N’Ice Chouffe

2005. Dark brown/ruby. Lively, fizzy, light brown cap. Earthy, peppery, funky yeast, dark fruits (mostly figs and raisins, some plum in there as well), spices, fresh herbs, sweet and roasty caramel malt, subtle floral and bitter hops, and a touch of warming alcohol. Aftertaste of pumpernickel, anise, caramel, earth, and the funk. Full, balanced palate. Well carbonated while at the same time soft and smooth. Excellent brew and is not pasteurized.

Aroma gives thistles, ginger and yeast. Tste is similar a slittle sweet but generally very balanced. Alcohol is hidden to a remarkable level. The easiest 10% 75cl iv ever had.

Dark browny red with beutiful white head. Aroma and taste is of dark fruits, spices and alcohol. This has the average Christmas beers sweetness - this is very pleasant though. Full body and and creamy texture. One of my favorite christmas beers. NICE indeed! Rerate feb. 09. 0,2 down . . .

2004 bottle. Dark ruby/brown with a perfect tan head, made of tiny carbonation bubbles, lasts almost entire bottle. Great lacing. Aroma is a strange combination of citrus, dark fruit, faint alcohol, (more as it warms), and spice. Except I am getting a minty/parsley like spice/herb. Flavor is on par with all the top belgians IMO. Big sweet malt base, residuel sugars, plum and cherry, even faint banana, pepper, alcohol. Smooth creamy mouthfeel. Underated IMO. Catching quite the buzz after milking this thing for two hours!

Bottle: Pours a red color. Deep dark red ... almost no other colors at all. A thick, tall fluffy light tan head. Smells of hops ... suprised to smell that in a Belian Strong Ale, especially one as highly rated as this one. Also some musty skunk in there, as well as alcohol, citrusy/lemon, and a little spice. The flavor is raisins, a litttle touch of hops on the finish, dry crisp finish despite the wet malty front. A little nuttiness and some cherries and other fruits.

Poured a very dak red with a light tan head. Some of the best lacing I have witnessed in a beer, the foam stuck to the top of the glass when I swirled the cup. Besides that, it was slightly disappointing for a belgian winter specialty. Mind it was still enjoyable, I just expected more from this brewery. Good heavy handed use of dark candi sugar gives a roasted fruit character to this dryish beer. Best enjoyed at warmer temperatures and poured violently to release the high levels of carbonation.

Alcohol interferes with aroma -meaning, I guess, that I don’t detect anything strongly. Dark ruby brown color. Flavor is malt, accompanied by unassignable fruit. A bit sweet, but that’s expected. The malt overpowers the hops at the finish. Very drinkable, but perhaps a bit of citrus would balance things.

Dark ruby, mostly clear body. Big creamy light-tan head. Looks very nice. Lacing is superb. The aroma is coriander, citrus, and thyme. The thyme really comes out in the flavor. Malt backs the spice up, minimal hops. Sweetness is big but not overpowering in any way. The thyme keeps coming back, if you are not a fan of thyme you may not like this one. Sticky body with a decent amount of alcohol in the finish.