Unibroue Édition 2005

Formerly brewed at Unibroue (Sapporo)
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Chambly, Canada

"Poured a burgundy color with brown edges. Thin head which lasted thoughout. Aroma was bananas cherries and vinegar. Flavor was much the same with some other dark fruits in there. Solid beer."

Found a couple of these at a rural LCBO. Opened one and cellared one for drinking in a few years....judging from what I have here I think it will need the age in hopes of bringing out more flavors and improve the complexity...as it is now this is a 2 dimentional Belgian brown and relatively indistingishable from Sleeman-Unibroue’s other ales ( there is a modern trend of "sameness" about Unibroue offerings) Poured a roily, murkey chestnut brown...nose is typical of most unibroue ales, musty, earthy with aroma of dried fruits sweetness from the malts and refiner’s sugars. Medium bodied. Taste is also 2 dimentional; Sweetish raisin/prunes over yeasty mustiness. Finish dries slightly as the attenuated hops show up. Unibroue’s big ales are beginning to have that signature "sameness" in the dried fruit-musty yeast tastes...maybe their yeast has run its course...Time for some new strains.

i would say this is slightly sour offset by sweetness. dark robust, not overpowering with a lingering musty ’abbey’ flavor. fruity mids. i like this and terrible. prety close. my 2 fave unibroue.

Amber, with yeast in the glass. Nice creamy offwhite head. Some fruit in the aroma, and some nuts can be found as well. Malty and spicy flavor with fruity notes. Nice body.

cinnamon, berries, cola, plum, plastic, raisin, even a little chocolate flavor. definitely sour. dark ruby. off white head. restrained aroma of berries and spices. very musty.

Very rich, with two distinct "waves" of taste, one rising as the other falls and vice versa. The first is a slightly bittersweet taste, caramel and wood. the second is much sweeter, like dried berries and pitted fruit. There is a candy sourness throughout, though most prominent in the first sip.

Pour is a murky brown with a small white head. Aroma is a lovley mustyness with faint hints of alcohol. Flavor is sweet candied sugar with a huge sourness. Lots of dark fruits and caramel round out this very sour beer. Almost reminds me of a Flemish sour ale.

2008-05-18, corked bottle at Ølfestival 2008, Århus, 7-4-7-3-14=35
Dark chestnut ciolor. Very mature aroma, oxydized malt, but almost fruity too, sweet, candy-like. Good mouthfeel, with an interesting oxydized malt flavor and caramel; bitterness almost absent, warming alcohol; it can become cloying. Peculiar.

2006-02-22, corked bottle, 7-4-7-3-14=35
Cloudy dark brown color; creamy head. Strong aroma, with malt, caramel, toffee, some fruitness and light cork; it shows a primordial complexity. The body is thin in the beginning, quite simple flavor (basically caramel supported by some sweetness) and the final is too much biting (alcohol) with some off-flavors; it also has a very light sourness, quite rare in the Unibroue beers. Much better when warm.
I expected more.