilibrium, trust me, everything at the right place and everything does include a lot of things! Sharp cookie dough flavours, cinnamon powder, vanilla, maple, barley sugar, bananas, oranges, pancakes, nutmeg, pears, nuts.. lots and lots of flavours. Complexity layer over complexity layer. It somehow manages to remain diplomatic, begs to be sipped while forcing you to take your time through pure transcendence and force. WOAH! Yeast overload in mouth, this is more than doughy, it’s a pure French toast. Vinous dates, sweet desserty liquor, a big liquid cake. I’ve no idea how so many flavours can be balanced, no idea. It’s almost a case of name as many flavours as you can and have fun finding them in here. Magnetic sheer polar extremes. Velvet mouthfeel, silky full body, soft carbonation, venerable in that aspect. Evolving flavors, complex, elegant, what more do you want? Decadent stuff. If a beer has ever lived up to the hype, this is it, I’d dare even find it underrated as a matter of fact ;-) That this was possibly not the best bottle of this tasting I consider as the best I’ve been part of is an indication of how good my dreams will be in the next few days.

Thanks to Portlandrunk for delivering this hard to find gem: Pours a murky bronze color with a thin lacey white head. Thick, alcoholic caramel malt, Bordeaux oak aroma. Lots of sweet malty flavor, alcoholic oak and dark fruits. Great complexity, but not much beer flavor more like a liquor. Reminds me somewhat of Fish Tale Leviathan barleywine. I would not have guessed this to be a Belgian beer. Nothing like the regular Stille Nacht.