LAlchimiste Congelator Eisbock

Considering the style, Scores ranging from 1 to 5, 5 being the most intense
Appearance:
Body:   Clear(1)->Murky(5) : 2   Light Brown(1)->Dark(5) : 4   Ruby : XX   Still(1)->Sparkling(5) : 2
Head:   None(1)->Large(5) : 2   White(1)->Tan(5) : 2   Lasting: 1   Lacing : XX
Aroma:
Intensity : 3  
Yeast : 1   Bread : 2   Apple : XX   Esters : XX   Banana : 1   Phenols : XX   Leather : XX   Perfume : XX   DMS : XX   Diacetyl : XX
Malt : 4   Biscuity : XX   Toast : XX   Caramel : 4   Toffee : XX   Maple : XX   Molasses : 2   Nuts : XX   Candy : XX   Pumpernickel : XX   Cereals : XX   Fruits : 2   Chocolate : 3   Coffee : XX   Vanilla : XX   Grapes : XX   Blackberries : XX   Dates : XX   Cherries : XX   Plums : 2   Figs : XX
Hops : 2   Noble(1)->American(5) : 1   Leafy : XX   Floral : XX   Orange : XX   Herbal : 2   Spicy : XX   Pine/Spruce/Resin : XX
Notes :   Earth : 1   Wood : XX   Cloves : XX   Smoke : 3   Pepper : XX   Ginger : XX   Peach/Pear/Apricot : XX   Candi Sugar : XX   Anise : XX   Vinous : XX
Flavor:
Initial Flavor : Dry(1)->Sweet(5) : 4   Finish Dry(1)->Sweet(5) : 3   Sourness : XX   Bitterness : 2   Complex : 2   Length : XX
Palate:
Light(1)->Full(5) : 3   Flat(1)->Fizzy(5) : 2   Clean : XX   Sharp : XX   Watery : XX   Oily : XX   Chalk : XX   Astringent : XX   Alcohol : 2   Mineral : XX   Oxidation : XX   Metallic : XX

Comments: A fun beer, a good malt monster by Quebec standards, but suffers a bit from the unavoidable comparison to the few other world-class examples.

Bottle... Mostly clear ruby lager with a small, creamy, khaki head. Decent retention. Vinous, malty nose. The flavor is well-balanced, but unexciting. The alcohol is completely hidden somewhere within the glass. It feels like 9.4% ABV laying here by the pool, but doesn’t at all taste like it. Unfortunately, the flavor is mostly nondescript... not unpleasant, but also not much of anything at all. Medium-bodied with lively carbonation. Tongue-numbing (local anesthetic-like), lightly bitter finish. Cheers to beerbuzzmontreal for shipping the bottle to Florida from the Great White North!

341 ml bottle from Métro Joannette, Verdun QC (May 2007) served at cellar temperature from a Maudite glass. A largish, bubbly caramel-creme head fizzes away very quickly above the translucent rust-tinted maple body, leaving no lacing and just a tiny lasting ring of foam....caramel-chocolate dominates the aroma, soft touches of tart raspberries find their way in as well, faint sour/doughy yeast, not as expressive as it could be but what’s there is nice.....soft body is, like the aroma, lightly tart and fruity which is surprising and probably stylistically suspect, but it doesn’t detract from my enjoyment....this is an extremely easy-drinking, very "lagery" eisbock if you know what I mean, grainy and suggestive of the fields as much as of caramelized, sugary maltings....in the end it has something of the character of New Glarus’ Cherry Stout which is no slam coming from me -- something of that thick juicy maltiness with a nice fruity admixture -- though it’s not nearly as burnt/roasty as a stout....there is just no alcohol presence here whatsoever, I’d guess 5.5-6% if I had to....tart, acidic finish; fairly high carbonation and light-bodied at the end. A weird one, this, not sure what kind of eisbock this is, but on the whole it’s enjoyable whatever you want to call it.

First batch, at the brewpub in 2005, weighing in at 8.5%abv.:
The Lure:
On filtered copper and orange highlights rests a minimal but clinging head. Candied earth hints, toasted malt, minute yeast and a subtle mineral character all get along, but too discreetly.

The Festivities:
Served way too cold (3-4 degrees Celsius?). Considerable caramel malt and a healthy earthy flesh are well-welded to a fine toasted malt bitterness with the help of an alcohol nibble. Aftertaste is light, body is medium-sized, nothing overwhelms and nothing much is memorable.

Transcendence:
Recluse and thoughtful can be a let down when seeking pleasure.

First ever bottled batch, now called Congelator, weighing in at 9.4%abv.:
I don’t know if it’s me, but the dark burgundy gown on this one is darker than what I remembered it to be. The round maltiness is definitely its best feature, with fruity caramel and bready notes quietly building into love handles. A hushed dryness from the supporting hops is felt. The shy nose doesn’t announce the rich maltiness to come, which is disappointing. Alcohol is well-hidden for its size; this remains an enjoyable sipper within its style. Funnily enough, points are exactly the same as those of the glass I had at the brewpub two years ago.

Thick, chewy and sweet malt profile with fresh tobacco, and plum, berry and raisin fruity esters in the nose. Hazy, dark amber-brown coloured body is topped by a decent, fine bubbled, fizzy, tan head that recedes quite rapidly to a thin partial cover with no lace. Plenty of fruity flavours in the mouth but although it is quite sweet, it doesn’t seem all that malty. Fair bitterness keeps it from cloying. Very strong prickly carbonation to the medium-dry body. I have to say that I really like the name though! Tulip glass. Just above fridge temperature. Bottle (Le Gobelet, Jan-08).