Verhaeghe Noel

Brewed by Verhaeghe
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Vichte, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium

A Mes rate: Bit of a poor attempt from Verhaeghe. Pleasant sweet and sour nose with the obvious brown sugar, fruit and off milk typical to this brewer. Great looks. Clear blonde with a thick creamy head and thick lacing also typical to Verhaeghe. Flavour is so overly metallic that it is difficult to pick out anything else. Totally ruined what could have been great. So much metal in the flavour you would be forgiven for thinking it had been poured from a can.

Golden colored pour with little to no head. Had a yeasty, hoppy aroma with a bitter malty finish to it. Average.....

Bottle from the Rake. Light golden blonde with a white head. Promised a noel and instead got a standard blonde. Weak nose of honey and hops. Mellow, metallic taste of orange, corriander, cloves and apricot. Bitter nut finish. Watered down and generally not great.

Bottle: Poured a golden amber with frothy white head. The aroma was a sour fruity spice. The taste was a bitter grassy spice flavor.

Golden with a frothy white head. Odd fruit and yeast aroma. Can’t quite identify the various elements. Perhaps apple. Taste is spicy and quite sweet. Some slight dryness. Frankly it doesn’t have much Yuletide spirit.

(25cl bottle, best by 12-4-07) Large and rocky off-white head atop a clear apple juice body. Aroma is medium sweet, coriander, orange, dusky/yeasty, some raisin. Some fusel shows up as the beer warms. Taste is moderately sweet, orange, herb, dusky, some berry, light alcohol. Watery medium body.

Bottle, had this as a Christmas present amongst many other bottles. Pours warm golden colour with a malty and yeasty aroma. Taste is unremarkable sweet, some spices but little else to speak of.

Bottle @ Kerstbierfestival 2006 in Essen, BE. Yellow color with a fair white head. Aroma is yeast, banana, apple, anise. Flavor is moderate sweet and bitter with notes of fruit and spices.