Gaverhopke Den Twaalf

Brewed by ’t Gaverhopke
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Stasegem-Harelbeke, Belgium

Bottle. Pours muddy reddish brown with a foamy light brown head. Aromas of infection, grain, dust, malt, yeast, alcohol and caramel. Sweet flavour with notes of caramel. Sour finish.

Slightly oozing bottle when opened. Ruddy brown color with scads of fine fish food. Small lid of beige bubbles. Hints of caramel, with lightly sour fruit presenting itself most prominently. HInts of spice and dust. LIght fruit start, with bits of dark cherries and raspberries. Some caramel in the middle. I don’t taste the alcohol, but my stomach is feeling quite warm. Mild sour cherry in the finish and into the linger. Light and airy feel, but enough depth to keep it from feeling thin. Rich fruitcake flavors. HInts of herbals in the finish as well. LInger is rather dry. with some raisins and dates. Hides the alcohol well.

Had it once in very rural Flanders 3/4 years ago. I believe the tiny brewery’s ownership was about to change hands. Seems unavailable in the midwest. From my notes: Murky, brown with some alcohol bite. Fruity mix sneaks in behind the very sour start. Giant head and nose. Malty, should make a good "big meal" beer. My memory may be a bit incomplete, but I loved it.

Cloudy brown with a big and fluffy off-white head. Aroma of caramel, chocolate and old yeast. Sweet caramel and yeast flavour with hot alcohol.

Dark copper colored in appearance. Aroma is pulpy orange with sweetly oxidized notes. Tart edge leads into a fermented cola taste with light metallic aspects. Nicely carbonated, but overall this is not what I expected. Perhaps it was a bad bottle, but this strikes me as being a sour quad. $5/11.2oz

On tap at Beer Table. This was served in a snifter, and poured a brown-red hue with no head. Palate was soft in the mouth – bordering on watery despite the ABV – and had just a touch of carbonation. Aroma lended interesting “mature” red fruit, earthiness, must and sour wood. Flavor is best characterized by dried fruit – dates, pear, maybe apricot. Finish maintained some bready qualities, as well as a hint of sourness. Overall, I was underwhelmed by the mouthfeel, but found all the apparent flavors to be interesting and unusual.

33cl bottle @ Delices et Caprices, Bruxelles. Muddy brown with a small off white head. Dust, fruit, yeast, alcohol, wet dog and caramel. Slight sour and unclean.

bottle, pours dark red, tall tan head. Sweet malt and spiced aroma. Roasted malt, a sour peach kind of flavor that turns bitter like chewing on a cinnamon stick. A moderate alcohol burn follows and lingers as it fades. Besides the alcohol burn, this is a fairly easy drinker, very similar to the bruine.