Rating #5500! Deep dark brown coloured body with a muddied brown and copper body showing tints of ruby, violet and even sienna with a thinnish, single centimetre tall tan head. Aroma of cherries, oak, malt, grass, hay, yeast, alcohol and a bit of coriander seed, as well. Medium-bodied; Strong yeast and malt flavours with some cherry notes, dry oak, vanilla and even a bit of mushrooms and a good deal of must/basementy flavours. Aftertaste shows a great complexity of yeast strain, malt and dark cherry flavours that merge very nicely, without any tartness at all. A lot of residual sugars are noticeable from the fruit with a good malt and yeast characteristic that finishes complex. Overall, a nice kriek without the tartness that you’d expect from seeing the cherries on front, but pretty much what you’d find for the style in the motherland of Belgium. One of my favourite all time beers is the Riserva and somehow I went out of whack by having D’Tango Unchained BEFORE this one, and while I love both of those beers, this is simply a ’classic’ and very good...but not at the level of the formers. A nice beer for #5500 and one that I should keep a single bottle in a cellar for several years to see how the flavours and yeast develops. I sampled this 75 cL bottle purchased from Wegman’s in Alexandria, Virginia on 28-January-2016 for US$9,99 sampled at home in Washington on 07-June-2016 for my fifty-five hundredth rating of all time.

Aroma: caramel, cherries, Appearance: hazy amber with a beige head Taste: medium sweetness, medium bitterness, lightly sour, Palate: medium body, creamy, soft carbonation, long finish, Delicious

750 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 11/14/2014. Pours lightly hazy/cloudy deep ruby red color with a 2 finger fairly dense light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of big raisin, plum, fig, date, cherry, apple, banana, clove, pepper, caramel, toffee, toast, brown sugar, brown bread, light chocolate, herbal, and yeast earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of fruity/spicy yeast, cherries, and dark/bready malt notes; with good strength. Taste of big raisin, plum, fig, date, cherry, apple, banana, clove, pepper, caramel, toast, brown sugar, brown bread, light chocolate, herbal, and yeast earthiness. Good amount of earthy yeast spiciness on the finish; with lingering notes of raisin, plum, fig, date, cherry, apple, banana, clove, pepper, caramel, toast, brown sugar, brown bread, and herbal/yeast earthiness on the finish for a while. Damn nice complexity and robustness of fruity/spicy yeast, cherries, and dark/bready malt flavors; with a great malt/yeast/fruit balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium-high carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a smooth, fairly slick/bready, and lightly crisp/prickly mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is well hidden with only a light warming present after the finish. Overall this is an excellent fruited Belgian strong dark ale. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/spicy yeast, cherries, and dark/bready malt flavors; and very smooth to sip on for the big ABV. A very enjoyable offering.