N’Ice Chouffe

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

On tap. Dark reddish brown colour with a nice beige head. Great sweet spicy aroma. Flavour og malt, sugar, caramel, spice and toffee. Ends up with a great warming feeling from the alcohol.

The aroma has dark fruit, caramel, spice, and yeast. The appearance is mahogany with a nice foamy head. The flavor is very sweet and quite bitter but mostly like the aroma. The palate is average for the style. Overall, it kind of reminded me of a bitter alcoholic spice cola.

(Bottle) This one seemed to be in a hurry, upon opening the foam exploded and parts of the beer ended up on my kitchen floor. Seriously annoying! So what about the beer that didn’t run away? Dark reddish brown colour with huge, but rather brief, beige head, leaving lots of lacing. Huge, fruity nose with dark fruit, orange, banana and a hint of ginger. Rather vinous. Malty, fruity, vinous taste with notes of chocolate, orange, yeast and herbs (spiced with thyme and curacao). Malty sweetness. Full body, smooth mouthfeel. Fiery and warming. Moderate hops, overshadowed by dark fruit, malt and herbs. Very nice beer (but beware when you open the bottle).

Bottle Vintage 2006: Pours a rusty brown auburn with a thick/dense tan head. The aroma has some dark Belgian malt character of toasted hints and dark fruits- fig, plum, vanilla, some spiciness (both spice and yeasty character) and an anise suggestion. Fluffy/crisp carbonation in the palate. The flavor has rich Belgian dark malt character. Smooth with toasted toffee, plum, dried figs, grape notes, toasted coconut shavings, some nondescript spiciness, a succinct earthy/peat-like note and a warm toasted finish. A very nice and complex Belgian Strong. I really like this brewery.

The beer after disgorging from the 750ml dark green bottle sets in the glass a beclouded deep cherry red to almost brown color with the head creamy in texture with the color tan and the size portly, the lace forms a thick and sticky sheet to obscure the glass from view. Nose is sweet malt with a nice over ripe apple aroma, clean and fresh, also some yeast noticed after setting, start is sweet with a nice thick malt profile, the top moderate to almost full in its feel to the palate. Finish is iron-handed in its acidity, the hops pleasing and spicy, the aftertaste quite dry and long lasting, a nice drinking beer.

2008 tap at the Blind Tiger. Candi sugar sweet aroma, notes of banana, hay and vaseline are apparent. Prickly, icy mouthfeel, with good sugars and mild herbals. Some rum & shandy notes are present. Nice yeast and body in this, but not too complex. Surprisingly drinkable at 10%.

Molasses aroma and taste. A brown color with a mostly diminishing off-white head.

[1141-20080229] Tap. Mild nothing aroma has a hint of maltiness. Slightly hazy, dark red brown body with a quick foamy off-white head. Flavour is muted but has notes of pencil lead malt. Medium body. Seems plain today.
(@ Kulminator; Antwerp, BE)