Gouden Carolus Classic

Brewed by Brouwerij Het Anker
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Mechelen, Belgium

Faint hazy deep deep amber brown with super fine bubbled, large, lasting tan head generating drift wood lace. Fresh caramel malt, bubblegum, banana and a light cookie dough yeast aroma. Rich velvety smooth festive beer palate. Medium soft body, alcohol well masked with big classy balanced yeast and caramel flavours. Light bitter and sweeter fruity malty kick off, soft sweet malty halftime and final. Stands up nicely alongside its bigger brother.

33cl - thanks to secret santa cousin Rich - Aroma is nutty, toffee, carmel, and malt. Pours deep brown with a small head and great lacing. Flavor matches aroma. Palate is sticky and chewy. Strong and flavorful.

Nice amber color with a big tan head. Aromas of yeast and wheat. Nutmeg and hop flavors. Slight caramel tastes as well. Very interesting and good belgian beer.

Dark Brown colored, cloudy. Rich flavor of brown sugar, syruppy, a little molasses. Very sweet. Sweet finish, a fine brew.

Brown bottle, 33 cl, best before 4.09.09; eye: ruby, nice creamy coffee-color head, clear, light effervescence, nice creamy lacing; nose: alcohol, concentrated caramel syrup, banana, concentrated fruits; mouth: velvety despite the powerful tastes, alcohol, syrupy, caramelized malt, almost hidden banana, hint of grainy hops, finale in alcohol entetwined with caramel and a hint of alcohol that comes back as pepper, full body, creamy and really slighlty grainy texture, lightly astringent, mildly sweet, really light hoppiness, medium carbonation; overall: quite good FRANÇAIS Bouteille brune, 33 cl, meilleure avant 04.09.09; oeil : rubis, belle mousse crémeuse, claire, légère effervescence, belle dentelle crémeuse; nez : alcool, sirop caramélisé concentré, banane, fruits concentrés; bouche : velouté malgré des saveurs puissantes, alcool, sirupeux, malt caramélisé, présence subtile de banane, léger houblon granuleux, finale en alcool entremêlée de caramel avec une touche d’alcool qui revient sous forme poivre, corsée, texture crémeuse et très légèrement granuleuse, légère astringence, moyennement sucrée, très léger houblon, carbonatation moyenne; en résumé : pas mal bon

Rerate 24/10/05: Damn it’s great to come back to a beer and discover it’s even better than you first thought. This looked great, mahogany with a tall creamy head that left great swathes of lace. The aroma showed molasses, grape juice, banana and peppery alcohol. Terrific initial mouthfeel, thick and creamy. Lots of dried fruit on the tongue, with some treacle, orange and a big slug of that 8.5% abv. Sherry notes and hoppy bitterness in the warming finish. A very delicate balancing act. (33cl bottle, Balmain Village Cellars, bb 2/3/08)

A king of beers. Caramel. Rich. Dark. What can I say that hasn’t been said? One of the beauties we can get on a regular basis and that’s what matters in this spot in the Midwest. We open one every now and then again....

75cl bottle. Ruddy brown shines brilliant scarlet as the glass hits the light. Rapidly disappearing off-white head. Clove-ish sweet aroma with more than a touch of something medicinal and woody. Sweetness though the flavour, and yes it’s yeasty, plummy, spicy, pugh pugh barney mcgrew cuthbert dibbele and grub-y, still subtler than other belgians, carries it off with a sweet ’n sour panache. And three quarters of a litre is very, very enjoyable.