Watch City Biere de Bordel

Brewed by Watch City Brewing Co.
Style: Belgian Ale
Waltham, Massachusetts USA

Date: 01/26/2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting

muddy brown, scant heat, sweet caramel malt aroma with light fruity esters, sweet burnt caramel flavor, light bitterness from the burnt character,

Aroma: 5/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 5/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 10/20
Rating: 2.6/5.0
Drinkability: 5/10
Score: *4

(650ml bottle, purchased 12/27/05) Small off-white head atop an opaque floatie-filled black body. Aroma is medium sweet, plum, raisin, some chocolate, light butterscotch, faint ginger. Taste is medium sweet, raisin, some port, light plum. Watery medium body, minimal carbonation, somewhat thin.

Dark chestnut brown, not much head. Let’s not that this bottle had a vast amount of air under the cap. Diacetyl makes a weird blend with ashes roasted malts, yeasty fruits and blackberries. Strong roasted malt component, subtle spices (cinnamon, anise). Feels very brown ale-ish in the mouth through all those dark malts and burnt nuts flavours combined with the sweet tarts sweetness. Rather lifeless still mouthfeel. Not very good, will go check out the pub soon to try their beers fresh from the source, because I haven’t had much luck with their bottles.

Bottle shared by SpringsLicker on 1/26/07: Pours a murky, mostly still mahogany with a thin ring of off-white head. Aroma of spices, some dark caramel malt and a touch of dark fruits. Body starts fairly full and viscous with a light sweetness, drying toward an earthy spiced and slightly fruity finish. An interesting and enjoyable brew.

November 2004 bottle, tasted in March 2005:

The Lure:
Sweet blueberries, cherries, and black grapes form quite an enticing salad, sprinkled with cloves and nutmeg. The vinaigrette is light and vinous and manages to link all of the fruit.

The Festivities:
Thin-bodied with ample sweet fruitiness. Black grapes are prevalent in the fruit syrup, as a little spicy bitterness diversifies it all.

Transcendence:
Probably for the female contingent of the maison de plaisir.

750 ml bottle provided by ClarkVV and shared with him, MartinT, tiggmtl and Rastacouere. Pours a dark cherry-brown with little head, grapy/fruity nose with some caramel...blackened, burnt malt at the front of the tongue, cherries with ashes...light carbonation and stickiness make for an interesting but not terribly successful attempt..

Ashy, stale, soy sauce and vegetable aroma. Opaque brown-black with thin cover of tan head that recedes to ring. Sugary, roasty flavour with some notes of soy sauce and vegetables. Low carbonation, medium body and slick texture that coats the teeth. Bottle sampled with ClarkVV, MartinT, muzzlehatch and Rastacouere.

2004 draught. I wish I would have asked to take home the commercial description. I think the alcohol is around 6% and it was brewed in the tradition of Delirium Noel and Affligem Noel to be a spiced, brown belgian ale. Appearance is a thick, dark, opaque caramel brown with some mocha hues. Small but lasting light brown head. Aroma of belgian yeast, cinnamon, light wood, raisins and a pinch of brown sugar. Flavor starts out moderately sweet, but quickly this is followed up by a touch of spice, which is perfectly balanced and only light on the palate. Great yeast flavors, a touch of clove and some bubblegum, with plenty of brown malts and candi sugar keeping it balanced. The body was wonderful and perhaps the best thing about this beer. Smooth and velvety, yet had an ever so slight amount of carbonation that just added a lovely texture on the finish. Medium to medium full bodied, full flavored and just tremendously well-done.7/5/7/4/15
Nov 15 2004 bottle sampled 3/6/05. Arg, they’ve done it again! Weak, loose body with a bit too much spicing and lots of water on the end. Sad and lightly oxidized already. A bit of grittiness left in the texture speaks to bygone days when this was good and fresh. I’m very concerned about the aging potential (lack of it) in Watch City’s beers, not to mention the fact that I paid 8 dollars for this garbage in a bottle. The bottle was not even filled above the neck.6/2/6/2/9