Struise Pannepot Reserva

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

The Pannepot Reserva 2005 is a Belgian Ale brewed with spices and aged in oak barrels. In that description alone, there were at least 4 buzz words that make me weak in the knees and set my heart aflutter. Enough blathering, time to get down to business. Or is it pleasure? Or both?

She came to me one lonely afternoon in a translucent brown dress with fringes of hay and a soft collar made of cottony whites. As she holds me in her embrace, her exotic perfume woos with lightly sweet and exquisitely spiced esters. Toasted raisin bread, butter, and cinnamon sugar while maple syrup, brown sugar, and gourmet turtles replete with nuts offer a helping hand. As we dance into the night, our lips are soon drawn together in a show-stopping kiss which leaves me floating on air while her essence lingers long on my lips. Warmth almost immediately starts to permeate my body while cinnamon and raisin bread wait for a drizzle of maple syrup. Each kiss is sweet, warm, and lightly spiced. Faint esters of candied apples with their soft outer sweetness and crunchy apply insides transport me to an olden farmers market where nature’s bounty is celebrated. Our time together cannot last forever; I know this and yet I do not want to admit it. As I bid farewell to my Pannepot Reserva 2005, she leaves me with one last gift of remembrance, dark breads and fruits steeped in spiced rummy oak. Ascendance is nigh.

As you can tell by the year of this particular Pannepot, she ages with grace and aplomb so I will be sure to set aside a few bottles for the years to come when I am finally able to acquire some. If you should be somewhere, anywhere, and have an opportunity to take this beer home with you, please do. Trust me. You will not regret it.

Bottle courtesy of Immy on 07/18/2009. Clear dark brown body with ruby highlights and a medium creamy tan head. Sweet spicy, fruity, belgian aroma, some slight tartness. Big fruity flavor, lots of spice, belgian notes, light fruit. Medium body with moderately high carbonation.

Bottle shared by Marcus - 2005. Pours a dark rich brown with a frothy tan head. Strong dark fruit aromas over dark malt. Full bodied with mildly frothy carbonation. Flavor is several dark fruits with cola and mild yeast. Darkly fruity, hinting of bitter and not demonstrating heat. It takes time for the oak to come out. Worth the wait.

Bottle is labeled PNP 4 2005. Pours opaque dark brown with a fluffy tan head and a yeasty aroma. The flavor is raisin, plum and slightly sour with lots of oak. It is much more mellow than the regular pannepot and certainly more sour from the barrell aging. The sour stays on the palate a while. Lots of spice.

2007 bottle from De Bierkoning. Very dark brown with a big tan head. Vinous aroma and flavours. richer in the mouth, revealing chocolate, spices, fruit and vanilla. Very complex indeed. Accomplished.

2005 Edition shared with the folks at the Bruery and a few friends. Rating number 2300. 750ml bottle thanks to JB175. Pours with a huge, fluffy, khaki head over a hazy brown body. Full retention from the head, and great lace. This is a beautiful beer. Aroma is rich and really opens as the beer warms. Raisins, oxidation and sherry make themselves seen early with some spice, meat, chocolate, special b malt, caramel and mulling spices. Light oak brandy presence too. Taste is brandy, oak, meat/Pannepot "blood", raisin, oak tannins, paper oxidation and apricot. Light acidity towards the finish. Huge duration. Creamy mouthfeel and carbonation. Another solid and special de Struise beer!

2005 Bottle thanks to bman1113vr - shared with the folks at the bruery Pours with a murky dark brown hue with a light brown head that is mostly diminishing. Aroma is of dark fruits, raisins, and lots of run - smells like its right out of the Caribbean. Flavor is astringent, salty, sweet, and alcoholic. Syrupy texture with light carbonation

Deep cloudy reddish brown with no head. Nice dried fruit, oak, alcohol and sweet malt. Same in the complex and evolving flavor with a smooth mouthfeel.