7.9/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 6
Overall 8.5
From a 330ml bottle on 1/6/2013. Pours a super murky brown with a small thin head. Has a powerful aroma of stewed fruit, plums, prunes, dates, raisins and more than a touch of booze. All of the aforementioned also feature in the flavour, along with a good dash of strawberry, some cherry, and a touch of honey. The palate is quite sticky and the carbonation low. There’s certainly a distinct vinous, alcoholic character to it, but it’s still quite easy to drink for a beer that’s 14.6%. A very interesting, rather impressive brew. Not really a typical barley wine - the closest reference point I can think of is Rochefort 10, but this is better.
Tried
from Bottle
on 01 Jun 2013
at 02:37
6.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 8
Texture 4
Overall 7
From a 330ml bottle on 22/5/2013. Lost a third of the bottle on removing the cap. Pours a dark, cloudy amber with a big head. Has a strong, acidic, spicy aroma. The flavour is indeed Christmassy, with caramel and toffee, stewed and dark fruit, and lots of spice, with a moderate bitterness at the back. the palate is quite creamy and the carbonation a tad too high. This is a bit of a mixed bag - it tastes much better than it smells and is over carbed, but is relatively interesting none the less.
Tried
from Bottle
on 22 May 2013
at 02:26
7.8/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 9
Murky brown with less than a coat of beige head. Ugly as a hatful (as seems to be the house style). Aroma of honey, butterscotch, pine, oak, lemon, greengages. Syrupy with low carbonation. Sweet toffee, greengages, coffee, pine, pepper, a stemmy cherry note, pine, oak, a light tanginess. Flavours are all tied together. The sweetness pretty much vanishes at the end and the alcohol is fairly obvious but not hot (although it sticks out more as it warms). Quite something.Third and last bottle. Still ugly. Honeyed lemon, butterscotch, underripe plums. Very sweet, warming but integrated alcohol, sweetness lifted away at the end that’s more gently acidic than bitter or dry.
Tried
from Bottle
on 08 May 2013
at 06:53
6.8/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle. Hazy amber with less than a coat of off-white head. Aroma Grapefruit, apricots, jaggery, pine needles/ antiseptic (is that irony?). Low carbonation, rather syrupy. Grapefruit and bitter oranges straight away over the top of nectarines, biscuit, jaggery, pepper. Boozy but not hot. Dries out a bit at the end leaving citrus, spices and a breath of alcohol. Pleasant and balance-wise hangs together pretty well, but I can’t see why I’d want this 11.5%er again.
Tried
from Bottle
on 30 Apr 2013
at 06:57
7/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 4
Overall 8
Pours very dark brown with a fading head.Nose shows funky brett, red wine, redcurrants and little else. Nice though.Flavours are a little more geared towards a BSDA with some soft chocolate and roasted malt before the funk and booze rolls through.Body feels watery.A bit of a mishmash of flavours, can’t quite get my head around this one.
Tried
from Can
on 23 Apr 2013
at 21:14
7.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8.5
Pours hazy pale amber . Actually reminiscent of mango. Head fades fast.Aroma of overt, full-on passion-fruit with the mango noticeable underneath. Also funky brett and green apples. Very fruity.Lots of brett and acidity in terms of flavour - unlike in the aroma the fruit doesn’t dominate. It’s still noticeable however, merging in seemlessly amongst the funk. Some woody notes too. Nice!Carbonation could be upped.
Tried
on 14 Apr 2013
at 23:26
7.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Pours deep amber with a fading head.Nose shows Belgian esters and soft spicy phenols along with herbal, spicy hops and some clean, light sweet malt.Boozy syrupy flavours but very clean. Smooth but obvious alcohol, sweet clean malt, soft herbal hops. Unnecessarily high booze.Needs more carbonation.
Tried
on 03 Apr 2013
at 19:28
6.8/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle shared at the Brew Wharf, London - big thanks to Nick for bringing this along! Pours oily black with a thick, brown cream head. Lots of funk in the nose, smacking of some brand of infection, along with dark, tangy berries. Medium sweet flavor with more tangy funk, dark chocolate syrup, sourish berries, faint roasted malts. Medium to full bodied with fine carbonation and a chewy mouthfeel. Sweet, tangy dark malt finish, some dark sugars here, moderate chocolate; mild heat, too. Rich and the funk does add an interesting element, though I’m not sure it’s intentional.
Tried
from Bottle
on 29 Mar 2013
at 02:02
7.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 4
Overall 8.5
From a 330ml bottle on 28/1/2013. Pours pretty much black with a huge three finger tan head. The aroma is features chocolate, caramel and prunes, with hints of coffee and smoke. This is a real sweet one, with chocolate and caramel again the primary drivers, but I also get the honey, some condensed milk, and a fair bit of dark dried fruit. The sweetness is balanced quite nicely by a modest roasty bitterness. The palate is creamy. The only knock is that it’s a shade over-carbonated. Otherwise, this is an excellent sweet stout. Fabulous artwork on the label too!
Tried
from Bottle
on 27 Jan 2013
at 21:08
5.4/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 2
Overall 5.5
From a 330ml bottle on 27/1/2013. Pours a murky cola colour with a biggish head that disappears quite quickly. Had a modest caramel malt aroma with a hint of dark fruit. The flavour follows suit, with some caramel sweetness, some prune and date, and a bit of chocolate and brown sugar. Couldn’t detect any Belgian character to it at all. Finishes with medium to big slightly roasty bitterness. I found this to be ridiculously over-carbonated, which refused to settle down despite being left in the glass for ages. Even without the explosion of bubbles making it hard to down, it comes across as a bit pedestrian. Rather disappointing given the Moon Dog Love Tap I just downed previously was rather good. Perhaps one for a re-rate just in case it was a dud bottle.
Tried
from Bottle
on 26 Jan 2013
at 22:23