Hemel & Aarde - Brouwerij De Molen

beerdrifter

Germany

3.8/5  rDev -5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked this up at the beer store at the De Molen Brewery. Lost about a quarter of the bottle as it was a gusher when I opened it. Pitch black pour with two finger tan head with great retention and lacing. Huge smokey, roasty nose with a ton of peat and hints of mocha and coffee and a touch of burnt electronics. Thankfully the peatiness and burnt electrical doesn't really show up in the taste. It's totally dominated by the smoke and dark chocolate with hints of espresso, oak, tobacco, alcohol, and just a touch of vanilla. Mouthfeel is smooth, creamy, thick and chewy with a nice bitter finish. If it weren't for the smell, this would be a really great beer. I am not a fan of peaty or smoked beers, and this beer has all those characteristics in the smell. The rest of the beer is solid and enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2012 16:30:51 | More by beerdrifter

Bonko_the_sane

North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +12.5%

05-13-2013 06:08:04 | More by Bonko_the_sane

shagens

Wisconsin

4.25/5  rDev +6.3%

05-01-2013 22:09:15 | More by shagens

Eriktheipaman

Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +12.5%

04-28-2013 15:13:12 | More by Eriktheipaman

neckbracesub

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev -18.8%

04-28-2013 13:02:52 | More by neckbracesub

MattyG85

Minnesota

4.35/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Poured from a 11.2 oz. bottle into a Surly Darkness chalice. Date on bottle reads Dec 5th, 2011.

Appearance: Pours nearly pitch black with a moderate amount of carbonation. Huge tan head that takes up half of the glass before slowly fading to a thinner creamy layer. Leaves a decent amount of lacing.

Smell: A big dark aroma that is very smoke and peat driven. Dark roasted malts with a strong scent of smoke and peat. Hints of dark bitter chocolate, coffee, burnt toast, caramel, toffee, biscuit, and yeast. Big hints of molasses and anise licorice spicing. Subtle hints of dark raisin, fig, cherry, and prune. Light hints of earthy and grassy hops. The smoked malt, peat, and chocolate stand out the most.

Taste: Follows the nose with a dark malty taste driven by smoke and peat. Dark roasted malts with a big taste of smoke and peat along with good notes of dark chocolate, coffee, toast, burnt caramel, toffee, yeast, grains, and biscuit. Sweet taste of molasses. Licorice taste from some anise. Undertones of dark dried fruit with notes of dark cherry, raisin, prune, and fig. Very subtle earthy hop presence. A very good smoked and peated malt taste.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a medium to high level of carbonation. Very creamy and smooth. Kind of thin for an imperial stout. Alcohol heat is light.

Overall: A really good smoky stout. It may lack a little in body, but the dark smoke and peat flavors are really good.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2013 06:17:42 | More by MattyG85

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml dated 7 dec. 2011. Thanks Hoppypocket!

Appearance. Pours a deep dark brown, black in the glass with two fingers of tan head.

Smell. Smokey peat and dark roasted malts, just a little molasses and maybe some dark fruits as well, but the smoke is pretty predominant.

Taste. Again very smokey and peaty with some tobacco and tar. There's also a bit of dark malt, molasses, and maybe a trace of dark fruit.

Mouthfeel. Medium+ body, very light for the abv and it actually works well. Medium-strong carbonation.

Overall. A very interesting beer that doesn't really conform to any style. High abv, lighter body, smokey as hell, and some big stout characteristics ...very interesting indeed.

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2013 02:25:50 | More by Rutager

DruRho

Maryland

4/5  rDev 0%

04-14-2013 22:33:52 | More by DruRho

TheBeerAlmanac

Kentucky

4.25/5  rDev +6.3%

04-01-2013 13:23:06 | More by TheBeerAlmanac

MEW

New York

3.75/5  rDev -6.3%

03-03-2013 22:40:09 | More by MEW

GONZALOYANNA

Spain

3.71/5  rDev -7.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

On-tap. Snifter glass. Enjoyed on jan´13. Black color, tan froth & fairly good retention crown. Coffee & fudge chocolate notes, roasted malt aroma & licorice candies to the nose. Roasted malt & pepper flavor, bitter/sweet mouthfeel. Medium to dense body. Moderate to low carbonation. Burnt chocolate & licorice touch are shown in a long finish. Dry coffe on the aftertaste. ABV well hidden.

Serving type: on-tap

02-28-2013 02:36:14 | More by GONZALOYANNA

nmann08

Maryland

4.25/5  rDev +6.3%

02-24-2013 01:03:13 | More by nmann08

Eric908

South Dakota

4.25/5  rDev +6.3%

02-19-2013 03:20:15 | More by Eric908

Haybeerman

Colorado

3.75/5  rDev -6.3%

02-06-2013 23:58:45 | More by Haybeerman

weonfire

Kentucky

3.04/5  rDev -24%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25

A - Jet Black. No light shines thru. Small white head.

S - Heavy smoke and roast flavor. small traces of chocolate.

T - Wow. Serious smoke. Dislike very much.

M - Medium viscosity. alcohol stings the tongue a bit.

O - Will never buy again. Heavily smoked beers are not for me.

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2013 01:57:57 | More by weonfire

mitlinks

Switzerland

4.5/5  rDev +12.5%

02-01-2013 06:16:59 | More by mitlinks

Mebuzzard

Colorado

4.53/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Another solid beer from de Molen crew.

A very dark brown pour, almost black. The off brown/tan head rises to about 2 fingers in a snifter glass. Lacing is tight and slick.

Leather hits me first in the aroma. Dark chocolate and tannin. Black plum, raisin, dark fruit, prune perhaps

The leather is present in the flavors as well. Along with the black fruit, dried fruit and chocolate there is a roasted malt character going on. Something of a smokiness comes and sits in the background. Some tobacco comes in.

Very nice beer. It has a sharp, yet velvet finish. Nothing sweet. A real good stout!

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2013 06:11:14 | More by Mebuzzard

Chrily

Norway

4/5  rDev 0%

01-14-2013 12:24:26 | More by Chrily

yamar68

Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

2011 vintage (10% abv):

Absolutely gorgeous looking stout... cola brown to pitch black with mountains of medium brown froth that cling to the glass... quite the photo friendly beer this is.

Rich, earthy peat moss aromas explode from the glass. Fudge and brownies beneath that with a smooth sense of caramel and toffee as well. Very smooth given both the alcohol content and the headlining peat character. A touch of dry smoke but mainly just that dirty, grassy moss profile.

Bitter chocolate on the palate, rice hulls, big dry peat moss flavors from start to finish, the finish is incredibly pronounced - an arid moss bit, some drying alcohol and oily coffee beans... bitter. It's a slow drinker but delicious indeed.

I'd love to try a barrel aged variant someday.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 01:30:43 | More by yamar68

yemenmocha

Arizona

4.33/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Good all around - very nice pour, deep black with dark brown head that's a good size head for an imperial stout. Nose is intense and quite appetizing with clear peat smoke and a big roasty aroma. Caramel baked goods in there too, but the peat is quite prominent. On the palate there's a rich mixture of flavors ranging from dark caramel, peat, roasted grains, slightly burnt toast, and bitter chocolate. Very carbonated and tickles the palate nicely. Long peaty/roasty finish.

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2012 02:40:15 | More by yemenmocha

mchen

Washington

4.5/5  rDev +12.5%

12-16-2012 00:10:05 | More by mchen

beergoot

Colorado

3.68/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

330ml bottle with a brewed/bottle date of 5 DEC 2011 and a 10% ABV listed on the label.

Deep, dark brown body with an extremely rich, thick head. Roasted grain, a hint of peat, espresso, molasses, and caramel swirl about in the aroma. Deep, chocolate flavor initially that seems to get spoiled by a phenolic, band-aid-like undertone that takes over at the end. In between, there are some good hints of roasted, smokey grains and a rather sharp bitterness. A strong, boozy alcohol presence mixes in with the other off-putting flavors. Very smooth, medium-heavy body with a dry finish.

This is a Jekyll & Hyde kind of beer. A lot of good things come through, but just when you think you're enjoying some big dark beer nirvana, some weird, strange flavors pop-up to ruin the party. Perhaps its the peated barley malts that are at the crux of what I consider off-putting flavors for me. Others may really like that component, it's just not for me. Still, I find enough good things with the beer, so it's not necessarily a bad experience overall, just different.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2012 02:24:57 | More by beergoot

Thehuntmaster

South Africa

4.13/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle, 9,5% Abv.
Served chilled in an over sized wine glass, on my shirt, on my bed, on my computer and on my ceiling!

Appearance: As I sure you have gathered from the numerous ways in which this bear was served it was a massive gusher - as soon as the cage was off, the cork shot out and a stream of black beer and tan foam covered everything in sight. Once the beer made it to the glass, it appeared pitch black, with a massive (go figure) tan brown head. The head displays amazing (read annoying) retention and left thick lacing when it finally decided to recede.

Smell: The initial nose offers a fantastic combination of dark and peated malts, yielding notes of chocolate, charred malt, a touch of coffee, campfire, sea spray, seaweed washed up on the beach, some dark fruits (notably burned raisins) and a very earthy character. As the beer warms, the peated notes take over and dominate almost everything else. There is a hint citric hop noted periodically.

Taste: The flavour follows the nose quite well, but offers more charred character than was present in the nose. Notes include: Roasted malt,, charred wood, ash, campfire, salty sea spray, kelp, an earthy character and a touch of grassy hops. The finish is distinctly bitter and yields a light alcohol warmth.

Mouthfeel: Medium or just over bodied (a little too light for the flavour profile) with a fairly high level of carbonation, although not as high as you would expect after the gushing.

Overall: I love peated beers, so this one was right up my street! If you are one of those people that doesn't like all things peaty, leave this well alone!

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2012 06:38:21 | More by Thehuntmaster

kojevergas

California

4.1/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served on-draught into a De Molen stem-goblet at De Molen in Bodegraven. Reviewed from notes taken July 2010.

A: Pours a three finger tan colour head of marvellous cream and thickness. Colour is a solid black. Nontransparent.

Sm: Cream, caramel, smokey notes, roast, and coffee. A mild strength aroma.

T: Smokey notes, minimal hops, roast, coffee, cream, caramelized malt, and light chocolate. Complex and well balanced. Very well built for the style, featuring adequate roast in the foundation. Malty complexity is astounding. I'm very impressed. Little alcohol comes through, though there may be hints of yeast.

Mf: Smooth and wet, but coarse and thick enough to support and coax out the flavours of the body. Impressive.

Dr: Very drinkable - dangerously so at this ABV. Marvellously constructed and very fairly priced (at least at De Molen). Worth a try for anyone who loves beer. One of the best beers I've had so far from De Molen. Wow.

A-

Serving type: on-tap

12-05-2012 20:31:36 | More by kojevergas

girlmeetsbeer16

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -6.3%

11-29-2012 02:13:29 | More by girlmeetsbeer16