Category Archives: 4 – Good (buy)

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers, Stout - Russian Imperial

De Struise Cuvée Delphine

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 13%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Other Notes: 2019 vintage

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Black Albert, 4 Roses barrel aged.

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

Intro: A 330ml bottle, 2019 vintage, bottled on 17th November 2021, with a best before date of +5 years. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a thin brown head that dissipated fairly quickly, while leaving some spotty lacing.
Aroma: Light roast, coffee, lots of dark fruit, fig, prunes, raisins, dates, vanilla, bourbon, with a light ashy note in the background.
Taste: Roasted malts, coffee, milk chocolate, moderate sweetness, dark fruit, prunes, dates, bourbon, vanilla, and a touch boozy.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: An excellent enjoyable sipper with good aroma and flavours. I think I prefer the base Black Albert just a tiny bit more, but this was still good.

4 - Good (buy), AleSmith Brewing Company, Beer Reviews, Stout - Imperial, USA

AleSmith Speedway Stout – Thai

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Brewery: AleSmith Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 12%
Style: Stout – Imperial
Other Notes: Imperial Stout brewed with Coconut, Ginger, Lime, Lemongrass, Basil & Coffee

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Inspired by our brewers’ love of the assertive, bright flavors of Thai ingredients, this intensely flavored brew incorporates the vibrant quality of several Thai-inspired ingredients into our classic Imperial Stout. Powerful notes of citrus, botanicals, and tropical fruit balance the stout’s rich chocolate, caramel, and coffee character. The result is an amazingly flavorful and complex beer that pays tribute to the flavors of Thailand. This beer will age nicely, though the intensity of certain ingredients may evolve over time. Chon Gâew!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.37
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 750ml foiled bottle, with no clear bottled on or best before date. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a half finger tanned head that dissipated fairly quickly but left lots of nice spotty lacing.
Aroma: Roasty, chocolate, coffee, Thai green curry, lemongrass, basil, ginger, lime.
Taste: Roasted malts, chocolate, coffee, coconut, basil, lemongrass, lime, coriander, and notes of ginger.
Mouthfeel: Smooth, medium bodied, with soft carbonation.
Overall: I didn’t think it would work, but wow this was interesting. The aroma was amazing. Somehow, roasty chocolate and coffee just mixes well with Thai green curry. Although not as amazing, this same combo also worked with the flavour, with the coconut notes coming through stronger. I have this nagging feeling that if they just added chili as well, the spice would have kicked it to another level. The body was a little thinner than I liked, but other than that, I was pleasantly surprised.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers, Stout - Russian Imperial

De Struise Black Damnation IX – Beggars’ Art

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 18.1%
Style: Stout – Russian Imperial
Other Notes: 72 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A Belgian Royal Stout from Flanders aged for 2yrs in Ardbeg whisky barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.28
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 330ml bottle, bottled on 5th May 2021, with a best before of +5 years, poured into a De Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a one finger beige head that had pretty good retention, while leaving some spotty lacing.
Aroma: Roasty, chocolate, coffee, caramel, dried dark fruit, prunes, raisins, with some nice boozy whisky notes, although surprisingly only lightly peaty.
Taste: Roasty, chocolate, coffee, dark fruit, fig, raisin, licorice, whisky, light char, a touch peaty, with light leather notes.
Mouthfeel: Smooth, creamy, full bodied, with soft carbonation.
Overall: There was surprisingly less peat than expected. It was actually strange in that the peat was noticeably strongest while the beer was colder, whereas when it warmed, this peatiness was somewhat tamed. Also 18.1% ABV? If the ABV was this high, it certainly did not feel like it as it drank easy and smooth. Even easier than some of the lesser ABV Black Damnations. Despite these two comments, the beer did have good aroma and flavours, and drank surprisingly well.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Quadrupel, Belgium, Brasserie de la Sambre

De La Sambre Barley IV

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Brewery: Brasserie De La Sambre
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10.5%
Style: Quadrupel
Other Notes: 28 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A full barley variation of our Rye IV. Our take on the heaviest of all Belgian classic, the quadruple. We have used different layers of caramel malts and high quality Belgian candi syrup to create a complex bouquet of dried fruits including plums, dates, dried raisins as well as notes of fresh dark cherries. We have discarded malt for this variation so that you can use it as a basis and compare with upcoming versions. We have used a classic abbey yeast strain to create a balanced fermentation profile rotating around orchard fruits and white spices. Will mellow over time (3 years) if placed in an environment protected from light and heat. Brewed in our 800 years old farm.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.17
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml white waxed bottle, with a best before date of 22nd July 2026. Poured into a Chimay goblet glass.
Appearance: A dark brown colour with a very nice fluffy one finger beige head that had excellent retention and left lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Fruity, dried cherry, fresh plums, prunes, caramel, toast.
Taste: Roasted malts, toast, cacao, sweet notes, dried cherries, dates, prunes, raisins, caramel, and a touch boozy.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: A nice sipper with a good balance between the roasty toasty notes and the sweet dried fruits. While the booze did come through slightly, it wasn’t overly strong and still enjoyable.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Lambic - Gueuze

3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze Golden Blend Honing

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Brewery: Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6.3%
Style: Lambic – Gueuze
Other Notes: Blend°51, Season 16/17

Brewer Description: (from bottle in Dutch) 3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze Golden Blend is een assemblage van één-, twee-, drie- en vierjarige traditionele lambikken, verder vergist in de fles en waarvan de vierjarige lambik minstens 25% deel uitmaakt. Dankzij de oude lambik en de continue evolutie in de fles ontstaat een uitgesproken complex en elegant natuurlijk bier. Lambik en Geuze zijn rijk en levend erfgoed, eigen aan de Zennevallei! Ongefilterd en ongepasteuriseerd.

Deze specifieke Golden Blend heeft een proportie van 27% vier jaar oude lambiken werd gebrouwen in januari 2013. Bij het assembleren werd er ook wat honing toegevoegd.

(translated to English) 3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze Golden Blend is a blend of one-, two-, three- and four-year-old traditional lambic, further fermented in the bottle, of which at least 25% is four-year-old lambic(s). Thanks to the old lambic and the continuous evolution in the bottle, a distinctly complex and elegant natural beer is created. Lambik and Geuze are a rich living heritage, characteristic of the Senne valley! Unfiltered and unpasteurized.

This particular Golden Blend has a proportion of 27% four-year-old lambic that was brewed in January 2013. Some honey was also added during assembly.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.29
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml corked and caged bottle, blend°51, season 16/17, bottled on 27th September 2017. Served from a 3 Fonteinen lambic basket, and poured into a 3 Fonteinen gueuze glass.
Appearance: A nice clear golden orange colour with a one finger white head that had decent retention while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Green apple, rhubarb, funk, slight cheese, wet wood, lemon, with a hint of honey.
Taste: Tart, light sour, apple, gooseberry, lemon zest, lime, earthy, damp wood, light funk, with an apple peel finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, with soft to moderate carbonation.
Overall: It was nice and enjoyable, but other than just slightly from the aroma, I do not get any honey directly from the flavour. In the end while it was good, I don’t think it improved on the original Golden Blend, which I thought was amazing.