Swaf Ambrée (formerly Vervifontaine)

Brewed by Brasserie de l’Abbaye du Val-Dieu
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Aubel, Belgium

Bottled. Hazy light brown colour, beige mediumsized head. Aroma of malt and fruit. Sweet caramellish flavour with raspberry in aftertaste. Also some strange sweetness all the way through (=ginseng?).

This is the last of my La Swaf! and, alas, the last I shall see of the smiling faces of Pierre and Rene on the labels, since Vervifontaine has gone out of business. This Ambree is indeed a cloudy amber color with a tall & fizzy off-white head that does some marvelous lacing. The aroma is a musty malt with talc-like hops and the spiciness from Pierre’s and Rene’s heavy hands with the ginseng. The flavor is sweet and spicy, malt tastes well hidden, with dust and cobwebs. The finish is sour, spicy and dirty, the sturdy abv making its presence known only long after the swallow. Fare thee well, Pierre and Rene!

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Bottle. dissappointing. I dont want to knock this down to low, given its distinct character and the addition of ginseng. Just very lackluster appearance. Taste is sour mash with burnt malt, and something strange thrown in.

Bottled (BBE 2009)
Hazy amber-nut brown color, foamy tanned head. Interesting nose: like mixture of Orval and De Dolles - horseblanket, lemon and sweet yeast. When beer warms up, it becames musty. Flavor is quite unique too: licorice, sugar, spices. Liquerish sweet palate. Hides 8% very well. Something not to drink in quantities.

(Bottled, red cap) Murky dark amber-orange color with a very large, firm and lacy head. Perfumy, slightly plasticky and sweetish ginseng aroma with berry and toilet hints. Sweetish and acidic, fruit-berry flavor with a mildly bitter, salty and astringent finish. Long, lingering, raspberry and salty licorice aftertaste. Medium-bodied palate with slightly foamy carbonation. A quite original, quite well-balanced brew, but definitely not drinkable in larger quantities.

Head is initially large, frothy, rocky, off-white, mostly lasting. Body is hazy medium amber, bottle conditioned. Aroma is moderately malty (cookie, caramel, toasted grain), lightly hoppy (flowers, orange), lightly yeasty (cobwebs, barnyard), with notes of clove, nutmeg, oregano, mint, honey, etc. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, moderately bitter, long. Medium body, velvety/creamy texture, soft/lively carbonation, lightly alcoholic. Wowwwwww. As expected, the acidity works better in this context than in the brune (for me), and everything about this is absolutely wonderful. The aroma, mouthfeel, appearance, and length of the finish are extraordinary. It’s a damned shame this wonderful brewery closed. Sigh.

cloudy dirty amber-brown colour, big creamy head, nice lacing, malty and herbal/medicinal aroma, sweet, oily and medium-bodied, explosion of ginseng in a bitter finish - unbalanced and hard to drink; a strange experiment indeed ...