Very nice, slightly copper tint to a nice brown coloured body wtih a relatively large, but fast-fading tan head that started at four centimetres in height, but down to just a thin layer after a minute. Aroma of alcohol, metallic notes, pitted fruits, caramelised sugars, toffee, nuts, earth and a bit of grapes - fairly nice throughout the nose. Medium to Full-bodied; Rich, malty, nutty, earthy and robust caramelly and sweet beer shows at first with a lot of body and some nice toffee sweetness finishes this out, along with a lot of pitted fruits, nuts and earthiness, but this finishes fairly cleanly and very sweet. Aftertaste is rich with a great balance and tons of sweetness, ranging from toffee to pitted fruits, peanuts and even some stone fruits (apricots) seem to come out here, but the malt body looms large here. Overall, a very nice Belgian strong that's rich and robust, full of complexities, but somehow is easy-drinking and clean! Great to sample as the LAST of the sampler pack, right before Christmas Eve, and worthy of a purchase outright! I sampled this twelve ounce can, purchased as part of the 12-pack Christmas Sampler, from Costco in Arlington (Pentagon City), Virginia on 12-November-2021 for US$19,99/twelve pack, with a 'best by' date of 31-January-2022 and sampled at my house here in Washington on 23-December-2021, right before Christmas Eve!

Super dark, very oily rich brown and inky black coloured body with a thick-ish three centimetre tall rich brown head that fades fairly quickly, but also leaves an ugly lace on the sides and even the top of this one. Aroma of rich roasted and toasted malts with star anise, licorice, nutmeg, bread and a bunch of metallic pungency, with some alcohol here, of course. Medium to Full-bodied; Very rich malts, oatmeal and grain all here, with some star anise, licorice, malt, earth, nuts, pitted fruits and some vanilla all here with a slight kick of molasses and alcohol, but not as strong as I'd expect. Aftertaste is still rich from the malts, but some lactose, cream, vanilla and oddly - tobacco, help soften the blows of the spices and rich malts, with a slightly thinner than expected body at the end, but still packed with pungency. Overall, a nice beer for the style with a lot of dryness, spice, pungency, alcohol and sweetness with a decidedly Belgian kick that hits nicely, especially at the end. Great to sample as one from the sampler pack, and worthy of a purchase outright! I sampled this twelve ounce can, purchased as part of the 12-pack Christmas Sampler, from Costco in Arlington (Pentagon City), Virginia on 12-November-2021 for US$19,99/twelve pack, with a 'best by' date of 31-January-2022 and sampled at my house here in Washington on 22-December-2021.

A super rich, oily, dark brown coloured body with a very deep and opaque (around 90 per cent) glow with a fairly thin, just over one centimetre tall strong brown head that also has an oily film on top. Aroma of deep nuts, roasted malt, oatmeal, coffee, grain and some strong spices of anise and nutmeg with only a touch of residual sugars, alcohol and cream noticeable. Medium to Full-bodied; Very dry and super earthy, nutty and malty with a good touch of the yeast that also adds to the dryness, but also some nuts, earth and slight metallic notes here with a very nice oatmeal and coffee flavour that hit nicely and bring out some additional complexity. Aftertaste is super dry with the malts, spices and oatmeal all very strong with some nice complex yeastie elements, but no real sweetness, which is actually refreshing. Overall, a very nice dry, 'Belgian' stout with a great body, complexity and range that hits very nicely throughout - one I'd easily buy outright, outside of any sampler pack, but this format was great for this beer - very nice to try! I sampled this twelve ounce can, purchased as part of the 12-pack Christmas Sampler, from Costco in Arlington (Pentagon City), Virginia on 12-November-2021 for US$19,99/twelve pack, with a 'best by' date of 31-January-2022 and sampled at my house here in Washington on 14-December-2021.