I acquired a 33 cl bottle almost a year ago from Smaakhuis. This is a particularly frosty and cold day, snow on the ground in west Texas and elsewhere. Time to sample a quadrupel. My Straffe Hendrik snifter gets the honor today, the bottle is opened and pouring now. The body is a dark cola color finished by a creamy head of eggshell foam. The smell mostly follows the traditional quad scent, dark fruit, grain, yeast and malt. The drink likewise has an essentially quad presence. Figs, brown sugar, bread, black plums, a bit of toffee, malt and a small bitterness at the end. Not earthshaking but not a bad representation of the style.

Bottle. Color: Clear chestnut, yellow-ish head. Aroma: Caramel malt, dried fruit notes, some hop. Taste: Nice blend of caramel malt, floral hop, hints of citrus fruit, some dried fruit and hints of chocolate. Sugary hints. Nice hopbitterness, mostly at the long lasting dry-ish finish. Moderate to over moderate sweet, over moderate going to medium bitterness.