Bottle from Geers. Clear dark amber, lasting, thin, tan head. Intense aroma of red apple, ripe pear, raisin, dark honey, plum jam, toffee, wet wood, calvados, 'Baba au Rhum'. Taste has very sweet red apple, pear, candied orange and perhaps a hint of cherry coated in sugary, honeyish, caramelly maltiness and a jam-like body; light woody bitterness in the middle before a herbal hoppy finish kicks in with lingering dried fruits, red apple, vanilla, wet wood and heating liqueur alcohol (cognac, armagnac, calvados perhaps). Medium body, oily-syrupy texture, average carbonation. Excellent late-night sipper and a very pleasant surprise as a French beer.

One of (to my knowledge) only two variants of this northern French barleywine, the other being a very meritorious cognac version. Thinnish, pale greyish beige, mousy head, immediately settling as a 'ring' around the edge and open in the middle; beautiful, initially completely clear, deep amber robe with fiery copper tinge. Convincing bouquet of caramel, biscuit cake, indeed armagnac and very credibly so, vanilla-scenting oak wood, yellow raisins, honey, Grand Marnier, walnut cheese, old dry peanuts, paprika crisps, madera, ginger, white port, apple peel, varnish, vague hint of rainwater faraway in the background. Sweet onset but not sticky, candied orange, yellow raisin and honey-glazed red apple aspects with a dim sourish edge, refinedly carbonated (though still very 'active' for the style) with a vinous, smooth, bit resinous mouthfeel, heated by the alcohol early on, yet in a relatively subtle, elegant manner. Lovely hard-caramelly and dry-biscuity malt sweetishness, clearly oxidized already but refinedly so, like old madera or aged white port, adding complexity and nobility; boozy finish, lots of warm, caramelly armagnac but this liquor's general flavour profile fits perfectly in the overall character of an English style barleywine. Soft woodiness and a very vague echo of floral hop bitterishness are added, too, but the main stage is occupied by sweet-caramelly oxidized maltiness making love to the sweet-caramelly 'core' of the armagnac. Long, warming, soothing finish - at last, a French beer with the rich, vinous, desserty and liqueur-ish character of an old-fashioned English barleywine, that is at the same time clever enough to seek connection with 'native' traditions: the last time I had a glass of armagnac, was two years ago, a sample of exactly the same age as myself in some fancy restaurant in the Périgord region in southern France (a beautiful memory), and I remember pondering about the lack of armagnac barrel aged barleywines... This one (and several others of course) fills that gap, and strengthens me in my persuasion that French craft beer enthusiasts should apply the local wine and brandy cultures to their beery products much more thoroughly, like the Italians have done. Beautiful, and 'maderized' a bit, just the way I love my barleywines - this one beats the cognac version for me. French 'élégance' at its best, as far as 'bière de dégustation' is concerned.