 sayravai (3048), Helsinki, Finland
Feb 20, 2004 Updated: Dec 5, 2007
(Bottled, re-rate, 2005 version) Very hazy, reddish, dark amber color with a small, tight head. Very strongly spicy (coriander, orange-peel, ginger, vanilla), rye-pudding aroma. Sweet, grainy, somewhat sahti-like, flowery-hoppy flavor. Medium-bodied, a bit rough, slicky and sugary palate with low carbonation. A decent try, but far from the most balanced Belgian brews. Too grainy-sugary and unrefined.
(Bottled, 2002 vintage sampled 12/2007) Quite sweet aroma still, lots of rye pudding and grainy malt. Grainy-malty, dried-fruity flavor with some asparagus hints. Has not smoothed out that much in 5 years, although the sweetness is slightly less pronounced.
gnoff (2586), Göteborg, Sweden
Jun 15, 2008 (33 cl bottle thanks to rlgk!)
Labeled 9.0% ABV. Also states "Julkloster" and "God Jul" on it.
BB 12.12.12
2002 vintage
On June 14, 2008
Clear red, almost ruby but not quite, color, small tan head. Sweet caramel and subtle licorice with chocolate scent. Some alcohol and grainy also. Sweet, strong malty, biscut, caramel taste with some alcohol as well. Also warming alcohol present. Smooth mouthfeel with rather low co2-level, medium bitterness. Sweet, grainy and raissin aftertaste.
I wish Slottskällans would have continued to manufacture this one. I also wish they had the guts, money, intereset or whatever is lacking to brew more beers with a character making it worth while to drink.
anders37 (2582), Malmö, Sweden
Mar 9, 2008 Bottle, Vintage 2002. Pours a clear amber color with a small off-white head. Has a spicy malty dark fruit aroma with some hints of caramel. Sweet malty chocolate flavor with hints of dark fruit and caramel. Has a long malty chocolate and dark fruit finish.
oh6gdx (5904), Vaasa, Finland
Feb 25, 2008 Bottled (2002 vintage, thanks omhper!). Dark brown colour with small brown bubbly head. Aroma is malts, with caramel, nuts and some alcohol. Also some slight not-too-sweet Madeiranotes. Flavour is big bready malts balanced up with caramel, raisins and alcohol. Aftertaste has some signs of roastyness and dark dry fruits. Ages well. Rich tonguetickling carbonation.
Maria (3975), Thisted, Denmark
Jan 4, 2008 Dark brown with a nice, but quickly disappearing head, but it leaves a nice lace. The aroma is malty with notes of dark rum, caramel and harsh walnuts. The mouthfeel is round and warm from the alcohol. The flavour is sweetish and very complex, it has a lot of roasted malt, cheap rum (like the red Hansen), candy sugar, caramel, nuts and alcohol. I find the overall impression somewhat chemical and IMO it’s not an abby ale. (Old rating)
thewolf (3651), Kolding, Denmark
Dec 11, 2007 Bottle. [thank you, omhper!]
My 2,100th rating!!
[Vintage 2002]
Pours a muddy brownish red with a fizzy yellowish head. It quickly disappears, but there are hundreds of bubbles reaching for the surface, making a thin film stay for quite some time. Aroma is deeply fruity, lots of raisins, deep roasted caramel, barnyard, slight oxidation. Light and lively mouthfeel. Flavour is really great. I can really taste the aging, but it is nowhere near bad. Wonderful balance. There is some fruity sourness mixed with a lot of caramel, dark fruity sweetness. Plums, raisins, cherries, roasted, liqourice, barnyard. Wonderfully aged.
|
