From tap at De Engel, Oldenzaal. Creamy head, full bodied beer. Sweet at first, than becoming dryish with some roasted malt. Firm hopbitterness. I''m surprised that a Belgian abbey ale brewer has a bock, but it is one of the best I''ve had so far this year.

Bottled (6.8%). Dark amber. The malt character is similar to other St. Bernardus - deep, soft and rich. It is clean and has a salty finish. Really good, but lacks the final touch to make it truly astonishing.

Very little head, immediately gone. Dark chestnut-ebony. Cold haze, clearing to red shine. Thick brown candi-sugar, honey and gingerbread whilst pouring, later sugar, honey and caramel. Also something bitter-spicey. Yeast from St. Bernardus rules. Bitter start and surrounding around the thick dark malts in the taste. Retronasal sweetness becomes really honey-ish and something earthy appears. Mouthfeel gives heavier impression than expected from 6.7 ABV. Restrained fermentation? Alcohol impression all the same. Impressive for its relative ‘low’ ABV. I didn’t know the Dutch market was still large enough to accommodate a special product.