Ølfabrikken Dekadence 2005

Formerly brewed at Bryggeriet Ølfabrikken (Gourmetbryggeriet)
Style: Fruit Beer
Roskilde, Denmark

Murky brown-readish body topped by a tan ring of foam. Raspberries cake on the nose. I was rather sceptical about a 13% fruit beer. But my fears were quickly dissipated after only one sip. Barely any alcohol presence except for a little warming sensation. Cake malts, dry caramel, rich fruity taste and the little alcohol warming reminded me of a fresh-out-of-the-oven fruit cake. Yeasty notes of bubblegum and banana. Some burnt sugar in the finish. Felt pleasantly dry despite its most-likely high sweetness. They must have used a ton of raspberries for it to take over the alcohol and sweetness. Very intense beer. Not being a fan of fruit beers and high % beers, this Dekadence has two strikes against it but still managed to hit a home-run. This made it Barry Bonds of beers. And in more ways than one because at 13% it’s probably on steroids too.

Thanks to Rastacouere who sent this over from Denmark!

You’d think this beer was once a little more reddish than it is, now it’s sort of an off-brown murky color. For a high octane Beer, the head was pretty solid.
My first whiff was taken nonchalantly - I suppose I was in the middle of a conversation - and totally took me by surprise. Very strong perfume, somewhere between musky cologne and rose water they use in middle-eastern desserts. After my nostrils got saturated it got more of a sherry cask with a dollop of fruit juice thing going on. Very dynamic and evolutive aroma, good stuff indeed!
Lively, robust carbonation - another shocker for me, considering 13% ABV and a swig-top bottle - but it pushed the fruit flavor really hard, a pleasant sour raspberry then mingled with a round, caramel toffee malt richness. A tad bit of heat towards the end, but the mild acidity helped even things out, there is now way I would have guessed it was that boozy, which to me is a sign of success right off the bat. The fact that it tastes so good is like an added bonus!

I’ve never heard of this Beer, had no expectations from it, had it right after a phenomenal brew, yet it still managed to shine. My favorite so far from this great brewery. Denmark just went up several notches on my "countries I must visit" list.

My Bottom Line:
Evocative sweet raspberries benefit from a sturdy caramel malt base to bloom into this curvaceous sipper of a fruit beer. Never excessive, its high alcohol is only warming and its sweetness is efficiently tamed by a wise dose of fruity tartness.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A veil of foam tops the brownish red.
-Carbonation is rather active, soon making you forget that you are drinking a super high gravity brew.
-Malt flavors evolve from caramel to portobello mushrooms to rich bread.
-This is different from Kuhnhenn’s Raspberry Eisbock, yet many similarities could be drawn between the two beers due to their union of bold raspberry fruitiness and important caramelly residual sugars.

Bottle; thx David!

Tasted 2007-05-12. Dense brown colour. Aroma of raspberries, malt. Very rich! Taste is somewhat like a figg candy. It’s very good, and the alcohol is hidden well. Very drinkable.

Bottle. Nice average off-white head that really looked lovely with an almost reddish glow. Color was hazy brownish with again some light reddish glow over it. Aroma was quit malty with the heavy underlying raspberries in there as well. Some other fruity notes, toffee like feel, spice and overripe fruity feel. Medium to full bodied with a surprising soft carbonation. Alcoholic texture is present all the way. Flavor was moderated sweet, with light acidic and bitter notes to balance this brew. Raspberry sweet and lingering alcoholic finish. Very different then anything else I have tasted.

Hazy dark amber color with mahogany and ruby hue; just a few bubbles on the surface. The aroma is malty, sweet, with a hint of fruits. Quite thick body, with very sweet liquorice as a result of the caramel and fruits (try to imagine it). Not bad, but I’m not a big fan of fruits in beer.

courtesy of Papsoe - hazy brown colour with a very little beige head; very fruity nose (raspberries and blackberries); sticky with a strong sweetness and a robust malt body; low bitterness and a mellow, fruity finish where the high alcohol content remains very well hidden - lacks of complexity

Thanks for sharing this one Alex (Sick_boy282) Pours with a deep red-brown body topped by a medium thick, quickly disappearing, fizzy head wtih some lacing. The aroma is sweet and full of raspberry with very slight chocolate and vanilla notes. The flavor is sweet and malty with a touch of raspberry, a little chocolate and a slight mustiness. Medium bodied, smooth and a touch dry.