Van tap bij de brouwerij in Luik gedeeld. Mosaic. Tropisch fruit, hoppig, citrustonen, sinaasappel, meloen, maltig. (16-6-2023).

Van tap bij de brouwerij in Luik. Fruitig, bittertonen, mango, lychee, grapefruit, mandarijn, maltig. (16-6-2023).

Van tap bij de brouwerij in Luik gedeeld. Crisp, hoppig, bittertonen, citrustonen, wat grassig, malttonen, licht bloemig. (16-6-2023).

Specialty ale from this most famed of the Liège city breweries, brewed with - wait for it - 'gauffres de Lièges' or Liège waffles, indeed one of those culinary things the 'cité ardente' is most renowned for. Whether they belong in beer - because this one was made with actual Liège waffles in the brewing kettle - remains to be seen. Bottle from the Delhaize supermarket at the Sterre in Ghent. Crackling, bubbling, very irregular, large-bubbled, off-white head, dissolving in seconds until literally nothing remains (I guess the butter and other ingredients of the Liège waffles killed it); warm apricot blonde robe with pale orange glow and thin strings of visible sparkling, incapable of maintaining any head formation at all - so that the content of the glass looks like an unblended lambic or a cider... Aroma of candied peaches, indeed vanilla sugar and butter from the Liège waffles, pan-fried apple, ripe banana, sweet dry cookies, crème au beurre, brésilienne nuts, background hints of bubblegum, dry cereals, cloves, cinnamon (the Liège waffles again, no doubt), mandarin juice, tulips. Sweet onset, clearly sugary with that vanilla sugar pushing itself to the foreground yet without overly sticky effect, fruity aspects of peach, sweet red apple, pear and some banana, light sourish touch underneath, medium to soft carbonation; slick and rather 'empty', somewhat oily mouthfeel. Smooth cereally pale maltiness with a thin caramelly edge ensues, immediately flavoured with this vanilline-like and buttery sweetness from the Liège waffles - a touch of waffle dough even appears near the finish, along with spicy elements of - next to this persisting vanilla - clove and cinnamon. Something vaguely citrusy (faint mandarin) is there too, along with a bubblegummy note; still, due to the lack of hop bitterness - ignoring a faint and brief grassy note tucked away in the finish - this whole construction continues to feel 'empty' and thin, with the sweet taste of pan-fried apples (rather than actual waffles) sprinkled with cinnamon and vanilla sugar remaining in the very end. Elements of the waffle as a whole do pass by here and there, but in a kind of 'deconstructed' form, with vanilline, cinnamon, butter and perhaps even skimmed milk popping up in decreasing order of prevalence, but never forming a complete picture; the basic structure of this weird beer is thin and slick and the utter instability of the head - again, disappearing in less than two seconds without leaving even the slightest trace - does not make it very appealing from a visual point of view. Sticky vanilla sugar eventually does stick to the teeth in the end - I do not even dare to inform my oldskool dentist about this. Bizarre concoction, unable to convince me that Liège waffles belong in beer - though I was fearing something even worse than this. Perhaps they need to try 'potée Liégeoise' or even 'boulets à la Liégeoise' as an ingredient in coming experiments, if they must - but I think I will pass. An ill-fated idea, no doubt inspired by the pastry stout and - later - pastry sour fad but neither stout nor sour ale, so in a sense this is perhaps the first ever 'pastry Belgian blonde'. I hope to hell that this pastry infusion in beers will come to a grinding halt soon - it has been done very innovatively in stouts by Omnipollo and others, but I think it is time to move onwards now. This, if anything, is hopefully a standalone experiment which does not require repeating - so do not let other brewers, in Belgium or anywhere else, be inspired by it.

Light amber with a frothy, white head. Citrus forward at the outset, both bitter and citric with lingering orange peel. Mellows out with time in the glass, the more malty bread and caramel tones becoming evident. Medium-bodied, mildish carbonation, dry. Decent chewiness. Not bad.

Amber with a foamy, white head of modest duration. Very intense aroma is full of cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar. Pancake (or waffle) house would be accurate. Taste is moderate bitter with a lingering waffle flavor that’s sweet, but not overly so. Medium-bodied, moderate carbonation. Took me awhile to make up my mind on this one. A bit of a gimmick really, but quite decent in moderate doses.

Appearance: Foggy gold with a one finger tall white head of good retention. Aroma: Pale malt, lemon, herbs. Taste: Light sweet, surprisingly low bitterness. Pale malt, lemon, herbal hop. Mouth feel: Light to medium body. Appropriate carbonation. Overal: Aromatic & fresh. Could really use more bitterring hop.

Appearance: Clouded deep brown with ruby highlights. Good beige head. Aroma: Roasted malt, coffee, chocolate, floral hop, some brown sugar. Taste: Medium dry. Pretty roasted, Coffee & chocolate, a fair amount of floral hop, almonds, vinous notes. Pleasant hoppy ending. Mouth feel: Medium body, lively carbonation. Summary: Good.

33cl bottle. A clear dark golden beer with a beige head. Aroma of mild apricot, stone fruits. Taste of mild apricot, grapefruit, stone fruits, peach. Moderate bitterness.

33cl can. A clear yellow golden beer with a white head. Aroma of mild fresh grassy hops, pale malt, some flowers, parfum. Taste of mild grassy hops, grainy pale malt, straw, parfum hops.