De Dolle Stille Nacht Special Reserva 2005

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

Carolina Crew tasting! Bottle courtesy of Todd! Thanks! Hazy blond pour with fluffy off white head. Apples, yeast and white grapes on the nose. Sweet malts, fruits, yeast, and caramel. Alcohol extremely well masked

From a 330mL Bottle. Mostly transparent, orange tinted gold color with a thick layer of fizzy white head. Layer upon layer of yeast, barrel, and alcohol complexity reveals itself seductively as it warms. Notes of apple, vanilla, pear flesh, and chardonnay grape skins leap out right away. Brandied fig and perhaps a slight touch of brett. Light bodied, well carbonated mouthfeel with an incredible dryness and effervescence for it’s ABV. Flavors of apple brandy and a mild honey sweetness up front on the palate, followed by a moderate note of drying grape tannins. Mid-palate, some oak and black pepper spice starts to emerge, along with some vinous brett characters. Woody pear and pineapple wine. Green raisins. Finishes dry, with a pleasant alcohol warming in the final smack.

Kulminator, Darker blond coloured beer with some average carbonation and an average white head. Fruity, raisin, light malty aroma. Full creamy palate. Finish is strong alcoholic bitter, creamy wharming, Very nice strong aging beer.

Bottle @ Kulminator. Deep golden with medium head. Sweet fruity aroma with yeasty and caramel notes. Sweet flavor with yeast, ripe fruits and caramel notes. Ends sweet.

33cl bottle from Knightly Spirits (Orlando, FL). Pours an almost brown sugar color with very little off-white head. Some lacing on glass. Aroma is sweet malt and caramel, honey, toffee, candy sugar. Very sweet aroma. Flavor is intense, almost like a party in our mouths: Intense flavors including heavy sweet malt, candy sugar, strong caramel and toffee notes and a hint of spice. Phenol comes through in the flavor. Full bodied with a sweet phenol finish. Amazing ale that has aged well.

Dark yellow colored with hazy appearance. Medium sized yellow head. Extremely rich aroma with vinous notes, wood, cardboard, berries, strong yeast, appricot, medium alcohol also present. Medium to full bodied. Flavor is similar: extremely rich with noticable Dolle yeastiness and fruits, same wooden note with fine hops also. These vinous berries and some lemon make the taste extremely fine. Aftertaste is yeasty still with mild, warming alcohol.

This beer was un-freaking-believable. It had the aroma of a bottle of Flintstone’s chewable vitamins; that is, a TON of sugar. The flavor was sugar in all of its forms: brown, candy, caramel, and some apple. There were some particles and it did have a subdued head, but for a beer this old, WOW! Lots of alcohol at 13% before againg, it warms as it goes down. A rare and lucky find.

Poured from an 11.2 oz. bottle. A soft, clean, orange glow. Caramelized almonds, perfume, apple and lazy spice aroma. Lots of sweet. Turbinado sugars. Honey. Aromatic, dusty wood on fire. Quite resigned.

Crisp floral honey, pear skins and basic white sugar in the flavor, as some heat wafts up the back. Pancake batter in deep malts, steamed in exotic spice fragrances. Maybe saffron, lightly. Somewhat sticky. Minor alcoholic intrusions of dirty barrel consistently linger. Weak whimpers of vodka soaked pineapple, nectarine and green apple seem to gather an inordinate noise toward the finish.

Slick medium body, somewhat hollowed out. Altogether in fact, the malts seem worn out. Heat overplays. Still pleasant, just a bit withered. Thanks Ty!