 JoeMcPhee (3815), Jackson Heights, New York, USA
Jul 12, 2006
Rating #2000... Another thank you to my GF for getting these for me. I’ve been staring at this bottle for six weeks, and now I’m going to drink it... profound, no? Hazy deep brown beer, orange highlights, yellow-tan head. Very lacy and sticky. Aroma of spices and mint over a massive malty aroma. Orange rind, plums and dried cherries. Beautiful rich spicy yeast with overtones of clove, cardamon and cinnamon. flavour is amazing, sweet caramel, toast, and a rye-like mintiness up front with a lingering burnt sugar toastiness toward the end. Fantastic jammy fruity flavour as well with plums, raisins, and dried cherries. Honey dipped almonds. Very warming finish. Lingering sweet toastiness and clovey phenolics. Lace sticks all over the chalice. As it warms even more malty sweetness comes to the fore. Lingering peppery flavour and herbal woodiness helps to counter all of the sweetness. Brown sugar and toffee flavours are also noticible. Luxurious palate, wheaty body. I gave the top score to the Extra 8, but this is first rate.
Straling (34), Amstenrade, Netherlands
Oct 13, 2008 Bottle 33cl.
I managed to get a hold of one of these in Antwerp Belgium.
I was very surprised to see it in the first beer shop I walked into so I was very pleased.
Pours a clear red/brown colour.
Has a great size head and good carbonation.
Smell is chocolaty and can also make out raisen and fruits, excellent balance.
Smell is very enrichning and satisfying on it’s own, just smelling this is a treat.
Taste is very complex, but perfectly balanced, the many fruits can be found again, as also some nuts and the yeast with a lovely alcohol finish.
Lies great in the mouth.
Must say this rates up there with the Rochefort 10 and I have to say that it is slightly better even so!
finol (19), Nacka (Stockholm), Sweden
Oct 12, 2008 This is a great beer but I enjoyed the wv 8 more. I found this a bit to light to its reputation and 10.2%.
It contains a lot of flavour eg. raisins, bread.
hirigalzkar (53), Stockholm, Sweden
Oct 11, 2008 Bottle. Hazy brown. No head. Sweet aroma of bread and yeast (not the typical belgian yeast aroma though). Sweet and fruity beer with a complex flavor. Bread. Raisins. Licorice. Etc. Very smooth.
HopsWhisperer (9), , North Carolina, USA
does not count  Oct 10, 2008 Many thanks to my friend Troy who brought back two bottles of this from a recent trip to Belgium and was gracious enough to share.
Poured a rich, dark brown color into a chalice. However, when the light hit it just right, it had a deep ruby/garnet glow. Wasn’t a huge head, but stayed around for a while. Also, we were sharing this among several people, so pouring this bottle into multiple glasses may have affected the head size as well.
Aromas were good, but nothing really stood out. Rather fruity, like plums and brown sugar, with some sweetness as well.
The taste was excellent. Lots of dark fruits, honey, some spice, and also a bit of alcohol bitterness.
Mouthfeel was exceptiona, like drinking velvet. Just a tingle of carbonation to keep the palate fresh.
Overall, this was a great beer. Did it live up to the hype--could it live up to the hype? Hard to say. I would love to have another full glass rather than the portion I had in order to really savor and explore this beer. But I can’t say that I was dissappointed, either, because what I did get to sample was awesome.
jacobp51 (3), San Diego, California, USA
does not count Oct 9, 2008 Had the pleasure of sharing a bottle of this wonderful beer with a group of friends the other night. Very well balanced. The taste is sweet and fruity with a very mild bitterness. The taste of raisins or dates or some other kind of dried fruit is very apparent with each sip. Very complex on the palate, but not overwhelming. Each sip leaves your mouth wanting more. Well worth the hype, but I wish it was more widely distributed. Cheers!
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