N’Ice Chouffe

Brewed by Brasserie d’Achouffe (Moortgat)
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Achouffe, Belgium

10/01 0.75 l bottle courtesy of ogivlado, thanks a lot for sharing! It poured nice murky reddish brown body with medium sized compact head that, as such, lived quite long. Strong, pleasant and complex aroma - malty, yeasty and slightly alcoholic. Caramel, coffee and banana are obvious, its fruitiness shows cherry, plums, dark berries, notes of orange hops and some herbal spices. Flavor was also good and not less complicated, (sweet) fruity malts mixed with (bitter to sour) herbal hops and spices offers a heavenly palette for the palate. Despite all of that alcohol is quite felt, specially near the finish. Finish itself was long, pretty much reflecting the flavor in a sweeter way. Damn complex and really good, I’m looking forward to try the other gems of this brewery!

Dégusté avec french tickler le 14 mai 2007. Dark brown poor with a reddish hue. Nice frothy thick beige head. Aromas of sweet caramel, typical chouffe yeast, curacao and very herbal scents. Very "natural" beer. Very herbal bitterness... far from aggressive, very mellow. Very balanced mouthfeel, creamy, just enough sweetness to top it all off. Alcohol is present. Nice caramel like aftertaste with a dry finish. Very unique and natural, i love it!

Bottled(750ml). -Reddish/brown coloured, medium sized off-white head, alcoholic and dried fruits nose. The taste is very fruity and light spicy, alcohol is quite noticable and the finish is mild sugary. Nothing more nothing less than good.

750ml bottle. 2005 vintage, aged 3 years, drank on 12/31/08. pours reddish brown with creamy tan head. nose of toffee, dark fruit, subtle port notes, with clove and orange peel. flavors are much of the same, finish is a bit short, the age seems to have done this well as I’m liking this a lot more than fresher draft versions I’ve had in the past. Is it just me or do dark belgian strong ales tend to get better with a few years of age?

0.75l bottle courtesy of ogivlado (thanks!) who shared it with me and heavy. Poured a hazy reddish brown colour with a medium-big persistent off white head. The nose is complex, dusty, with notes of caramel malt, fruit (orange), some spices and alcohol. The taste is sweetish, alcohol again, sticky maltiness with some orangey notes. The thyme actually shows up in the taste, noticable near the end. Tasty, ok enough.

750ml - 2006 - Aroma of dark fruits, holiday spice and a touch of citrus. Pours dark brown with a small head and good lacing. Flavor matches aroma. Palate is smooth with a tart finish. Not a lot to say, but a great tasting brew.

Draft at Isaac’s: Poured a dark cherry color with a small head. The aroma was sugary, fruits, plums, and raisins. The flavor was delicious, sweet, raisons, sligltly malty but finishing smooth. Overall, a great beer.

Pours a muddy chestnut with a very fizzy head that dies almost instantaneously. Very carbonated, but a thing spritzy feel to it. Flavor is good, malty with an herbal bitterness. It’s got a bit of a syrupy quality, but overall a nice beer.