Rust-tinted Belgian X-Mas celebration ale, bitterer than most holiday offerings, decorates cinnamon-nutmeg-spiced ambiance with effervescent juniper hops and delicate caramelized malts. Ripe raisin heightens mint-y aftertaste.
All posts by John Fortunato
ABBAYE DU VAL-DIEU TRIPLE
Clean, polite, moderate-bodied triple with unassumingly lusty 9% alcohol volume and hazy flaxen hue sustains candied Scotch sweetness, fetching barleywine suavity, spiced citrus charm, and medicinal upsurge, receiving herbaceous peppery clove minting to fill out honeyed peach creaminess.
ABBAYE DU VAL-DIEU BROWN
Fruity hop barrage and sourdough yeast sinew nearly overwhelm malt-smoked caramel creaminess of busy garnet-hued medium body. Candi-sugared cherry-apricot-banana ripeness and brandy-soaked fig-raisin-plum surge bring fruitful respite. But coarse 8% alcohol burn allows disturbing tinny backdrop to ransack spotty saccharine finish, lowering its appeal.
ABBAYE DU VAL-DIEU BLOND
Pour slowly highly carbonated white-headed blond. Resilient candied butterscotch banter and white-peppered hops lend laid-back elegance to doughy biscuit spine. Mild medicinal spell subdues citric-spiced finish, becomong a tad soapy along the way.
ABBAYE DES ROCS GRAND CRU
Cork-dried dark ale with woozy 10% alcohol fervor and carbolic soda flow gains tangy orange juice essence topping ripe peach-honeydew succulence to pleasant bitter-hopped raisin-prune finish.
ABBAYE DES ROCS BURGUNDY ALE
Heavily carbonated rust-toned beige-headed ale brings sweet barleywine spirit to creamy malt extract and rich milky sinew, preserving multi-dimensional vibrancy. Perfume-wafted clove spicing fortifies delicate burgundy finish. Compare favorably to dark German Wheat Ales.
ABBAYE DES ROCS BLANCHE DOUBLE WHITE ALE
While pouring former Blanche des Honnelles, heavy carbolic fizz overflows sour yeast eminence. In fine tradition of grape-vinous white-wined Belgian ales, cloudy rust-hued full body submits aromatic citrus tang to spicy floral hops and herbal mint tinge.
ABBAYE DES ROCS AMBREE
Corkscrew setup for meringue-foamed alcohol-heavy amber ale (a.k.a. La Montagnarde). Rich fruit-spiced malting sweetens subordinate barleywine linger to form yeast-sinewed bock-like setting. Ripe apple, grape, and cherry adjuncts firmly fill out buttery bottom of non-specific laid-back medium body.
ABBAYE D’AULNE TRIPLE BLONDE ALE
Consistent fluffy-headed pale ale maintains up-front champagne essence, aromatic yeast sweetness, and lively hop penetration – softening centralized creamy froth with mineral-watered crisping.
ABBAYE D’AULNE BROWN ALE
Deliciously provocative digestif boasts insinuating burgundy aromatics, head-on carbolic briskness, candied yeast tongue, and buttery caramel quotient. Bubbly champagne fizz surrounds musty raisin-fig conflux and overripe melon-cantaloupe sentiment to subtle black cherry coughdrop finish of the most uncommonly complex brown ale on the market.
AASS JULEOL LAGER
Tantalizing mahogany-hued foamy-headed Norwegian holiday treat furnishes flowery yeast proclivity, sour malt intrigue, and nutty caramel sanctuary with explosive carbolic upsurge. Clove-spiced cherry, date, and prune illusions add wintry luster to smooth barleywine finish.
AASS GENUINE PILSNER
Closer to Czech beer due to soft grain nuance, bleached barley flow, and bitter hop penetration. Also, not far removed from pungently malt-y Dutch brews such as Heineken or Peter’s Brand with its musty bread-like yeast. Soap water finish ruins its thrust.