Cuvee Delphine - De Struise Brouwers

Alieniloquium

Florida

4/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330 mL bottle poured into a De Struise chalice. 2011 bottle.

Appearance - Black with less of a head than Black Albert. Similar thick mocha collar.

Smell - Light bourbon with a touch of barrel character. Chocolate and cherry comes through, similar to Black Albert. Strangely, not as boozy smelling as the 5-year-old bottle of Black Albert I had.

Taste - Vanilla and bourbon up front, but subtle. Much more of the cherry flavor followed by rich chocolate. The bourbon is back in the end along with a bitterness that I find strange. Falls a little short of the base beer here.

Mouthfeel - Well carbonated. Pretty chewy aside from feeling a bit too overcarbonated at points.

Overall - I prefer Black Albert to this, although this is quite good on its own. Just seems that some of the characteristics that make Black Albert great have been pushed aside by the barrel, which isn't strong enough to be the centerpoint of the flavor.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2012 02:16:40 | More by Alieniloquium

vacax

California

4.03/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I was quite excited to try this one. Pours black with a towering dark head. Just like Black Albert, the head on this is every bit a monster. Aromas of Flintstones vitamins, pineapple, chalk, surprisingly free of barrel qualities. Tastes vinous with licorice, oak, bitter fruit, roast, and rock salt. Feels pretty full with a moderate level of carbonation. I was a bit let down by this one. The barrel didn't really contribute any wonderful boozy or coconut flavors, not really an improvement over the original, sadly. I do love the label though.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2010 00:27:01 | More by vacax

Jwale73

Rhode Island

4.03/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Thirstybird for sharing. Batch #4, best by March 2014 notched on the label. Pours one shade shy of black with a quarter inch, frothy, khaki-colored head embedded with tiny ringlets. Head is refreshed with a swirl of the glass. Nose is very subdued - sour dark fruit and perhaps a hint of coca. Taste is malty, cocoa, sour fruit (cherries?) with some booze coming out towards the finish. Mouthfeel is medium-bodied, perhaps a little light for the style, with an even carbonation, but maybe a little too assertive for the style. This is a very interesting beer with a lot of character and an extremely well-hidden abv at 13%. A top notch beer from De Struise.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2010 00:05:28 | More by Jwale73

abuliarose

New Hampshire

4.03/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Poured into a tasting glass, revealing two finger tall tanned thick head over a deeply brown opaque body. Good lacing. Pretty thing. Smells a little sour/funky. Hmm. Some dark fruit and roasted-ness underneath but mostly there's a nice spicy funk going on. A little vanilla. Not what's I'd expect from an RIS.

Tastes just slightly soured as well with a nice roasted flavor up front and a surprisingly clean finish. Some creamy lactic tang folds into fruity molasses and a gentle but noticeable spice. I think this bottle may be infected, but I am either wrong or it got infected very nicely. Mouthfeel is creamy and an assertive but round carbonation adds volume to the almost syrupy heavy body. For the strength and the style it's very drinkable. I just don't know about the tangy-ness.

Overall it's very interesting. I wish I could say for sure that it's infected but if not it deviates considerably from your standard RIS. Still very good, though.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2010 01:54:26 | More by abuliarose

alpineclimber

Alberta (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pulled this one from the cellar, from which it was placed on October 2010.

A good pour produces a perfect tan head on an impenetrable black brew.

A nose of dark fruit, very typical of a Belgian imperial stout.

Flavours are dark cherry, vanilla and tobacco.

This a great stout, very Belgian. Really not too much different from Black Albert, the cask conditioning has imparted some good and delicate flavours on this brew.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2011 02:06:54 | More by alpineclimber

UCLABrewN84

California

4.05/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to nakalakaboom for sharing this one at NoSignsOfPain's birthday bottleshare hosted by mrbubbler.

2009 vintage.

Pours an almost opaque super dark brown with a foamy khaki head that settles to a film on top of the beer. No lacing on this one. Smell is of dark roasted malt, cocoa, dark fruit, and alcohol. Taste is much the same with a medium amount of roasty bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer but I prefer the smell over the taste.

Serving type: bottle

07-02-2012 02:28:39 | More by UCLABrewN84

drabmuh

Maryland

4.08/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

With as much De Struise beer I'm drinking I should really go out and get a Struise glass. I wish they were more available. Beer poured into my Bruery tulip.

Beer is black with a thick brown head of small bubbles that leaves a lot of lacing on the glass. Carbonation is moderate. Looks really good.

Aroma is sweet and has a liquor quality to it, roast is minimal, this smells like a bourbon barrel aged RIS.

Well...first thing is first, 13%...really? Are you sure? No alcohol bite in this one at all. Lots of bitterness late to after with the beer from the roasted grains. Beer is pretty sweet but the majority of the flavor is in the back of this one, lots of coffee, roast, mild smoke, liquor is a little lost in there but it is up front. Pretty nice.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2010 01:46:18 | More by drabmuh

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Popping this open to bring in the new year.

The bottle opens with a large hiss which has me a bit worried. Pours pitch black and completely opaque with a two finger frothy mocha head. Excellent retention, only slowly fading into a lasting cap. Chunks of mocha colored lacing left behind.

The aroma is dominated by the four roses bourbon but there is also a prominent oak and vanilla presence. I'm also picking up some dark fruit notes and licorice as well as some slightly toasted malt. It's refreshing to find a barrel aged beer that smells this complex and isn't just a booze bomb.

Slightly oxidized with a bit too much carbonation for my liking. Underneath this there is some nice creamy chocolate malt, earthy oak, vanilla, dark fruit and bourbon notes. Well balanced but the bourbon is more aggressive than the aroma suggests. This results in some heat and warmth in the finish but at 13% the ABV is still well masked. As it warms the body feels fuller and the rich, silky malt notes become more prominent and counter the tasty bourbon flavor quite nicely.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2011 06:11:46 | More by corby112

Reaper16

Alabama

4.08/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

11.2oz. bottle -- 2009 vintage -- served into a tulip glass

Pours a solid dark color. It's dark. Black, sure. Black. What more do you want? Howabout two entire fingers worth of dark-khaki head with solid retention? It's a lovely looking stout.

So Cuvee Delphine is Batch 0 Black Albert aged in Four Roses bourbon barrels. The important part here is that its 100% Black Albert...this accounts for the deep complexity in the nose. Baker's chocolate, plum, horehound candy -- there's a lot going on thanks to the Belgian yeast strain. There's also a sweet fruit note that I can't quite nail down...it's something akin to lychee or an Asian pear. There really isn't much evidence of barrel aging here, though. There's basically no oak or vanilla. No booze. So while it's a deep aroma, I'm knocking it a half-point for not living up to the barrel promise.

Cuvee Delphine has a lot going on for it on the tongue. It's very much like the nose, but more concentrated in its approach. The first thing that I notice is how vinous it is. There's significant red wine flavor here, spiked with black cherries and dark fruits. Some black pepper, too. Dark chocolate is a flavor that goes well with many red wines, and the dark chocolate malt flavor here works to accentuate the yeast flavors. Like the nose, the barrel presence here is slight. This beer isn't getting this vinous without barrel aging, but you can't tell that this beer was aged in a bourbon barrel (as opposed to a wine barrel or even just plan ol' new oak).

The mouthfeel is a slight disappointment. It is incredibly smooth, but at the expense of body. It's a thin beer for the style. But the smoothness has a certain pleasurable quality to it.

Overall, this is a very tasty beer. The barrel aging of Black Albert seems to have concentrated its vinous side, but at the expense of that beer's complexity. It's a good sipper, but I very much prefer regular Black Albert.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2012 02:47:44 | More by Reaper16

siradmiralnelson

Iowa

4.08/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 12oz bottle into Globe glass. 2009 vintage

A. Pours 3 finger frothing dark tan head. Great retention. Thick, thick lacing. Almost permanent collar of that dark tan head. Color is all black.

S. Molasses, dark fruit, vanilla, oak, coffee. Has some belgian yeast aroma too it. Not very bitter and not very coffee forward. Both good things in my book.

T. Has an earthy taste up front followed by coffee, molasses, oak, vanilla, dark fruit, and some bitterness on the back of the tongue. Drinks super smooth for 13%. Barrel aging doesnt add a lot of flavors, but you can definitely pick up some oak and vanilla.

M. Could be thicker. Feels too thin to me. Could be another product of the Belgian RIS style. Medium carbonation.

O. Interesting aroma. Nice taste. Lacks some traditional RIS flavor complexity, but makes up for it with additional Belgian flavors. Too thin of a mouthfeel for my personal preference. Drinks incredibly easy for 13%. Hard to judge the beer strictly along style alone, which is tends to swerve towards a more Belgianesque beer. However when you note that the swerve away from style makes it a tasty beer I can not help but give it a higher overall score. Probably the best Belgian RIS that I have had.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 22:11:37 | More by siradmiralnelson

crnipeter

Slovenia

4.1/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

"Old" 250 ml bottle (now being sold in 330 ml ones), BBE 03 2014 into 180 ml Chimay chalice. This vintage is based on the original "zero" batch of Black Albert.
Abundant deep tan head scattered with bubbles gradually collapses to form thick solid cloth atop of opaque black fluid with reddish-brown hue while swirls wave thick firm laces on the walls.
Fruity esters of plum, prune and raisins dominate the aroma profile with light notes of bourbon making its way through the thick layers of dark fruits.
Roasted malt adds slightly burnt sensation to the fruity flavors of plum, prune and raisins spiced with light non-aggressive alcohol burning. Roasty bitter aftertaste with fruity tartness and oily film on the palate. Although burnt character is noticeable the beer lacks any coffee and dark chocolate sensations from roasted malts as the flavors are somehow subdued and mellowed due to aging in barrels. Viscous, slightly tarry and oily although not as much as might be expected from a stout. The beer is surprisingly tart and quite different from its predecessor, the Black Albert.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2010 18:50:41 | More by crnipeter

hoppymcgee

Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to jrallen34 for this gem! Poured from a 25cl bottled marked Best Before March 2014 into a small snifter.

A: No light is gettin' through this baby - remember this is a "Royal" stout and is highly protected, especially by the foamy head that forms when this beer is poured.

S: Boozy in the nose with some cocoa powder and dark fruits.

T: Dark fruits and brown sugar are followed quickly by roasted coffee. Unfortunately the coffee takes over a bit too much and the bitterness blocks out any chocolate flavors one might expect. I also don't get much bourbon in this.

M: Well carbonated and a little viscous.

D: The best feature of this beer. I would have no clue this was 13% if it weren't stamped on the label.

Overall, a pretty cool beer to try. I haven't had a Belgian-style RIS before. I personally think this one could age a little longer - that way the carbonation will die down a little bit and the coffee flavor will fade out making way to the chocolate and oak flavors from the bourbon barrels.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2010 03:07:25 | More by hoppymcgee

mikeyv35

New York

4.1/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Date: 10/01/2010
Type: 11.2oz. Bottle
Glassware: Portsmouth Tulip
Vintage: 2009

Poured a dark chocolate in color w/ a 11/2 finger head that left a good amount of lacing on the glass. Nose was of dark chocolate, oak, vanilla, and bourbon. The taste was a nice chocolate sweetness up front, w/ a finish of oak, vanilla, and bourbon. Full bodied and lush, and the flavors really hang on the palate. Pretty boozy, but nice to sip. More age should do this well.

Overall, very enjoyable sipper. Flavors and aromas are not all that complex, actually rather simpler, but excellent. Would gladly drink again anytime.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2011 18:30:43 | More by mikeyv35

johnnnniee

New Hampshire

4.1/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

5oz pour at Eb's
Comes to the table a solid black color with a decent tan head that shows moderate retention. Smells of roast, burnt sugar, smoke, caramel. light toasted oak, a hint of booze and a bit of vanilla. Its definitely got that burnt and smokey aroma flavor that I remember from the Albert. Sweet thick roasty oaky smokey burnt flavor just like the nose promised. Thick body with a light level of carbonation and a sweet burnt sugary mouthfeel. I'm surprised I got to try this, but thankful for the opportunity its a really nice

Serving type: on-tap

08-26-2012 01:00:58 | More by johnnnniee

gford217

Georgia

4.13/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330mL bottle poured into a tulip.

Pours pitch black with an enormous mocha head that shows some serious staying power and leaves excellent lacing.

The aroma is complex with bourbon, roasted chocolate malts, coffee, dark fruits and some Belgian yeast.

The taste is more heavily roasted than the aroma with lots of cocoa powder and espresso as well. There is an underlying fruitiness from the Belgian yeast. The finish has a slight bourbon character though it's very subtle.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied with moderate carbonation and light on the barrel character. Creamy.

Another excellent stout from Struise and one that actually carries a more Belgian character than I was expecting with the bourbon just adding some texture.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2010 04:04:42 | More by gford217

womencantsail

California

4.13/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A big thanks to Greg for sending me this want of mine (as an extra, no less). Selfishly enjoyed by myself to commemorate the end of summer school and scoring Black Tuesday tickets.

A: The pour is viscous and black with an initially massive tan head that settles down to a thin layer.

S: The nose is pleasantly sweet with notes of chocolate, plums, figs, and tart cherries. Light oak aromas along with some vanilla and roast.

T: There is a slight tart cherry flavor that is present both on the very front and very back ends. The oak is quite noticeable and provides a slightly tannic feel. A nice roast, coffee, and chocolate flavor throughout.

M: The body is medium with a fairly lively carbonation that pricks the tongue.

D: A little tough to drink too much of at 13%, but a nice beer. I wasn't quite expecting the intense tart cherry character, but it worked well.

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2010 07:38:12 | More by womencantsail

Viggo

Ontario (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

33 cl bottle, big thanks to grub for sharing.

Pours a very inky black/dark brown, no real light gets through, pretty intense and scary looking, very thick and rocky light brown head forms and slowly settles to a medium layer and ring around the glass, a few lace spots stick, looks pretty good.

Smell is rich and intense, very fruity, lots of raisin, some woodiness, a bit of red wine and bourbon, caramel, chocolate roast, a bit of coffee, biscuit, cherries, berry gummies, a touch of licorice, some alcohol but not over the top, lightly spicy, some esters, cool stuff.

Taste is nuts, huge licorice and toffee hit at first, quite sweet and fruity, some brown and candi sugars, dark raisins, more licorice, berries, a touch of biscuit, cherry wine, a bit of chocolate milk and wafer, some woodiness in the finish, lightly boozy and astringent going down, solid bitterness.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with high carbonation, a bit too aggressive for me as a alot of these Belgian RIS's are. But I dig the intense flavours and though a bit hot going down the 13% is nicely hidden. Good stuff, thanks Russ!

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2011 02:30:40 | More by Viggo

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

4.15/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle: Poured a pitch-black color stout with a super large dirty beige foamy head with great retention and some perfect lacing. Aroma of bourbon and vanilla is quite straightforward but well enough balance with the malt to provide some good enjoyment. Taste is a well balanced mix between some light roasted malt with light note of liquorice and vanilla and a creamy finish full of bourbon. Body is quite full with usual creamy texture from the bourbon with some great carbonation and alcohol is never to apparent. Very well done and a great variation from the original.

Serving type: bottle

06-21-2010 02:37:32 | More by Phyl21ca

Bitterbill

Wyoming

4.15/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

An extra from Peter at the De Struise beer shop.

BA NO. 14, Lot BR26.230.610 Best by July 15, 2015.

It pours a pitch black, has a huge 2 finger head of tan foam. The foam is very slow to shrink...

It smells roasty, slightly fruity, a bit of smoke, very light suggestion of the bourbon. It doesn't have a big aroma but what's there is nice.

The taste...is another story. Not shy with the flavours at all. I get light coffee, chocolate, some roast, good fruity notes(that bring some sweet but mostly tart), and they're all overseen or guided by a very nicely done presence of bourbon. Yes...this is very delicious!

Medium bodied with the carbonation on the light side of medium. Good mouth feel.

Drinkability? For a monster sitting at 13%abv, this is *way* too easy to drink for one bottle at a sitting. Definitely a RIS that is different than I'm used to but it works very well for me. Here's an example of the style where a fruit tartness is very welcome and fits right in!

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2010 22:16:18 | More by Bitterbill

sweemzander

Illinois

4.15/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

11.2oz. bottle poured into a snifter. Thanks to wunderbeer for this one! 2009 Vintage.

(A)- Pours a fairly thick pitch black color that produced a good brown head. Minimal lacing and retention.

(S)- Very rich profile of roasted caramel, brown sugar, coffee grounds, and dark cocoa.

(T)- Very similar to the smell. Some dark plum in there with a fairly roasted profile. Dark cocoa all over the place.

(M)- A good carbonation level and balance. Heavily roasted, but smooth as can be considering the ABV with some mildly bitter cocoa in there.

(D)- A solid stout with a nice profile in front of it. Definitely a sipper due to its strength and ABV, but a good one at that.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2011 03:54:50 | More by sweemzander

StJamesGate

New York

4.15/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours dense black with a dark cappuccino-colored thick head and big gobs of yeast. Sweet spicy wood nose with a hint of rose petals - gorgeous.
Coffee leads the malts with more wood and a whiskey sweetness, with cola and slight cherry-almond skin notes underneath. Vanilla hit to end and a dry roasty linger. Medium to heavy, sticky, slight fizz and some burn, but pretty restrained that way.

Never had Black Albert, so no basis for comparison there, but not noticing anything particularly Belgian about this one. The barrel does kind of take over - gives lovely tones of its own, but kills any roast, and I'm also not getting some of the fruit notes other reviews talk about. Then again, a Dark Lord right before this probably did my palate no favors...

Overall, nice meld of wood and stout.

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2011 10:38:54 | More by StJamesGate

woosterbill

Connecticut

4.15/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

33cl bottle from Batch 14 into a tasting glass; big thanks to JAHMUR for sharing this long-time want.

A: Entirely opaque black body under a finger of creamy, fine, brown foam. Great retention and lace, especially for being 13%. Wow.

S: Highly spirited, with bourbon, vanilla, and huge coconut joining booze in a celebration of ridiculousness. Maybe a bit of coffee and chocolate as well, but this is all about the barrel.

T: Very sweet, with some of Black Albert's fruitiness and Belgian character joining the huge barrel elements. Delicious, but a bit harsh with the booze. Long finish of coffee + ethanol.

M: Thick syrupy body with plenty of full, soft, creamy carbonation. I love it.

O: This was a real treat to try, but I think the barrel treatment was overdone just a bit. I could have done with a little less booze and a little more Black Albert.

Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2011 01:34:35 | More by woosterbill

jegross2

Illinois

4.15/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewing the Cuvee Delphine from De Struise Brouwers out of Belgium. According to the label:

Black Albert was used in a new barrel aging project. More than a year ago, Carlo was able to get his hands on a stock of Four Roses Bourbon barrels, and we happily filled them up with Batch 0. This unique creation was originally to be named "4 Black Roses" in honour of its heritage, but our friends in Kentucky strongly advised us not to do so! What to do? As the disowned offspring of Black Albert, the name Cuvée Delphine imposed itself. Savouring the Belgian irony, we are most honoured to have artwork by Delphine Boël shining on this label. You will not find this ale all over the globe. There is no export program, but we will try to provide stock through our web shop and some specialty beer pubs.

Score: 92

2009 vintage bottle served in a Surly Darkness snifter and enjoyed on 09/02/12. Big thanks to Matt Hope for hooking me up with this bottle.

Appearance: Pours a jet black color, completely opaque, with three full fingers of thick, styrofoamy mocha head that formed a beautiful meniscus atop the glass without ever pouring over. The head slowly recedes to a thin layer atop the glass. The lacing and retention on this beer is absolutely unreal; even sixty seconds after tilting the glass once the head settled down some, a thick lacing was still coating the entire side of glass. This is one beautiful Russian imperial stout, and at 13% ABV, the amount of lacing and retention present here is an unexpected prize. 5/5

Smell: Plum, sweet raisin, cherry, roasted malt, and bakers chocolate. A touch of lemon peel, a little sweet red wine and some faint boozy alcohol as it warms too. The nose is a little sugary sweet, but in a good way that works with the aroma components -- particularly the accent of lemon zest. Some vanilla also comes through as the beer warms up. 4.25/5

Taste: Molasses and sweet dark fruit flavor upfront with a creamy "melted nestle bittersweet morsels" flavored backbone that reminds me of fresh chocolate chip cookies. The dark fruit flavors seem to get sweeter as the beer warms, and while it never really gets to the level of a diabetes-inducing cloying sugar bomb, it really reduces the drinkability of the beer. There's a hint of caramel and a hint of cherry as well, though the cherry flavor is hardly as prominent on the tongue as it is in the nose. The alcohol presence on the palate is also much more subtle and smooth than it was in the aroma. I am not really detecting a whole lot of "barrel-aged characteristics" in the flavor; there is even an absence of the vanilla I got in the nose. As the beer hits room temperature, the flavors seem to get "creamier," and a little burnt roast flavor, which nicely counter balances the sweetness a little bit, comes out. I frankly enjoyed this beer best once it was warm and sitting out of a little while. 4/5

Mouthfeel: This is a viscous, full bodied beer with a low amount of carbonation. Sticky, sweet and syrupy mouthfeel that turns a bit creamy at room temp. 4/5

Overall: A well-crafted beer that is just a little too sweet for my tastes. I enjoyed Black Albert more, but this one was certainly still tasty enough to be worth the cost of a tick. I would definitely have another glass of this, but it's not going to be the first beer I seek out a second bottle of if I am going to be "repeating" past ticks down the line.

Recommendation: Well worth a tick, but haters of sweet stouts should be forewarned.

Pairings: Ricotta & zucchini bread with raspberries, honey and mint (a dish the Publican currently serves for their Sunday brunch).

Cost: $15 for an 11.2 oz bottle.

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2012 03:50:28 | More by jegross2

smakawhat

Maryland

4.16/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Poured on tap into a snifter glass at Churchkey. From notes. From 4 Roses Bourbon barrels.

Presented with little head, but a very large bubbled collar. Dark mocha bubbles on that collar accenting a dark reddish brown body.

Nose hints at red berried fruit. A bit hard to distinguish, nice roast angle, but hard to distinguish the flavors hinted on the nose. Mild sense of coffee beans.

Palate is incredibly warming and vinous. Light roasty action with a soft dark chocolate feel. Dark chocolate hits in the mid palate with a nice bitterness. Lingering roast malts on the swallow that go long. Body is like a real nice cabernet sauvignon. Hints at real round feel and depth.

Overall a real fun beer to drink, almost has a big wine like character to it, very impressed.

Serving type: on-tap

02-13-2013 01:06:36 | More by smakawhat

hoppymeal

Michigan

4.18/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a murky brown to black in color, plenty of sediment is evident near the end of the pour as it gets slightly thicker, almost chunkier. Decent sized crimson hued tan head rests atop and slowly fades back to a ring around the glass. Aroma is nice and yeasty, milk, molasses, sugar, a bit of charred wood and booziness. Taste shows some sweet ripe vinuous fruit notes that blends with a tanginess. Licorice and vanilla sweetness, some woodiness towards the finish before a decent bite of warming alcohol. Mouthfeel is a medium to full body, fairly active but soft and creamy carbonation, decent amount of dryness in the finish along with the warmth in the throat form the alcohol. The sweetness and drying woodiness blend well together and the abv, though slightly forward is pleasing and in the right amount. Very interesting beer, well balanced feel. The bourbon did not come thru quite as much as I expected.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2009 01:36:52 | More by hoppymeal