Delirium Noël

Brewed by Brouwerij Huyghe
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Melle, Belgium

Deep chestnut coloured beer with at first a large white head that fades to leave a thin band. Sweet burnt sugar and raisiny/dried fruit aroma with a taste that follows suit and a malty finish

I really didn’t taste a lot of the flavors I normally associate with xmas such as ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg, rather I got a little bit of spice, pears, sour apples, plums, yeast and some candi or brown sugars. Very drinkable though, 10% is hidden. The appearance is nice, amber-brown color, nice fluffy off-white head that sticks around. I admit I expected a little better but this is still passable as a good beer. On to the next xmas beer!

From bottle. Deep copper with a moderately sized white creamy head. The aroma is heavy on sugar and spices (nutmeg and maybe cinnamon). Notes of candied fruits as well. Mouthfeel is good, fairly syrupy but nicely yeasty at the end. A clean, surprisingly dry finish. As GAManiac pointed out, the taste doesnt diverge much from the aroma. Nothing wrong with this. Really nice holiday beer.

On tap at the Brick Store poured into a Delirium snifter. Pours a deep clear copper with a big creamy tan head that shows great retention and lots of lacing. The aroma is dominated by candi sugar with lots of dark fruits on top - plums and raisins maybe. The taste doesnt venture far from the aroma with tons of fruits on top of a candi sugar base. The mouthfeel is sticky with the fruits and sugar and definitely starts to have an alcohol presence as it warms. This is a very nice Belgian dark with the sugar and fruit sweetness really dominating throughout.

33cl bottle at Sorbon, Bromma, Stockholm. A good ale with christmas spices without beeing over the top.

750ml bottle. Pour is a deep orange brown with bubbles that constantly surface to keep the beige head atop the beer. Nose is malty and yeasty with some nice fruit smells. Taste is complex with some sweet malts then a bitter hop wave, followed by some yeast aftertaste. Alcohol is well hidden. Interesting brew, great on this cold, crappy night.

This beer pours the color of dried apricots with a very light head. It smells of malts, fruit and spice. The flavor is malty with hints of spices, cloves and maybe some egg. The beer explodes a bit when it hits the mout hand the carbination takes off. This is a pretty good holiday beer.

On tap at Trappeze. Poured amber brown with a slight head. Aroma of spice, malt, fruit, sugar. Spices included clove and cinnamon. Taste was well balanced between sugar sweetness, spice, fruit, caramel malt. Body is nice and full with plenty of carbonation. Very easy drinking. Overall, a very enjoyable brew.