La Buteuse Brassin Spécial (Barrel Aged) - Le Trou Du Diable

ritzkiss

Ontario (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Recently found my notes on this beer, written before the night slipped away from us.... big thanks to eat for providing this sought after bottle!

750 ml, pours a slightly cloudy golden, a hefty bone white head builds on the pour and slowly recedes to a thin layer, leaving spots of lacing.

Smell is delightful, fruity (apple, pear, oranges, apricots) mix with a light funky Brett, hint of wood and spicing.

Full flavored, a touch of the brandy comes out in the flavor that wasn't there in the nose. Light barnyard funk, slightly musty, apples and pears, a hint of citrus, oak, juicy yet a little tart, perhaps a touch more alcohol coming through than I would like but not distracting. Sparkly but not prickly carb, medium body, pretty drinkable except for the ABV heft. Reminds me a bit of Allagash's brews....

Top marks for this coming from a Canadian brewer. Perhaps a touch rougher than some of the more refined examples coming out of Belgium and the US but for a 1st go around this is a huge winner. Would love to get the chance at this one again, if I were to see it I would certainly grab a few. Highly recommended. Thanks Colin!

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2010 03:07:03 | More by ritzkiss

Kmat10

Alberta (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +7.1%

05-20-2013 22:30:57 | More by Kmat10

tom10101

Quebec (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +7.1%

05-19-2013 17:16:51 | More by tom10101

Whatup14

Quebec (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +1.2%

05-14-2013 12:19:49 | More by Whatup14

Caudalie

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev -4.8%

05-10-2013 16:58:03 | More by Caudalie

korguy123

Ontario (Canada)

4.29/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottle dated 02/12 750ml into snifter.
Special thanks to ricochet173 for another amazing bottle.

Was quite the gusher when opened. My counter enjoyed some of the spoils :-)

Hazy, unfiltered apple cider colored pour. Half finger, tight bubbled, fizzy off white head. Lacing is decent.

Sweet apples, tart grapes, some pear skin, slightly tart aroma with a touch of funk. Sweetness from the brandy, a light oakiness with a peppery finish.

Peppery and sweet, grapes, raisins, apples, a touch of lemon, some digestive cookies, a bit of alcohol and a little brandy in the finish.

Light to medium body, high carbonation, slightly warming.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2013 22:49:22 | More by korguy123

chickenm

British Columbia (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +1.2%

01-12-2013 22:23:19 | More by chickenm

Dope

Massachusetts

3.35/5  rDev -20.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Pours a hazy reddish-gold. Big fluffy off-white head. Fades slowly with excellent head retention. Little fluffs of lacing here and there but nothing substantial.

S: Strong fruity aroma. Apples mainly. Pear maybe? Some other fruits I can't quite identify. Very floral aroma. Big and sweet. Can almost smell pure sugar.

T: Apples and pears up front with some oak. Quite sweet. Maybe even some peach? Turns into a yeasty bread in the middle with some earthiness and black pepper. Get some old wet hay into the finish. Tart, funky and bitter - gets even stronger into the aftertaste. A little lingering, drying oak in the aftertaste too with some more black pepper.

M: Heavy and thick.

O: Meh. Tough to score. It has promise up front with the sweet fruity flavors and overall complexity but finishes like decaying grass which is unpleasant to say the least. I drain poured it, bleh.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 06:42:41 | More by Dope

Jayship

Quebec (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +7.1%

11-22-2012 16:51:14 | More by Jayship

t0rin0

California

3.75/5  rDev -10.7%

10-20-2012 03:25:16 | More by t0rin0

mattsander

Alberta (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Deep copper, great clarity, swirling globs of sediment. Volcanic carbonation.

S: Lots of 'damp' brett character, buttery apple crisp, some herbal qualities. This smells amazing.

T: Phenolic spiciness leads the charge, with some booze-soaked pear/overripe apple fruitiness. The brett has really taken over after a few years in the bottle. A bit one-dimensional but otherwise good.

M: Boldly thick, I'd prefer this beer were a little drier.

A big complex beer that has improved with age. The sweetness became a bit overwhelming.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2012 00:13:19 | More by mattsander

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

4.08/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Review from 7-17-12 incorrectly written in the regular version, when in fact I had the barrel aged version.

Bottle to CBS snifter. Bottle date of 10/11.

A - Cloudy medium orange colour with a big yellow glow. One finger of thick cream coloured head that reduced to a thin layer. Good lacing.

S - Massive oak and quite a bit of funk up front that dominates the nose. The background offers lighter notes of bready malts, candy sugar and apple.

T - Big oak flavour up front with a lot of funk as the nose indicated. Some sweet bready malt flavours, candy sugar, lemon and light citrus notes add depth. Not getting the brandy at all.

M - Medium body with a really good chew. Light to moderate carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

Serving type: bottle

07-29-2012 20:23:09 | More by TheSevenDuffs

papat444

Quebec (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Finally get around to reviewing this.

Poured from an undated 750ml. bottle and shared with my wife.

Appearance: Fuzzy peach color, very hazy and the color is lightly reflected in the huge head. It's not too big though and clings pretty good though would have expected more retention.

Smell: Fresh apples, peaches, apple peelings, brandy peeking through and a light wood aroma.

Taste: Apple brandy brings out a semi-sweet fruit flavor and mixed with the Tripel base, it's pretty darn good. Dried apricots, mild vanilla, bit peppery and a cascade of flavors.

Mouthfeel: Starts sweet-tart but comfortable, lingers just a tad before finishing dry.

Overall: Nice to have a world-class beer locally (though it is hard to come by). A bit pricey but worth it.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 14:13:59 | More by papat444

CliffBrake

New Hampshire

4.25/5  rDev +1.2%

06-25-2012 02:15:05 | More by CliffBrake

EnemyWithin

Ontario (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev -4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

bottle into Duvel glass on Mar 30, 2012.

Appearance: 4.5
Clear copper body with 1’ white head has good retention. Good presentation even after 1+ years storage.

Smell: 4
Notable sour funk with notes of tart candy, lemon. Also get faint caramel presence for malt and slight spiciness from yeast.

Taste: 4
Initially, a mild slight lemon, tart funk is noticed. Then midway through get more presence of malt with caramel notes as well as pick up faint notes of brandy from the barrel. At this point, this is a sharp spiciness from the yeast that then fades away to linger on the palate. The beer now becomes much more tripel in taste. A very minimal bitterness of the hops detected, mixed in with a bit of more barnyard funk. Also, slight warmth in body from alcohol. Overall, complex, but the flavours are little rough around the edges IMO. Beer does soft a bit and come together more to significant improve as the beer warms.

Mouthfeel: 4
Mild to moderate carbonation and thickness. More on astringent side from sour aspect and hops, with mild sweetness in contrast.

Overall: 4
Second time having this beer, with me sitting on this bottle for nearly a year. Not sure if age really benefited this one. The sour presence is still quite mild; more aroma than taste, and the yeast aspect of the beer tends to dominate at times. Flavours are interesting, but not as good as I remember. Would be interest to try another fresh beer again to compare. Overall, soild offering, but unsure if I’d wouldn’t go out of my way to seek out again, esp with a price of $25+.
Consider to try.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2012 12:56:01 | More by EnemyWithin

mmurphy525

Nova Scotia (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +1.2%

05-20-2012 16:56:21 | More by mmurphy525

Foudebiere

Quebec (Canada)

2/5  rDev -52.4%

04-07-2012 19:47:03 | More by Foudebiere

oldp0rt

Quebec (Canada)

5/5  rDev +19%

12-11-2011 20:17:36 | More by oldp0rt

fortierv

Quebec (Canada)

5/5  rDev +19%

12-05-2011 21:15:50 | More by fortierv

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle has month and year numbers on the label, but nothing ticked off. I picked this up only a couple of months ago, but I expect it is from 2010, as that is the latest year available to be ticked. Who knows.

Pours a nice golden orange colour. Reminds me of marmalade or caramel. A large off-white head bubbles and dissipates at a moderate pace.

At first, it smells like a good but standard tripel- light fruits (peach and apple stand out), Belgian yeast, caramel and bready malts, honey. Also a little bit of funk along with the yeast. Then the barrel effect starts becoming noticeable- very nice undertones of brandy, booze, spices, vanilla and oak intermingle with the tripel. Really good.

The barrel flavours are more immediate in the taste. Vanilla, brandy, apple. Beer has some booze flavours, as well as some spice (pepper in particular). The peach and other light fruit flavours are present, and backed up by the caramel malt. The whole thing is very well integrated and incredibly well-tamed. The alcohol heat is almost zero, despite the strength.

Beer is very smooth, velvety. Carbonation is present but incredibly restained- micro bubbles that give life to the beer but do not interfere with taste or irritate.

Overall? Excellent. A tremendously good tripel. The barrel effect is fantastic- interesting, well-integrated and tasty. Great stuff!

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2011 20:56:49 | More by jrenihan

JAHMUR

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev +7.1%

11-25-2011 21:12:14 | More by JAHMUR

unibroue4ever

Quebec (Canada)

5/5  rDev +19%

11-14-2011 18:58:13 | More by unibroue4ever

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

4.22/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from wordemupg, quite some time ago. Finally got around to cracking this one. 750ml bottle conditioned into an oversized snifter. Dates are listed on the side of the bottle, but nothing is ticked off. Regardless, I believe this is from 2010.

Poured a hazy orange brown, with nice white head of a finger or two. Head has some moderate density and great retention. Nose has some typical tripel fruity esters, oranges are prominent but at times almost resemble something 'cleaner-like' (Orange-Glo?). Some sour green apple, funk and spicing. Gentle, subtle and complex throughout. Taste is funky, with similar citrus notes. Green apple, a touch phenolic. Some lime and a hint to this 'cleaner' note again. Lightly oxidised, but the carbonation is perfect - certainly encouraging of larger sips than should be taken for this ABV. Quite a nice beer, and I'm not put off by the cleaner notes I was getting. Maybe should've had this a bit fresher.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2011 15:54:41 | More by liamt07

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance. Pours a hazy gold-amber with two fingers of thick white head that paints the side of the glass.

Smell. Apples and pears, some nice funk, apricots and honey with a little booze. Yum.

Taste. Tangy fruit and funk. Mainly apples and pears with a little strawberry and citrus fruits. Oak and brandy are present in the end. Alcohol is there, but not in a bad way.

Mouthfeel. Medium body with pretty high, lively and smooth carbonation. A little warm.

Overall. Pretty decadent tasting beer here. I like the funk and the complexity while still remaining somewhat light. A little bit boozy, but it works.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2011 00:07:17 | More by Rutager

kjyost

Manitoba (Canada)

4.47/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle received in trade from papat444 in July, 2010. Thanks! Popped open to celebrate the birth of my third child.

A: Copper and clear with a nice white head and cap that retains very well, although little lacing is apparent
S: Apple juice, pepper, light caramel, some sort of funky aroma joins the party over time.
T: Pepper is the dominant player with a sweetness from the apple. Very, very nice, although the apple dominates at times. Finishes very dry and peppery. Some sort of barnyard flavours are playing in the background too.
M: Dry, no discernible alcohol character.
O: Deliciousness... How can I get me another bottle of this?

Serving type: bottle

09-18-2011 22:55:00 | More by kjyost