12
(has 2 batches)

750ml bottle. This is fruity, sweet and lightly musty and very easy on the palate which means it is easy to drink, especially for a 12% beer. Still, there are some off flavors, including the taste of pencil graphite, that drag this down. Beautiful pour — hazy dark brown body with a huge, fizzy beige head. The aroma is filled with esters of prune, overripe plum and banana, Notes of mustiness and a hint of peppery alcohol. Some floral notes creep in along with toffee and syrup. The flavor is heavily sweet and lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately acidic along with a light bitterness — plus the sweetness sticks around. Medium to full body and lively carbonation. Watery texture at first, turning to syrupy. Too heavily sweet (along with that graphite taste) keeps this from being an excellent beer. Still, quite good.

Bottle at Monks 7/15/08...Brown body with an off-tan head....this beers aroma really changed nicely from start to finish...it began with almost nothing in the nose except distinct licorice Mike and Ike style....it then opened up to a wonderful candy sweetness...the body had a lot of carbonation...that eventually settled....flavors of licorice....light malt and a spiciness... this is the first beer(or one of the few) ive dug that has licorice qualities....finishes with a candy sweetness and the alcohol is extremely well hidden

scura buona schiuma perisistente sentori fruttati lievemente tostato maltato leggermente alcolico in bocca piuttosto frizzante ma piuttosto morbida non agressiva note di frutta secca tendente al dolce ma piuttosto bilanciata finale decisamente riscaldante

Big head raises in the bottle upon opening. Pours brown as a beer bottle. Taste is heavily in the European strong beer area, with some alcohol fusels. I’m not enjoying this as much as other raters, I see.

Bottle, Beers of Europe. Pours a hazy dark brown with a thin tan head. Aroma of molasses and brandy. Flavour is spicy and sweetish ,and has hints of raisin, prune and caramel. Bit syrupy; alcohol masked very well. Doesn’t this mean ’bad hour’ ?!

Blind rating
330mL bottle, shared by Olivier on 9/30/07
Very "Belgian" appearance, with sloppy lacing cast everywhere, and a dark, scorched hickory colored body that shows medium clarity. Head is moderately well-retained, and a medium beige color.
Clean smelling yeast (similar to Westvleteren) shows moderate fruity tones (prunes, apples, plums) and a soft, but very supportive chocolate-raisin maltiness sits in the background. Medium-high strength of aroma, with some poignant tart, berry-like notes possibly from the dark malts. I claim it to be Belgian, thinking it too clean for Canada and too Belgian for an American knock-off. It does seem shockingly smooth and well concealed is the alcohol (I guess somewhere around 8%!). Interesting array of malts, but I think, just slightly, there is a bit too much cookie dough and chocolate-vanilla-like sweetness. Soft and luxurious on the nose, though, indeed.
Very interesting dark fruits fill the gaps (which are few) in the caramel and raisin-tinted flavors. Low on phenols, with only a hint of peppery-like dryness on the finish, and no crude clove/anise notes. Again, the alcohol is no where to be found, and the mouthfeel is supple, with low carbonation giving it a nearly creamy feel. Almost fudge-like, though is the sweetness and it comes across very chewy, despite ample bits of tart fruits on the finish. Very drinkable and quite nice, if somewhat not outstanding in any one way.

Brown bottle, 25 cl, bottled on 19.12.06, best before 19.12.09, via Importations Privées Bièropholie, savoured on September 21 2007; eye: brown with burgundy reflections, lightly hazy, no effervescence, tiny ring of beige head around the glass; nose: rich odours of alcohol, caramelized malt, dark small berries, candied sugar, musty and one odour reminding of maple water; mouth: liqueur-like, caramelized malt, lots of caramel, candied sugar, dark small berries, a hint of hops, finale in caramelized malt with a hint of maple water, rather sweet, medium body, not much carbonation, sugar wraps around the gum; overall: good FRANÇAIS Bouteille brune, 25 cl, embouteillé le 19.12.06, meilleure avant 19.12.09, via Importations Privées Bièropholie, savourée le 21 septembre 2007; œil : brune avec des reflets bourgognes, légèrement voilée, pas d’effervescence, petit anneau de mousse beige qui ceinture le verre; nez : odeurs riches d’alcool, de malt caramélisé, petits fruits foncés, sucre candi, renfermé et une odeur rappelant l’eau d’érable; bouche : liquoreuse, malt caramélisé, beaucoup de caramel, sucre candi, petits fruits foncés, petite présence de houblon, finale en malt caramélisé avec une petite touche d’eau d’érable, plutôt sucré, corps moyen, peu carbonatée, le sucré enrobe les gencives; en résumé : bonne