7

Solid average for the style. Classic and neutral l, perhaps a little ashy. Good beer. Gruut ghent

6

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Dark brown colour with thin head. It's mostly caramel. Very thin. Faintest trace of chilli.

6.9

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

Belgian dark ale with maple syrup and chili peppers, concocted at Gruut in Ghent. Medium thick, snow white, quickly breaking head stabilizing in a moussy ring over an initially clear ruddy-bronze brown beer with ochre-ish edges, misty with sediment. Aroma of very old caramel, dried blackberries, prunes, bayleaf, spicy-sweet maple syrup piercing through with almost passionfruity effect, bread crust, green tea, nutmeg, dried chili peppers somewhere but very faintly so, hints of clay, gin, beef stock and sweat. Spritzy onset, dark sweet fruitiness of medlar, fig, pear and again that passionfruit accent somewhere, sharply stinging carbonation, supple body; sweetish, slick caramelly and chestnutty malts with brown-bready core, clear spicy sweetness from the maple syrup - accentuating the caramel sweetness of the malts and strangely connecting quite well with both phenolic (clove, nutmeg) and 'real' chili spiciness, almost ginger-like in overall effect. Maple syrup, as usual, adds a resinous feel that lingers beyond the finish, where a tea-ish herbal hop bitter note, warming gin-like alcohol and an underlying, almost vaguely 'oud bruin'-like sourish streak appear. Interesting one, admittedly, though not in very good condition anymore, feeling a bit worn out and tired, as it were; still the maple syrup and the chilis match better with one another than I was expecting. Surprisingly daring to Gruut standards, but in need of finetuning and 'cleansing' to be truly great.

6.9

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5

Bottled at 7%ABV. Appearance: muddy brown with a small beige fizzy head of low retention. Aroma: toasted malts, nuts, brown bread, dried fruit, spices. Taste: similar to the aroma. Additional chocolate. Light to medium sweet. Sourish. Low to light bitterness. Mouth feel: medium body, lively carbonation. Overall: OK

7.6

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5

Appearance: cloudy gold with a tall white frothy head of decent retention. Aroma: malt, fruity, somewhat yeasty. Apples, pears, apricots, leather. Taste: light sweet, sourish, herbal, spicy. Apples and pears, apricots. Distant phenols. Dry ending. Light bitterness. Well hidden alcohol. Mouth feel: medium minus body, average carbonation. Overall: interesting.

7.5

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

@home poured into a shaker. Clear amber brown colour, good creamy tan head, thin layer remains till the end, fair lacing. Aroma sweet and roasted malts, caramel, brown sugar, iron notes. Taste medium sweet and bitter, malty, caramel, brown sugar, bit roasty, spicy notes. Medium body, oily to sticky texture, soft carbonation, malty sweetbitter aftertaste, sugary (but not too), bit roast, earthy notes, pretty good.

6.8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Bottle. Dark brown, hazy, creamy foam, smells spicy, cloves, nuts, caramel, dried fruits, herbs, a little chocolate. Sour-sweet taste, herbal kvass, spices and herbs, rotten hazelnuts, specific.

6

Appearance - 4 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

One of literally countless variations under the 'Mâitresse' label by Ghent's self-proclaimed city brewery, only 250 bottles (of 75 cl) made apparently - and it was my lucky day it seems, as I apparently got number one of those 250, randomly taken from the shelf in the Delhaize supermarket at the Kouter in the heart of Ghent... Low-alcohol wheat ale flavoured with roselle (dried hibiscus flowers), ginger and 'other spices' representing the 'gruut' this brewery specializes in - but which refers to a medieval tradition, as we all know. Moussy, even-bubbled, snow white head, medium thick at first but quickly opening and eventually completely vanishing; 'dirty' peachy amber at first with ruddy hue, becoming darker as the bottle is emptied and ending almost cloudy bronze. Aroma of indeed pronounced roselle (something I will probably never really like), bubblegum, white bread dough, tea, persimmon, roses, minerals, dust, light oxidation (rusty iron), red apple, old cotton cloth, soap (the only thing I can connect with the announced ginger), banana peel, unripe melon. Sweetish onset, banana, peach and pear fruitiness, lively carbonation with a smooth, glueish mouthfeel, thinnish and a tad soapy. Cereally and lightly caramelly maltiness with soapy wheat edge, the soapiness further accentuated by the specific spicing and, very predominantly, the strong herbality of the roselle; in the end, I get a very iced tea-like effect, almost lemonade-like even, with a late and brief touch of hop bitterness but mostly ongoing herbal and flowery roselle, though not in a fresh way. Bit too old perhaps - bottled almost a year ago - and roselle or hibiscus in beer is something I will never learn to appreciate in spite of many attempts, I'm afraid. Not well executed, not in the best condition and not my personal thing at all.