De Ranke Noir De Dottignies

Brewed by Brouwerij De Ranke
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Dottignies/Dottenijs, Belgium

Bottle. Hazy brown with a big fluffy off white head. Dark fruit, caramel and spices in aroma. Some brown sugar. Dark fruit, light medicine like, sugar, caramel and alcohol in flavour. Overall the alcohol is too profound but the dark fruits are quite nice.

My Bottom Line:
The wise fruitiness of cherries and black grapes seeps from the union of bready yeast and lightly roasted malts in this cuddly and subtly bitter Belgian Strong Ale.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A sheet of foam tops the mahogany-tinged dark brown.
-There is not too much alcohol presence.
-The finish is rather shortlived; some roasted malt bitterness accompanies the secretive herbal hops.
-No flavors are overtly expressed here, but everything is well levelled and there are plenty of subtleties for the tastebuds to enjoy.

Bottle.

Slightly older bottle from the basement. Pour is a dirty brownish red color with a nice tall beige head. Aroma is very dry, lightly woody, dry hop, light red wine, and faint plum.. Flavor is lightly malty up fron with a big dry hop kick in the middle. Very dry, very crisp, and very easy to drink. The finish has some light pinot noir tones with some light grape juice. Alcohol is no where to be found. This is a wonderful drink. Nice body, nice palate, and a nice clean flavor.

This beer is a good Belgian dark ale, there are better ones but it is still a nice drink. It pours dark with a tan head that has nice lacing. The aroma is dominated by malty hints of carmel and bread. Some resin is present as well. Tastes is bold with medium sweetness and light bitterness. It is full body with soft carbonation and it last on the palat for a while.

bottle. dark chestnut brown, small head, little retention. nose is brown sugar, stale numeg, toast and metallic walnuts. metallic flavor is there right in the approach, it’s stale crackers, old pennies and aluminum foil... something isn’t right. mild toast and nut oil flavor, a little green/vegetal hops, also adding to the oily character. medium to thin body, oily texture, loose carbonation. yeast seems stale. disappointing.

Dark mahogany with a tan head. The aroma is quite sweet, raisins, bready malt, a bit of spice. Flavor is surprisingly dry. Bready malt flavor with some spice, and a slight fruitiness to bring the flavors together. Astringent finish. I do enjoy these sweet Belgian ales, but I’m glad this one had something different to offer.

Bottle. Pours dark brown with a large, rocky light brown head, mostly lasting with good lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (bread, cookie, chocolate, nutty), light hop (herbs), average yeast (leather, earth) with notes of raisin, plum, date, apple, wood, allspice, and dust. Full bodied, sticky texture, lively carbonation, and a chalky finish. Long duration, light sweetness, acidity, and bitterness.

750 ml bottle at Churchkey. Very muddy brown with a medium head that settles quickly, leaving slight lacing. Hops are evident in the aroma, along with a hint of spice, maybe coriander. Malts dominate the taste, although it is pretty well balanced, and the spice is again evident. Finish has a slight sourness. Nice one.