4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Strong Pale Ale, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers

De Struise Tsjeeses Reserva Port Barrel Aged

Saturday, 26 December 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10%
Style: Belgian Strong Pale Ale
Other Notes: 2013 Vintage

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Belgian X-Mas Ale.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.32
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 330ml bottle of 2013 vintage, bottled on July 2014 with a best before date of 15th August 2019 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy dark orange bronze colour with a fluffy two finger light tanned head with good retention that leaves nice spotty lacing.
Aroma: Sweet and fruity plum, apple, grape, fig and red wine with hints of caramel and vanilla.
Taste: Sweet apples, orange, port, grapes with oak woody notes and caramel malts.
Mouthfeel: Very rich, medium bodied with medium but strong prickly carbonation.
Overall: I wish I had the original non barrel aged version of this to compare to. However, this Port BA version is very good. Even at 10% the alcohol is well hidden and being Port BA I was a bit worried that it would be too sweet but its actually at a good level. A great barrel aged Belgian Strong Pale Ale that I would get again next year!

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Quadrupel, Belgium, Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV

St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Friday, 25 December 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10%
Style: Belgian Quadrupel

Brewer Description: (from website) St.Bernardus Christmas Ale is a dark seasonal brewed in the classic ‘Quadrupel’ style of Belgium’s best Abbey Ales. (10,0 % ABV) Similar to all the beers from our brewery, it greets the drinker with the signature aroma of the St.Bernardus house yeast strain (in use since 1946!) Rivaling the complexity of the St.Bernardus Abt 12, St,Bernardus Christmas Ale offers a spicy, mint-like flavour profile exuding the tastes of warming alcohol, fermented molasses, apricots, licorice and marzipan that are highlighted by the perfect balance of brewing sugars.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.17
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 30th July 2018, poured into a Chimay goblet glass.
Appearance: It poured a dark brown colour with a two finger creamy puffy beige head that dissipated slowly to a nice half finger puffy cap that gives nice curtain like lacing.
Aroma: Nice dark fruit cherry, plum, prunes and raisin with hints of apple, banana and spice pepper.
Taste: Much like the aromas, there’s candied sugar, apricot, cherry, fig, plum and hints of banana. Caramel and toffee comes out as it warms. The alcohol is there but does not affect the taste and is slightly stronger when warm.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, medium bodied with mid to high carbonation.
Overall: Not quite Abt 12 but it is still a great beer from this Trappist brewery that I would buy again next year.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Belgium, Brouwerij Huyghe

Delirium Noël

Thursday, 24 December 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Brouwerij Huyghe
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10%
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale
Other Notes: Triple fermentation

Brewer Description: (from website) A strong presence of alcohol, very spicy, slightly bitter. The aftertaste is sweet, spicy and slightly bitter.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.15
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before end date of October 2017 poured into a Chimay goblet glass.
Appearance: It poured a dark amber colour with a two finger fluffy beige head that dissipated slowly and settled to a very nice thin fluffy layer with some nice lacing.
Aroma: Sweet plum, grape, raisin and candied sugar with hints of banana and clove as well as cherries.
Taste: Cherries, raspberries, raisin, plum and prunes. As it warms, the alcohol presence gets stronger and more noticeable but never overpowering. In addition, caramel and toffee appears as it warms.
Mouthfeel: Dry, medium bodied with mid to high carbonation.
Overall: Very enjoyable although I do prefer Nocturnum a bit more. I also do not know what makes this a Christmas beer as I don’t get much of the spices usually associated with Christmas.

4 - Good (buy), American IPA, Beer Reviews, Cigar City Brewing, USA

Cigar City Jai Alai White Oak Aged

Wednesday, 23 December 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Cigar City Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 7.5%
Style: American IPA
Other Notes: 70 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from can) This is an American oak aged version of Jai Alai. The oak adds smoothing notes of vanilla and slight hints of dill to the aroma and flavour profile. The finish is elegantly dry due to the light tannin notes from oak aging and though still loaded with hop flavour, hop bitterness is more restrained.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.19
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 12 fl oz can with a canned on date of 17th November 2015 and poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
Appearance: It poured a clear golden orange colour with a two finger white head with lots of stringy lacing.
Aroma: Tropical mango, pineapple and peach with some citrus grapefruit followed by hints of vanilla and dill.
Taste: Strong vanilla and oak upfront with mango and peach supporting and hints of grapefruit.
Mouthfeel: Dry, medium bodied with light carbonation.
Overall: I have not tried the original base IPA yet as I haven’t been able to get my hands on any. However, although this is not the first barrel aged IPA that I’ve tried, I haven’t tasted any beer like this one before. The tropical fruit taste mixed with vanilla was interesting and a refreshing change.

1 - Poor (never again), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V., Flanders Oud Bruin

Bacchus Vlaams Oud Bruin

Wednesday, 23 December 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V.
Country: Belgium
ABV: 4.5%
Style: Belgian Flanders Oud Bruin
Other Notes:

Brewer Description: (from wrapping) A typical Flemish beer with a pleasant wine-like taste and a rich past. This dark brown beer, which is matured in oak casks, has a slightly acid aftertaste.

My rating: 1
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.44
My ratebeer.com rating: 2.9

Intro: A 375ml wrapped bottle with a best before date of 25th November 2016 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a clear dark brown colour with a less than one finger tanned head that dissipated quickly but leaves some nice stringy lacing.
Aroma: Mainly tart cherries with some grape, apple juice and vinegary elements.
Taste: Taste is similar to the aromas with tart cherry sourness and grape bubblegum sweetness with hints of apple juice and brown sugar.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied, with mid to high carbonation.
Overall: This was better than the Kriekenbier version that I tried before. However, unfortunately, according to the wrapping, it seems they add Stevia to the beer. I don’t use sugar substitute sweeteners in anything ever, and I don’t see why I need to start doing so in beers.

words of another dreamy traveller

Monthly Archives: December 2015