De Molen 1914 Triple Stout SSS

Brewed by Brouwerij de Molen
Style: Imperial Stout
Bodegraven, Netherlands

Bottle. #246. Ruby-black beer with a huge light tan head. Coffee and roast aroma with a bit of chocolate. Roasty, coffee and big licorice flavor with a little chocolate and malt. Medium-plus bodied. Coffee and roast linger with licorice and some chocolate. Hops in background and a litle bitterness throughout.

Bottle, c&c, from Monument in Concord, CA. Pours a pretty dark brown/black with a monstrous beige head. Foamy. Lots of chocolate in the nose, with toasted dark malt and darkish fruit. Medium body with pretty mild carbonation. Flavor is near burnt malt, chocolate, maybe something like citrus, likely some coffee. Definitely some coffee. Hops play nicely with the darker aspects. Very gd.

750 by myself. Opaque close to black pour covered by a fantastically dense dark beige head, uniform to the max and tall. Initial corky, leathery, basementy aromas gently fade out to leave the tasty maltiness more room. Both toasty and roasty, overcooked biscuits come to mind. I like how it delivers a certain dark fruitiness in the backbone. Avoids any ashey trails and remains quite drinkable thanks to a remarkable hoppiness which brings earthy and delicious flowery notes in the melting pot, a most unusual characteristic in modern massive stouts. It balances out the sweetish mouth impression with grace. Ultra comfortable creamy palate with active, but pillowy soft carbonation. Half cream Half foam texture, yet not too full bodied, especially not for the style, remaining diplomatically drinkable. Most likeable.

Bottle. A dark almost brown amber with faint head, much like the porter but not quite as appealing. Dark chocolate and coffee on the aroma with a faint. Chocolate and strong roasted malts on the body with a lingering coffee finish.

Bouteille de 750 ml, avec bouchon de liège, partagée lors d’une dégustation Ratebeer Montréal chez moi. Arôme: Odeur de café et de chocolat. Apparence: La couleur est brun-noire. Présence d’un moyen col beige mousseux et d’une large dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût de café et de chocolat avec une pointe de tabac. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement crémeuse. Moyenne effervescence en bouche. Légère présence de café en arrière goût. (Rating #2335)

In short: A weird mix of burnt malts, fruity flavours and old coffee. Good, not very good
How: Bottle 22oz. Consumed fresh soon after purchase. Tasting session with Montreal crew
The look: Dark brown body topped by a medium tan head
In long: A strong nose of chocolate chips cookies and old coffee. The malt bill has a dry crunchy fudge flavour and the burnt grains distract the palate from the moderate sweetness. Rather fruity too with black berries, prunes and more. On paper it sounds great but I found the overly roasted malts (burnt malts is a more accurate description) didn’t work with the fruity flavours. Like burnt toasts and morning juice. Overall a decent brew but by today’s imperial stout standards this is slightly below average. Supposed to be a 1914 imperial stout English recipe. Nearly 100 years later and I’m sad to report that the English are still not able to brew very good imperial stouts or cook a half-decent meal.

My Bottom Line:
Stale coffee and lightly burnt bread crumbs lead to peppery spiciness and caramel sweetness in this classy and fruity sipper.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A sheet of foam covers the mahogany-licked blackness.
-The flavors resulting from the grain bill (and sugars?) are quite different than the usual strong dark ale, almost quirky.
-Roasted malts are also biscuity and chocolatey, adding complexity.
-The finish is balanced, with caramelized and roasted cereals teaming up with leafy, wooden hops.

Bottled on October 22nd, 2008.

Rating 500, bottle, pours pitch black, tall tan head, the bottom of the glass has dark red hues around the edges. Black patent malt is the foremost aroma, but a strong hop note follows with a touch of sweet carmel in the background. Burnt sugar and a roasted malt flavor dominate the full body. There is a smoke flavor that lingers for a bit but is overpowered by the assertive hop presence. Finishes hoppy and has a spice that fades as a lingering smoke rings out for a solid 30 seconds. Silky smooth mouthfeel, the carbonation is low, and there is only a slight alcohol presence. Overall, very good. There is a ton going on in the flavor department, but even more in the finish, which is nice. Another fine De Molen brew.