6.8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6

8th July 2012
Opaque dark brown beer, tidy pale tan head. Crispy palate. Mildly sour - like a very watered down Duchesse Du Bourgogne. Coca cola and suppressed red berry fruits. All very mild indeed! Minerally crisp finish. Surprisingly thin and watery for it’s abv but fine.

7.3

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Pours a dark brown with a gigantic 4 finger and growing tan head that fades to a really nice lacing. Nose is burnt oak, chocolate and caramel. Lots of candied sugar and figs. Taste is very sweet with TONS of milk chocolate and figs. Hint of peaches and bananas. Medium body.

7.6

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

16 oz can. Pours a very deep red brown with a tan head. Very nice aniseed aroma with perhaps some earthy and cocoa hints. Flavors of cocoa syrup and aniseed, cherry, red grape/raisin, earthiness. Actually a touch of jalapeño somewhere in there. Just a bit too much, unbalanced. It’s pretty good, but I’ve got to take it a bit slowly.

7.8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

16 ounce can into tulip glass, no canning date. Pours very dark hazy reddish brown color with a good 2 finger fairly dense tan head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Some slight spotty lacing on the glass, with a decent amount of carbonation streaming up. Aromas of molasses, anise, caramel, raisin, plum, grape, roasted malt, nuttiness, candi sugar, biscuit, pepper, and yeast spices. Some pretty nice aromas. A little much on the anise, but has some good balance and complexity. Taste of molasses, plum, raisin, roasted malt, grape, anise, chocolate, candi sugar, biscuit, pepper, clove, and yeast spices. Lingering notes of molasses, grape, caramel, candi sugar, anise, roasted malt, chocolate, and yeast spices on the finish for a good bit. The anise definitely is more toned down in the taste, and gives a slight tartness to the brew; which is quite nice. Nice balance and complexity with flavors. Medium carbonation and body; with a fairly creamy and slightly slick mouthfeel. Alcohol is very well hidden, with only a small warming after the finish. Overall this is a damn nice Belgian dark ale! Nice flavor balance, with a good amount of roasted chocolate character. Really enjoyed this one.

7.4

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

Can. Pours a clear deep brown with a brown head that dissipates slowly to the edges and laces. Aroma has a lot of dark grains and anise with a strong backing green raisin note. Flavor has a good amount of dark grains, candied sugars and anise with a strong green raisin backing.

7.5

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8

Sample at Kalamazoo Beer Exchange. This beer pours a cloudy dark reddish-amber color with a medium off-white head that recedes steadily. Stringy lacing on the glass. Aroma of sweet malt, black licorice and yeast. Medium to full body with a dark malty character and notes of anise, yeast and chocolate. The finish is malty with a lingering black licorice aftertaste. Above average overall.

4

Licorice (anise) overpowers this. Love black licorice but.. Had on tap, maybe canned is more mellow.

7.2

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

On tap at the brewpub. Deep garnet body, thin beige head. Sweet nose with sharp alcohol, licorice, raisin, and chocolate, tart and sweet, like a dark chocolate bar with crystallized sugars, anise, and grape. Firm, biting body with warming alcohol, raisins, grapeskin, and chocolate; almost leathery with a roasty finish. High acidity. Warming and prickly with sharp carbonation.