Category Archives: Style

Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel – Brandy BA

Brewery: Mikkeller ApS
Country: Denmark
ABV: 10.9%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Brewed by Mikkeller at Lervig Aktiebryggeri, Norway

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Imperial Oatmeal Stout brewed with coffee & aged in brandy barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.01
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 330ml bottle with no bottled on or best before date. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with pretty much no head or lacing.
Aroma: Chocolate, coffee, licorice, oak, with light brandy notes.
Taste: Chocolate, caramel, coffee, light roast, cocoa, wood, licorice, boozy, with dark fruit and brandy notes.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: A nice sipper with the brandy coming through quite nicely. It’s been aged in my cellar for quite a while, and I think the last time I tried it was in 2017, although I don’t think I had any notes from that time. Despite this, in this case, I prefer the original base before the barrel aging.

De Struise Black Damnation II – Moccha Bomb

Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 13%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: 72 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A massive Stout from Flanders, matured in bourbon barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.24
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml bottle, bottled on 25th July 2018, with a best before date of 24th July 2023. Poured into a Black Damnation tasting glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a thin brown head that dissipated fairly quickly but settled to a ring around the glass, while leaving some decent lacing.
Aroma: Coffee, chocolate, with bourbon notes.
Taste: Coffee, chocolate, slight roast, bourbon, woody, with a lightly bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Alcohol warming, medium to full bodied, with soft to moderate carbonation.
Overall: An enjoyable sipper with lots of coffee aroma and flavours.

De Struise Pannepot

Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10%
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale
Other Notes: 27 IBUs. A Dark Strong Ale from Flanders

Brewer Description: (from website) Pannepot is one of our biggest flagship beers at De Struise Brouwers. It is a Belgian dark strong ale with a subtle stout touch. Saw the light of day for the first time in 2003 and has been in the Top 100 of the best beers in the world since 2004.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.05
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 330ml bottle, 2020 vintage, bottled on 14th July 2020, with a best before date of 14th July 2025. Poured into a Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: Dark brown in colour with a thin beige head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Sweet, doughy, cake, caramel, clove, candied plum, prune, grape gummy candies, chocolate, coffee, and candi sugar.
Taste: Lightly sweet, yeasty, doughy, slightly boozy, fig, clove, plum, prunes, raisin, toffee, with notes of cocoa and chocolate.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, medium bodied with low carbonation.
Overall: A little bit too doughy for me, but still enjoyable.

Crooked Stave x Omnipollo Bianca Peaches & Cream Wild Wild Brett

Brewery: Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project x Omnipollo
Country: USA
ABV: 6.8%
Style: American Wild Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Wild Ale fermented in oak foeders with Palisade peaches, lactose & vanilla.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.48
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 375ml bottle, with no bottled on or best before date. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A nice hazy golden light orange colour with a one finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, peach, peach gummy rings, vanilla, lemon zest, brett, funk.
Taste: Sour, tart, and sweet, like peach gummy rings, peach, apricot, lemon, with light vanilla notes.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Very enjoyable aroma and flavours, with a good balance between sweet and sour.

De Dolle Stille Nacht

Brewery: De Dolle Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 12%
Style: Belgian Strong Pale Ale
Other Notes: Christmas beer

Brewer Description: (from website) With Stille Nacht, available in Esen at De Dolle Brouwers, we offer a quality Christmas beer that you will enjoy, we are sure of it. Only Poperinge bubble hop is used. White candy mites provide the extra density.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.75
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 330ml bottle, bottled in October 2019. Poured into a De Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: A hazy orange colour with a big three finger white head that had good retention and nice lacing.
Aroma: Sweet, candi sugar, honey, boozy, candied orange peel, Belgian spices, with slight notes of apple and banana.
Taste: Light to moderate sweetness, boozy, candi sugar, fig, apple, orange peel, pear, peppery spice, with notes of clove and banana.
Mouthfeel: Boozy, medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: It’s a sipper, but the combination of sweet and boozy, although not too extreme here, is still not my favourite.