Bottle 330ml.Dark black brown colour with a small large, frothy, good lacing, mostly lasting, light brown head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, roasted, chocolate, sweet malt, alcohol. Flavour is moderate to heavy sweet and bitter with a long duration, roasted, sweet malt, alcohol, dark fruit. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft, finish feel is light alcoholic. [20120419]

Draft at Taps Beer Bar, Kuala Lumpur. Reddish amber pour, quite frothy and that lace clings to the side of the glass. Spicy aroma which really sets the scene for what's coming right behind it! Quite a malty taste, but then the spice and pepper from the dry hops totally takes over and dominates this beer. Slight citrus overtones in the aftertaste, but make no mistake about it, this beer is all about the hops and is packed full of spice which might not be to everyone's taste. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Wait, no hops and not boiled either? Bottle, 14C. Syrupy pour, cloudy yellow gold, no head. A plume of white sediment rises to the centre of the glass, although there’s a lot left in the bottle. Aroma of sour oranges, bread, untended grape vines, peppery leaves. Syrupy appearance but medium bodied with a somewhat slippery texture. Carbonated, but only just. Taste has white wine turning to vinegar, dried mandarin peel, spelt bread, under-ripe berries, apricot stones, uncultivated herbs, bark. No sign of the alcohol really. Seems to be separating into layers in the glass. After a while some lightly spiced honeyed notes emerge from the sourness. Sour with wild rocket at the end. Interesting with some very unusual flavours, but what I liked was the way they were brought together.

Bottle, 13C. Lovely clear deep copper with an off white head that disappears quickly in a La Trappe glass but sticks around a bit longer in a more forgiving tulip. Aroma of raisins, figs, red wine, pickling spices. Slightly syrupy, prickly carbonation. Taste has caramel, dried fruit, plenty of alcohol, spices. Not much yeast presence although getting the sediment into the second helps. Quite Christmas ale like. Dries out a fair bit at the end leaving spices and some heat from the alcohol (which I don’t love but it not out of whack for this sort of thing). Was hoping the "incredibly small amount of dried chile" here would mean earthy fruity flavours like a mulato chile but there’s a lack of sweet fruity earthy depth. Not a knockout but enjoyable enough.

Bottle, 11C. Amber with a large off white head that lasts well. Yes, complex hop aroma: peaches, kumquats, lychees, custard apple, pepper, hashish, grapefruit, white grapes. Oily with low carbonation. Bittersweet with toffee and peach sweetness; bitterness is very strong but not quite harsh and kicks in early. Dries out at the end pretty well. Pine, various citrus fruits, herbs and spices (pepper, anise) linger. 25 hops sounds like maybe it’s going to be less a symphony and more like an orchestra being pushed down the stairs but the aroma is pretty coherent, although lacking a bit of a tingly top note. Usual gripes about this sort of thing apply (need sweetness to balance bitterness and dry hopping harshness, need bitterness to balance aromatics: why make beer so big?). A bit of sediment in a second glass softened the mouthfeel agreeably.

Pours ruby/copper with a large, fading head.Nose shows resinous, piny hops along with soft mandarin and lychee. Underneath is generous sweet crystal and bready malt.Flavours are equally hoppy, with lots of pine and hop resin providing the main show. Some rich clean malt underneath with very faint nutty notes. Seems a little grainy.Carbonation is unnecessarily full-on.Could use a more interesting malt profile to jazz things up a bit.

Tap at GABS. Reddish bronze with a beige head. Aroma of honey, nuts, flowers. Light-bodied, but the (interesting) honey fills it out - very pleasing texture. Taste is mildly sweet with honey, toast, nuts. Balancing bitterness with some spices. Good. [3.4]Bottle. As above, but it’s a bit fizzy in the bottle and adds an unwelcome astringency. The honey’s the star here, but the dry and bitter finish sets it off nicely.

33 cL bottle. Pours hazy dark brown to black with a small off-white head. Aroma is dark roasted malty and light alcohol. Thick malty, alcohol and liqourice to roasted. Sweet and light sticky. Warming alcohol finish.