Malheur 12

Brewed by De Landtsheer
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Buggenhout, Belgium

25 cl. bottle. Brown/black with a nice head and good lace. The aroma is wonderful with notes of dark fruits, caramel and sweetness. I get the same impressions in the flavour, where plum, figs and citrus are the most clear notes. I also get a hint of chocolate and the overall impression is very balanced. It’s a truly nice beer, IMO just as nice as many trappists.

Bottle(thanks to rickgordon)2002: Hazy red colour, with a nice creamy head. Aroma of spicy,citrus,sournes,complex beer this one. Flavor was almost the same here. The eage has done this beer good. Medium to full body, medium fruity finish.

0.25 l bottle. Mahagony color, very fizzy and foams over strongly. Sweet, raisiny, perfumed, toffeish and berryish aroma with strong warming alcohol note. Sweet liquerish flavor with raisins, pepper, licorice and rum. Alcohol warming and sharpness is too intense.

Clear dark brown with a tiny off-white head. Aroma of prunes, raisins, toffee and cocoa... perhaps a note of cinnamon too. Very full, sweet body... loads of fruit and spice in the flavour, rum, vanilla and toffee too. Brown sugar and light alcohol in the finish (nowhere near 12%), sweet.. but very very nice.

Bottle, 25 cl. Bought @ Vinspecialisten, Kolding Storcenter. Pours a deep nutty brown with a rather small beige-yellow head. Aroma is very deeply fruity, with plums, raisins and some roasted malts. Lively and fresh mouthfeel. Flavour is clearly vinious, a little burning, plums and cloying sweetness. The flavour has a lot of the same dried fruityness as the flavour and stays with a warming sensation for quite a long time.

Bottle (25 cl) from Hildigöltur’s beer cellar (many thanks!). Murky brown with a small beihe head. Fruity and roasted malt aroma, with a sharp and unpleasantly bitter hint which I’m not sure is supposed to be there. Alcohol clearly present. Light to medium bodied with a fizzy carbonation. Quite dry and again that strange bitterness is there.

Blind rating
330mL bottle, shared by Olivier on 9/30/07
Very "Belgian" appearance, with sloppy lacing cast everywhere, and a dark, scorched hickory colored body that shows medium clarity. Head is moderately well-retained, and a medium beige color.
Clean smelling yeast (similar to Westvleteren) shows moderate fruity tones (prunes, apples, plums) and a soft, but very supportive chocolate-raisin maltiness sits in the background. Medium-high strength of aroma, with some poignant tart, berry-like notes possibly from the dark malts. I claim it to be Belgian, thinking it too clean for Canada and too Belgian for an American knock-off. It does seem shockingly smooth and well concealed is the alcohol (I guess somewhere around 8%!). Interesting array of malts, but I think, just slightly, there is a bit too much cookie dough and chocolate-vanilla-like sweetness. Soft and luxurious on the nose, though, indeed.
Very interesting dark fruits fill the gaps (which are few) in the caramel and raisin-tinted flavors. Low on phenols, with only a hint of peppery-like dryness on the finish, and no crude clove/anise notes. Again, the alcohol is no where to be found, and the mouthfeel is supple, with low carbonation giving it a nearly creamy feel. Almost fudge-like, though is the sweetness and it comes across very chewy, despite ample bits of tart fruits on the finish. Very drinkable and quite nice, if somewhat not outstanding in any one way.

Bottled. BB 24.07.2006. Big thanks to ekstedt. Clear dark brown colour. Big, yet diminishing head. Aroma is compact, with mint chocolate, ripe fruits and candi sugar. Bit overmature/oxidized in flavour which gives a domination from wet grass. Alcohol is very present. Mint chocolate here as well. Very compact in flavour and bit bitter, edgy alcohol. Long, long finish.