N’Ice Chouffe

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

2006 bottle. Great sweet aroma, malty with plum, raisin, vanilla, a bit of chocolate, sour apple, and toffee. Light orange peel and some underlying spicyness. A little bit of vapory character. Fruity rich and lightly hopped. Aroma is very comforting. Dark coppery brown clear with thin off-white lacing head. Medium-heavy watery body with medium carbonation - goes down very easily, with a bit of warming. Starts sweet with bread, deep fruity esters, plum, some vanilla and spice, woody. Orange peel and some bit of spice in there, a bit herbal but very mellow. Candy sugar, marshmallow, toffee, and light toasted grain. A bit of alcohol, slight warming. Finish is sweet but dried enough by the little bit of hops and floral spicyness. Not sickly sweet as many can be, and leaves you with a nice mellow sweet aftertaste. This is a really nice beer to enjoy on a cold Thanksgiving day.

Oranges, spices, berries and cinnamon nose. Nice dark amber with a little head. Peppery and fruity. Also hints of marcipan. As the announced thyme as an ingredience and I had fresh thyme right next to me I tried it and ...yes, thyme as the finish taste. I would also say rosemary. Very warm finish. Numbs tongue.

Limited edition 1999. Thin head with decent lacing. Excellent complex aroma. I can pull grapes, raisins and brown suger out of there. Deep mahogany/brown in color. Flavor is a little bit more mellow that I expected from the great aroma. Not very thick/heavy in density. Slightly sweet flavor with brown sugar, malts, prunes, etc. Finish is smooth with a plesant alcohol warming and is very slightly sour. A good quality "belgian ale" althought the label states that it is a barleywine. Either way it is still a quality brew.

2003 - HEAD. An unbelievable head. Great plum colored beer with fruit aroma. A really well balanced beer that brings out so many different flavors. Body warming and enjoyable.

Clear brown with little carbonation . Nice spicy aroma(bread, cookiedough, fruit, nutmeg, mace.) Herbal and spicy tastes Medium heavy palate. Nice creamy finish. Good beer.

Amber with a nice lasting creamy offwhite head. Aroma is malty, a bit yeasty, creamy, with some mild spices, vanilla, milk chocolate and some wheat. Malty flavor, a bit fruity, some figs. Very nice mouthfeel ,nice lasting and a great body. Kinda malty finish with some alcohol.

03.15.05 2003 750ml bottle. Pretty cherry brown with voluminous tan head. Buttery and vanilla aromas envelop my head, some savory spice, no alcohol. Flavors are sweet and light for such a big beer. I’m almost taken back to a great tripel with this beer’s thoughtful tropical flavors, pineapple, mango, guava, but not big fresh fruits, more like slightly cooked fruits in a light pear syrup. Also curacao, toasty coconut, soem toffee. Dark malts carry the way with underlying hints of cellar, burlap, earth, and mild pepper. Wonderful silky texture with plenty of eff. This beer is complex, subtle, powerful, and delicious.