Struise Pannepot Reserva

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

Bottled. Pours out in a hazy reddish brown colour witha big and firm tan-coloured foam. Black cherries, licorice, brown sugar, wood, alcohol, vanilla, nuts and sourish red berries in the deep aroma. Full flavour of wood, alcohol, sweet licorice, nuts, coconut and cherries. Full-bodied. Long warming finish wood, vanilla, nuts, alcohol, dates and figs. Really tasty and classy but I prefer the regular version, though.

Pours cloudy dark brown, with a large, tan head. Aroma is fruit, oak, alcohol, and malt. Flavor is fruit, smoke, malt, vanilla, and oak. A nice medium bodied palate. Nothing beats you over the head, as far as the oak, or the fruit. It’s a well balanced, well made, tasty brew. Thanks for this bottle, Brad.

Considering the style, Scores ranging from 1 to 5, 5 being the most intense
Appearance:
Body:   Clear(1)->Murky(5) : 4     Pale Yellow(1)->Copper(5) : 4     Still(1)->Volcanic Sparkling(5) : 3
Head:   None(1)->Large(5) : 4     Lasting: 5     Lacing : 5
Aroma:
Intensity : 4  
Yeast : 5   Bread : 2   Dough : 4   Esters : 4   Phenols : XX   Dusty : XX   Spicy : 2   Apple : XX   Banana : 4   Tropical Fruits : XX   Brett : XX   Barnyard : XX   Leather : XX   Wood : XX   Vinous : 2   Cheese : XX   DMS : XX   Diacetyl : XX Sulfur : XX
Malt : 4   Pilsner : XX   Pale : XX   Vienna : XX   Biscuity : 3   Toasty : XX   Hay : XX   Caramel : 3   Honey : XX   Cereals : 3   Grainy : XX   Wheat : 1
Hops : 1   Noble(1)->American(5) : 1   Leafy : XX   Perfume : 3   Orange : XX   Floral : 2   Lemon/Lime : XX   Herbal : XX   Grassy : XX   Piney : XX
Notes : Pepper : XX   Cloves : 1   Coriander : 1   Ginger : XX   Orange : XX   Earth : XX   Vanilla : 2   Oxidation : XX   Bubblegum : 3
Flavor:
Initial Flavor : Dry(1)->Sweet(5) : 5   Finish Dry(1)->Sweet(5) : 5   Sourness : XX   Acetic : XX   Lactic : XX   Bitterness : XX   Farmy : XX   Complex : 5   Length : XX
Palate:
Light(1)->Full(5) : 4   Flat(1)->Fizzy(5) : 4   Clean : XX   Sharp : XX   Watery : XX   Oily : XX   Chalk : XX   Astringent : XX   Alcohol : 3   Mineral : XX

Comments: A ridiculously complex beer, thick, spicy with extreme sweetness and pure yeast decadence. I recognize the subtlety in the barrel flavour impartition, but it felt almost futile to a Pannepot. I can’t say I found it greater. If anything, it felt a bit more alcoholic, of course woodsier and I found it more caramel focused. Less naturally spicy, but just as gorgeously fruity. Anyway, both are world-class and I can’t imagine anyone who enjoys one and does not the other. A must.

Dark brown with a thin tan head made up of very fine bubbles. I hated the regular version because it was overly sweet but the aging seems to have made this a bit better and milder. Still sugary in the aroma with some molasses. Flavour is subtle but has quite a bit going on, many different spices present themselves with some more candi sugar and sweetness. Finishes with a bit of alcohol and some slight bitterness.

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.

Bottle at Københavnske Øldage 2007. Dark ruby colour with a huge mostly lasting light brown head. Complex aroma and taste of fruits, roasted malts and chocolate. Slightly alcoholic finish. but who cares with such a great beer.

750ml bottle. 2006 vintage. huge thanks to pantanap for breaking this bad boy out and then pairing it with regular pannepot. pours dark frown with off white head (slightly lightly in color and not nearly as dark a head as regular pannepot). the aroma is very similar to regular pannepot but taken down a notch (not as sweet, nutmeg, and other spices), notes of oak, nutmeg, cardamom, and dark fruits. flavor is held together nicely by the oak with some oak, vanilla, dark fruits, and nutmeg. the flavors are toned down, less sweet, and more together than regular pannepot. the finish is drier, slightly sour, and seemingly more complete than regular pannpot. also the mouth feel is fuller than regular pannepot. in the end, it holds a lot of the original pannepot characteristics but less sweet and spices making it mellower and even more drinkable, however, I like the intense sweet and spice notes in the regular panapot so they score the same for me as both are amazing beers for different reasons.

Top notch, this is why we love you crooked belgiums. Hope you did not sleep on the tarmac in Valby!?