 Fin (2188), Merton, Oxfordshire, England
Jul 3, 2008
Bottle picked up at the Vale Brewery shop, Brill, Bucks 02-07-08 This bottle was numbered and was no: 80. This opened with quite a gush, still it had been in the back of my car all day and whilst I should have left it to settle for a bit it was in the house for ooohhh about twenty minutes before intrigue got the better of me. Poured murky brown with an off white head, possibly light beige? What yeast there may have been in the bottle was most certainly now in and amongst, still I’m not averse to having it like that. First thing I noticed was some sticky currants and raisins much like that first smell when you open a new packet of the dried fruits also there was a big dollop of soft brown demerara sugar. There was also the slightest hint of sourness but then I thought am I getting some soft wet wood mmhh not sure, I also get that aroma that you get from a stick of seaside rock that has been left in its cellophane for too long in direct sunlight, that soft sticky warm candy sugar aroma. The flavours are really quite interesting, dried fruits once again seem to underpin things very well, and whilst the alcohol shows I think its more evident in a warming sense rather than being harsh. There is also a quite pronounced hazelnut taste that I picked up more than once and so did Loz, the warm wet soft demerara sugar returns and there is a hint of bitterness but this bitterness is different and shows more in the sense that it actually slightly numbs the tip of the tongue and roof of mouth rather than being just bitter (if you know what I mean) There is a very good depth of flavour here and whilst I’ve just read Joris’s write up (always a great write up) I note what Joris says about this not being a Tripel and being more Barley Wine I’m not so sure I totally agree. I think it leans slightly towards Barley Wine so in that sense I agree but there is something else there and in my humble opinion I think it might be to simplistic to call it a Barley Wine, there are very definite Belgian influences here in this beer which I note Joris acknowledges. I really like this and I’m intrigued to see what Casey makes of his bottle.
hughie (2206), Bedford, Bedfordshire, England
Aug 22, 2008 Bottle at Peterborough BF ’08. Very dark brown with a small off white head. Served from a fridge, so little initial aroma, however delights like plums, dates, and sundry sweet dark fruits began to emerge, followed by tough, leathery liquorice. The taste was sweet, sticky and leathery, well complemented by a prickle of carbonation. There was almost a hint of salty Marmite at the back of the mouth. Not much bitterness, but there was a sweet background sweetness prevailing throughout. This was a very wonderful beer that went straight to the top of my England list.
Mes_and_Sim (4360), Highgate, Greater London, England
Jul 22, 2008 A Mes rate: Cheeky little 275ml bottle thanks to Finmeister General.
Russet brown colour with a thin tan head that initially looked like it was going to fade to nothing but quickly settled to a lasting tan film. Lovely spicy caramel aroma with notes of tobacco and Mon Cherie cherry licquer. Kinda rum ’n’ raisin and rather bloody good I tells yer. Peppery alcohol right at the top that is very similar to Stille Nacht (thanks Ang!). The flavour is massively sweet and boardering on too much for me. The alcohol hits first, enhancing the sweetness which is then backed up by some chocolate. Prickly spicy notes thankfully rush in and hold a bit of the sugar in check and make way for some gorgeous dark chewy malt and equally impressive preserve fruits. The finish brings on lashings of alcohol and warmth that is done almost to perfection with a polite hint to some hops leaving a bittersweet aftertaste that lasts considerably. The palate is superb. Creamy, viscous and yet beautifully carbed. This is a bloody good beer. Thanks so much to Fin.
Doppelganger (1126), Oxford, Oxfordshire, England
Jul 7, 2008 Bottle, from Fin. Big thanks mate! Rustic brown, fine light tan head with some nice stick to it. Caramelized dark sugar aroma, cinnamon, pleasant peppermint alcohol notes. Nice big textured carbonation. Spicy caramel with a pleasant woody edge. Chocolate, rum, a subtle banana touch. Dry clean finish. Excellent. One of the nicest British versions of Belgians I’ve had. I’m wondering if the bottle Joris got was still kind of young. The bottle I tasted wasn’t too sweet or barleywine-like at all. Maybe the 4 months in between our tastings were enough to dry it out? But to further muddy the waters, I kind of thought rather than trippel or barleywine, that this would fit happily as a dubbel. But whatever you call it, a lovely beer.
JorisPPattyn (4282), Antwerpen, Belgium
Apr 3, 2008 Deep brown with red highlights; small yellowish head. Extremely fruity-estery, with a good alcohol-dash. Aroma’s of strawberry, tangerine, orange. Stock, reduced with alcohol as brandy, rumbonen . Very alcoholic taste, with higher alcohols, esters; fruity, maybe some candi sugar, very good coloured malts underbuild. Caramel. Very well-bodied, alcoholwarming, slick, even chewy. Very nice BARLEY WINE or at best Belgian Strong ale. Guys, a tripel needs EXTREME ATTENUATION. This is one mess of restsugars! OK, it’s a fine mess, Stan, but it ain’t tripel. Thanks to Dirk, and of course, to the brewers supplying Dirk.
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