t Smisje Great Reserva

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

(Bottle, courtesy of mar) Pours a cloudy brown with a small beige head. Aroma of ashes, potting soil, cognac, plastic, barrel, floral, charred, and light herbal notes. Flavor of ashes, roasted malt, and cognac with a dry, bitter finish.

Bottle… Murky brown ale with a large, fluffy, khaki head. Terrific retention. Thick lace left behind once the head begins to recede. The aroma is a complex blend of freshly baked bread, Tootsie Rolls, pralines, dates and brown sugar. Medium-bodied and chewy with brisk carbonation. The moderately sweet, doughy flavor provides alcohol warmth, chocolate and dates. Dries out a touch at the very end. Nice Quad! Bottle courtesy of xmarcnolanx!

Hazy brown-amber ale with a small cream-beige head, fading. Strange musk-like smell, nearly animal, with whiffs of black chocolate and cardamom. But the meaty/estery, musky smell keeps determinant. Vinous warming up. Bitter tasting, hoppy and burnt, with bitter chocolate flavours and a backthroat spirit flavour, that is strangely more Bourbon- or whiskylike than brandyish. Peanuts flavour and more meaty esters warming up. Thinned by the alcohol, I think, but the base seems pretty rich. The alcohol peeps out, warming, after some time getting sharper. Quite good balance, much better than the original Catherine. Aftertaste gets finally something sweetish warming up. Very good one, and another proof for my pet idea, that Belgian brewers really should look more into barrel-aging. And fast, too.

Many thanks to Marc for the bottle!! Rating #3700. Like the Catherine, just about the lighted colored imperial stout I’ve ever seen.. medium reddish-brown (clear, at least initially), but this had an awesome head to it (sticky, creamy medium beige that left sticky lacing on the glass). The aroma opened with a lovely impression from the barrel treatment in the form of redder vinous notes and aged French oak.. sour and engaging.. the "stout" was deep down, with semi-sweet chocolate and nutty character.. vanilla and brown sugar sweets were interesting on the back. The flavor opened with tangy oak and rich cognac with a mild metallic hit (not necessarily a flaw.. more like part of the booze was aged in stainless).. aged caramel, nutty notes, and brown sugar rolled across the middle.. vinous notes were laced throughout, and play a great part on the finish. Medium-bodied and well-carbonated on the palate.. sweet overall, but it also had lots of tanginess from the barrel. The cognac for the most part took over the less-than-substantial stout, but I gotta say that it didn’t do so in a dissapointing way.

Bottle @ Spuyten Duyvil. Poured a hazed amber color with a medium sized beige head. Big tart oxidized malt aroma. It smelled dirty with notes of the barrel, wood and browned fruit. Dull malty flavor. Touch of fruit on the finish. Medium bodied and warming.

Hand Grenade. Pours a murky brown body with a tan 3 finger head. Some light chocolate, wood, alcohol, whiskey and a light apple and brandy character. Moderate warming with a chewy sweet spiced character. Good stuff.

Bottle. Pours hazy dark brown with a large, frothy, off-white head, mostly lasting with excellent lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (cookie, caramel, toasted), light hops (flowers), average yeast (dough, earth) with notes of wood, toffee, and cognac. Full bodied, sticky texture, lively carbonation, and a chalky finish. Average duration, moderate sweetness, light acidity and bitterness.

I Bottle from xmarcnolanx.Imperial stout? Hell no. Good beer, but this isn’t a stout. Dark brown pour with a puffy white head. Aroma is old wood, caramel, hops and somewhat odd. Flavor is very, very carbonated and has some dark dried fruits in it with some vanilla and yeast. Finishes fairly dry and astrigent. Interesting beer, but I still don’t know how the hell it is called an Imp stout?