t Smisje Great Reserva

Brewed by Brouwerij De Regenboog
Style: Imperial Stout
Assebroek-Brugge, Belgium

11.2 ounce bottle. Pours a dark brown color with a medium tan head. Good head retention and lacing. Aroma of brown sugar, oak, roasted malts, tobacco, varnish, whisky. Taste is roasted malts, chocolate, oak, vanilla, whisky, leather, berries, leafy notes. Smooth, medium bodied. Tasty.

Pours a deep amber with a compact tan head that lasts nicely. Ignore the word "stout" here - it just isn’t. Very inviting aroma of dark fruits with a touch of molasses and dark caramel. Flavor matches - a real bomb of raisins, caramel, dark fruit, and more molasses. Sort of like an old fashioned caramel chew. Wonderful malt depth here. There is something liquor-like going on here, but don’t think I would have picked out the Cognac barrels from the flavor - which is a good thing, in that they got the balance right. Really nice tootsie roll flavor on the finish. Good stuff.

This does not taste like a Imperial stout but more like a Belgian quad. that being said it has a robust fruity flavor and strong alcohol aroma that splendor throughout the entire glass. taste like harsh malts with a grainy feel. good all the way

The aroma is malty, yeasty, funky, fruity, dusty, and herbal. The appearance is red brown with an average head. The flavor is like the aroma. The palate is smooth. Overall this is not that bad but it’s definitely not an imperial stout.

Little squat bottle pours a murky amber color with tan head and a touch of lacing. The aroma is light with sweet malts and booze notes as well as oak and oxidized sherry earthiness. The taste begins with an initial wave of sweet malts and sweet bourbon like booze. By midway the oak surfaces along with a bit of resiny hops and spicy earthy sherry notes. Into the finish the booze helps dry it out. Certainly a barrel heavy brew where the bourbon has smothered most of the once tasty base beer.

pours thin brown , beige head. Aroma, cognac is light, hints of dark sugar. Flavor cognac is present though not overwhelming as the Grande Reserva was, some spicy notes light malts, with a thin chocolate profile that becomes more apparent as the beer warms up. Another Belgian version of an Imp. Stout, might not be in the same profile as many others. Tasty none the less.

They call it an imperial stout but I am rating it on belief that it is a Belgian strong ale. On that idea, it is a beautiful strong ale with hints of caramel and raisin. Did not really notice the cognac flavors until I read that it was aged in it. Try it if you can get your hands on it.