Struise Pannepot Grand Reserva

Brewed by De Struise Brouwers
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Oostvleteren, Belgium

Bottle shared by miketd the Cleveland tasting. Pours a hazy brown color with a yellowish off white head. Aroma is caramel malt, oak, yeast, a touch of sour. Flavors is light sour apple, oak, caramel malt, brown sugar, dark fruits. Medium to full bodied, mild carbonation finished on the sweet side. great stuff, but I still like just the plain ol version the best!

On tap at t Brugse Beertje, Brugge, April 2008. Many thanks to Carlo for providing this for Jeremy Gray’s 40th birthday bash. I’m often not convinced that wood aging necessarily adds anything (desirable) to the underlying but I definitely thought it did in this case. It tempered and balanced the sweet fruit. So it ended up fruity and slightly woody, with just a smidgen of tart acidity. Good balance of prune-like fruit and chewy caramel malt, coupled with lots of liquorice. Firm mouthfeel - full but not too fat. If I wanted to nit-pick I’d say that the alcohol is perhaps a little too evident but that didn’t stop me drinking about four pints of the stuff. Gorgeous, and a not a bit like Coca-Cola harrisoni..

Bottle. Dark brown with a nice lasting beige foam. Aromas of wood, sweet caramel, some vanilla, prunes, raisins and roasted coffee. The flavour is freshly sour at first but ended by a complex roasted sweetness.. Taste notes: spices, dark dried fruits, chocolate, wood, cane sugar and coffee.

Nice brown with a thin cream head. Aroma is coffe, caramel, oak, brown sugar and alcohol. Taste is oak, caramel, brown sugar, yeast, and light alcohol. The barrel aging really changes this beer in differant directions.

330 ml from Kramer17801; Nose of oak, brown sugar, raisins, and spice; clear brown with a small tan head; flavor of oakiness, prunes, molasses, spiciness, and a little alcohol. Not near as good as the regular version.

re-rate

Muddy chestnut. Woody aroma with bourbon and toffee notes. Rounded woody character with light toffee. I still find this understated.
Light brown. Mapley, with a hint of wood and vague florals (some of Pannepot’s goodness is obfuscated). Hot body, with splashes of fruit, and lush malts. Again, the barrel is getting in the way of my Pannepot. There’s a quality beer buried underneath of this hot imbalance. 6-3-7-3-14 = 3.3

Bottle from OldStyleCubFan. Pours dark brown with a beige head. The aroma is oak, spice, roast, and sugar. Not all that enticing. Oak dominates the flavor. Lots of vine fruit flavors. Alcohol hot. Medium body. High carbonation. Very dry finish. Not real sure why this beer gets such high marks.

My Bottom Line:
This Barrel-Aged Belgian Strong Ale is a veritable playground of complexity where wooden tenements harbor cajoling chocolate and vanilla sweetness, delineating apple orchards and vineyards till the taste horizon fades. This is another delightful Struise product which can age gracefully.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A layer of foam covers the blackened dark brown. Is it me or this one is a shade darker than the regular Pannepot?
-The spice bouquet is not quite as revealing (or blatant, for that matter) as in the regular version.
-The meditative finish provides effective dryness alongisde an alcohol nudge.
-The aroma efficiently foreshadows the flavor profile.
-A peppery splash precedes the vinous fruitiness.
-The body is beautifully ample, with many caramel love handles to hang on to.

Bottles; 2005 vintage.