A very special tasting

Now I know that the festive period is just a distant memory but what I'm about to review now is what has undoubtedly been my "Holy Grail" since my love affair with Belgian beer first began.

It's no secret that my favourite beer is the mind blowing Stille Nacht from the mad brewers of Essen and what we have here is the highly sought after barrel aged version, namely Stille Nacht Reserva.
A beer that is only released once every 5 years (since 2000) and in very limited quantities.

The release here is the latest 2010 Reserva (yes even though it was released in 2013) what it is in fact is the regular 2010 beer (hence the date) matured for 25 months in Bordeaux barrels then bottled and released to the eager waiting public.

The bottle in question belonged to our great friend Filip Geerts (who runs the outstanding site Belgian Beer Board) he most generously brought that precious bottle (and a bottle of the wonderful Winterkoninske Grand Cru) to the recent bottle share that was held during the weekend of the 6th Bruges Beer Festival - the location for this magical evening that great bar of Rudy's - De Bierboom (located on Langestraat and well worth a visit)

Now for the taste..............................

The Reserva pours a clear deep amber with the slightest suggestion of a faint white head that in the blink of an eye vanishes, leaving behind a sticky, oily film - a result no doubt of the lengthy barrel ageing process and the formidable 13% ABV.

A powerful aroma of woody oak-like tannins, sticky sweet caramels, red skin grapes, along with that there's the regular Stille Nacht jammy characteristic - only this time very much in the background.

Taste....WOW........instantly you get the barrel ageing then grape like vinous notes along with slightly tart red skinned fruits, then you get the toffee, jammy sweetness combined with rich plum bread before  an alcoholic Port like finish.

So there we have it, my search over - and was it worth the 10 year wait.....HELL YES!!!! now it's just a waiting game until the release of SN Reserva 2015.

      

Struise Tsjeeses Reserva

Well seeing that my last post concerned my Christmas beer, it's only right that I share my New Years beer (well New Years eve) and my what a way to welcome in 2013.

What we have here is a special limited release of a beer that I've already reviewed, the difference with this beer is that it has been aged in oak barrels for 6 months prior to bottling.

http://jaysbelgianbeers.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/tsjeeses.html

Tsjeeses Reserva pours a murky brick red and is topped by a huge, creamy, beige coloured head that really lasts, eventually falling to leave a lasting finger width cap.

Incredibly powerful aroma that smacks you in the senses - sweet,sweet malts, ripe orchard fruits (apple and pear) sherry soaked wood (seriously) spicy triple notes before finishing with oily rich alcohol.

Taste is sweet caramel malts then you get rich mixed fruits (pear and grape) light spiced yeasty notes (clove and coriander) then the oak comes through to add another depth, with it you get tannin / vinous notes - yes the alcohol is there but not as prominent as on the aroma.

without doubt a staggeringly good beer......will I see more in just 4 weeks time when we visit Bruges again - I bloody hope so.    

Fantome de Noel

Okay, here we have the special Christmas beer that I stash away at the back of my cupboard and forget about until the 24th - reserved as our youngest says "for Santa" (well the big guy deserves the best)

So here we have Fantome de Noel...and my was I (sorry Santa) looking forward to this particular seasonal offering from brew-master Dany Prignon.

The trademark 750ml green bottle opens with that characteristic ear ringing POP! but no drama follows  (read my last post) it just calmly sits there in the bottle.
Fantome de Noel pours a clear, deep garnet red that is topped by a large, creamy, tan coloured head that slowly fades to a lasting thin cap.

Inviting aroma of dark morello cherries (or should that be cranberries) crisp green apples, subtle spices (clove and coriander) sweet dark sugar and roasted malts before a light musty hay note on the finish.

Taste again is dominated by the dark fruits (deep tart cherry) but there's also ripe pear and banana coupled with a sharp citric edge.
Hints of cocoa can also be found before an almost pine like sharpness compliments the dry/carbonated finish.

Is this beer really 10% ABV?......my that's some hiding - it drinks as easy as a 5% Hefeweizen.

Yet again, another outstanding example of true farmhouse brewing from Dany.......and I still have another of his beers stashed away - not another Noel but a bottle of...............         

Canaster Winterscotch

The time is right to open what is undoubtedly one of my favourite styles of Belgian beer, namely Christmas beers - there's something magical about their dark, richly spiced, high ABV content that so appeals to my taste-buds.

So here we have a beer from De Glazen, a brewery founded in 2004 by Jef Van den Steen and Dirk De Pauw, who both met in the late 80's whilst working at the town hall of Erpe-Mere.
Together they started experimenting in home brewing in a small 50 ltr kettle, but keen to brew better beer they enrolled on a three year training course at the CTL institute in Gent.

Now qualified brew-masters they had ideas of a brewery of their own - and so after much searching the installation was eventually set up in the newly built property at the Glazentorenweg in Erpe-Mere (hence the name of the brewery)
In 2002 Dirk and Jef were joined by Mark De Neef, head librarian in Aalst and in 2004 the business was born.

Okay so on with the beer - firstly a word of warning this is a VERY lively beer, I'm always gentle when opening beer, especially ones with a cork and cage but this one really took me by surprise - after (oh so gently) removing the cork a massive three inch brown volcano erupted from the bottle, completely depositing the contents of it's neck into the strategically placed jug I had sat the beer in (you live and learn) luckily I had also taken the bottle out of its paper wrapper or the would of been ruined for the photo.

Any way drama (and fountain) over Canaster pours a very deep, dark, chestnut brown, topped with an enormous, foamy, tan coloured head. As you can expect the pour was extremely carbonated so patience whilst decanting.

Aroma is full of candied dark fruits (raisins and dates) sweet caramel, roasted malts with plum bread notes, there's also gentle spicing and a pleasing alcohol waft on the finish.

Magnificent taste is crammed with rich dark fruits, sweet buttery caramel, doughy - bready yeasts and a slight bitter note is there before a spicy liquorice laden finish.

Without doubt a fantastic beer BUT a word of caution - is very much one to open with care, it's contents are eager to escape........oh a don't forget the jug.  

Fantome Magic Ghost

In an earlier post I excitedly reviewed a beer (and brewery) seldom seen in pub menus or on store shelves - that beer was Fantome Saison.

Yes I have another of Dany's weird and wonderful Saisons to sample, this time the intriguing Magical Ghost - a beer that in keeping with Dany's "brew with nature" philosophy is brewed the green tea (and other magical ingredients I guess)

Now on with the pour and YES! it's GREEN.....absinthe green, a natural colour coming no doubt from the green tea used in the brewing process - a green beer may sound alarming but the subtle pale kiwi colour is very attractive (we're not talking a shitty, chemical alcopop dayglo here)

That magical lime green beer is topped by a huge trademark white bubbly head that eventually settles down to a constant finger width covering.

Aroma was as expected, being crammed with floral, grassy, herbal notes also tart and citric with a crisp green apple fruitiness and a deep, bready finish - at the same time there's a malty sweetness.

Taste follows with a tart, herbal bitterness (is that dill?) then sharp, green fruits (apples, kiwi and grapes) along with that fresh cut grass and a strong citric backbone with a long, lingering finish.

Yet again Dany delivers another unique beer and one quite unlike anything I've tried before.

Yes his beers are old school, true artisnal brewing that push my sweet, dark, triple loving taste-buds to the extreme - but that's why Fantome excites me.     

Forestinne Gothika

Time for another beer from Falmignoul brewery Brasserie Caracole, this time one from the Forestinne range - a beer brewed by Philippe Golinvaux and Michael Vermeren.

This intense beer pours black - jet black, and is topped by a thick, dense, creamy, tan coloured head that really lasts, it just sits there as you work your way through.

A powerful aroma hits you the second you uncap the bottle, pouring the beer and the air fills with intense liquorice aromas.
Lift the glass and get a lung full....WOW! Instantly you get powerful liquorice coupled with bitter dark cocoa, then you get a toffee like sweetness - great start.

Taste follows that fantastic aroma, initially you get sweet caramel then roasted malts, dark sweet fruits (plums and figs) sprinkled with a delicate spice note before finishing with a coffee bean like bitterness.

Weighing in with a relatively healthy 7.5% ABV this beer really does pack a flavour punch.......bloody lovely.  

Struise St Amatus 12

Now for a beer that since its introduction a couple of years ago has been high on my "to try" list.
So during the last Bruges beer festival I paid a visit to the Struise shop situated on the Burg and (along with a few other bottles) purchased myself a couple.

The label on the bottle has a church window design and features all 4 brewers (Peter, Urbain, Carlo and Phil) portrayed as saints - the reason behind this....well a Canadian reporter called them a set of self promoting bastards, so they thought "we'll show him" and put themselves on the label, and to top that portray themselves as Gods at the same time.

Also the name - St Amatus was a Benedictine monk and the hometown of the Struise brewery (Oostvleteren) is the only parish to patron St Amatus as a saint.

On with the beer, like many on offer from Struise what we have here is a dark beer whose ABV hits double figures (10.5%) so it pours that characteristic deep, dark mahogany (almost black) with a ruby /  plum like hue topped by a huge coffee coloured head that quickly falls to a thin cap.

Powerful aroma of liquorice, a heavy dose of deep dark fruits, rich and roasted malts, black coffee and a sweet, dark muscovado sugar finish - intense and heavy stuff indead.

Taste can only follow that heady aroma.....and it does - initially you get sweet, rich, roasted malts then loads of dark dried fruits (raisins, prunes and figs) also a hint of tart cherry, lots of caramel / toffee sweetness (almost molasses like) the finish has faint touches of spice and tobacco leaf.

So yes another great beer from them self promoting bastards.