Rating #1300! Bomber bottle rated on Halloween Night! Big sweetness in the nose. Smells of juicy raisins and sugar-coated plums. Poured into a Sam glass, it’s dark brown at the thinner bottom, then turns black in the middle. A big, sudsy tan head leaves clumps of bubbles on the glass. Taste is this and sticky, with bits of licorice, weizen yeast, cherry, plum again, coffee candy and some pipe tobacco. Weizen spiciness conflicts with sugary sweetness, so no one dominates. Licorice is replaced in the middle by strong stout malt taste. Leaves a rime of malt sugar on the lips. Complex flavors just help disguise alcohol intoxication. If only those lights swirling outside my window would stop their incessant buzzing, I could enjoy this.

Bottled. I’m always quite hesitant with Avery brews. Some are absolutely fantastic, but others are quite disappointing (though not bad). So I did not expect a lot from this one, but it turns out to be very nice. Hazy redbrown color, medium off-white head. Aroma of chocolat, slight malty, slight yeasty. Strong malty taste, milk chocolat, caramel. Smooth and silky bod mouthfeel. Very nice.

Bottle. Clear, ruby body, with a beige head. Quite complex nose, with alcohol, licorice, some cellar, sweetness, dried fruits and some coffee. The flavor isn’t as enjoyable as the aroma, but still nice, with dried fruits, a little oxidation and roasted malt. Full body. There’s dried fruits in the finish, as well as a little oxidation, spices, malt and alcohol. The oxidation in the beer actually suited the beer quite nice. Definately a beer that should be available on a regular basis. Rating: 8-4-7-4-15-3-8 (070705)

Bottle, 22oz. Pours a clear, ruby color with a dense, quite small, beige head. The aroma is rather complex and heavy, with dried fruits, blackcurrant, some salty licorice, roasted malt, beefstock and alcohol. A little touch of oxidation too, just enough to be pleasing, and it’s there in the flavor too. It’s quite warming in the mouth, full-bodied and slightly sticky, releasing flavors of sugar, roasted malt, lots of dried fruits, some salty licorice, alcohol and a fruity bitterness with citrus and resin. The hoppy flavors are quite subdued, and so is the bitterness, but it’s sure there. I didn’t see any information on the IBU on the label, but I’m sure it’s not at the level of the average pale lager. In the finish there’s a little touch of coffee, as well as the sweet, malty flavors and dried fruits. Quite evident hoppy bitterness too. As the beer warms up, the alcohol becomes more evident, but it’s not reaching the point of unpleasantness, it’s just giving the beer a delicate warmth adecvate for the season, and it also gives me a relaxed feeling. I had some rather fatty, crafted sausages as a snack to go with it, and it deals pretty good with the fat, but on the other hand, it’s sweet enough to cover the roof of my mouth with a layer of sugar instead of fat. I think I prefer the sugars :-). There’s also a little spicy touch to the beer, but it took some time before I noticed, at least there’s cloves, but there’s something more, cardamom I think. I love these beers with layers and layers of flavors, they make me sit back, relax, forget about everything, and just trying to dissect the beer. Speak of the devil, (regarding layers of flavors) chocolate is also one of the aromas in this beer, or maybe just cocoa. Points deducted for too evident alcohol, but I sure doesn’t destroy the beer. By the way, a 22oz bottle is more (?) than enough for one person, easily giving joy for over one hour. And I still don’t understand why this one isn’t a regular Avery beer... Or is it just me? Judging from the ratings, it isn’t. (080306)