De Dolle Stille Nacht - Brouwerij De Dolle Brouwers

cavedave

New York

4.53/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

2012 edition

A lofty, off white head, long lasting and threatening to overflow, tops an extremely yeast-floatie beer of cloudy copper color.

Smell is full of luscious sweet fruit syrup aromas, peach, nectarine, plum join nice spicy and alcohol sweet for a perfume delicious.

Taste is all of the fruits and spice of the nose, plus some really nice vinous components, and the sweet isn't syrupy in the mouth, As it nears room temperature it really starts to shine some herbal and malty complexity, with just a righteous amount of tasty bitter entering into it. Delicious.

Mouthfeel should be cloying and overdone by the sweet fruit flavors, but isn't. Despite look the carb. is med./perfect, the cling is clean, and the finish is just juicy/spicy enough.

Fantastic beer, just superb, really hides the alc., I guessed it at 8%. It's just right in all the ways it tries to be, and they all play well together. Highest recommend.

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2013 20:49:32 | More by cavedave

t_carterb

Georgia

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%

06-19-2013 16:10:23 | More by t_carterb

hiphopj5

Colorado

3.75/5  rDev -9.6%

06-16-2013 21:07:12 | More by hiphopj5

Michigan

Michigan

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%

06-16-2013 20:02:21 | More by Michigan

superspak

Michigan

4.33/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled in 2010. Gusher bottle upon opening, but I didn’t lose anything. Pours moderately hazy and cloudy orange amber color with a 3 finger dense and fluffy white head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Spotty foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big apple, pear, orange peel, raisin, grape, honey, caramel, banana, clove, floral, herbal, pepper, candi sugar, bread, and yeast earthiness. Fantastic aromas with great balance and complexity of fruity/spicy esters with malt notes; with great strength. Taste of big apple, pear, grape, raisin, fig, caramel, honey, banana, clove, candi sugar, herbal, floral, pepper, bread, and yeast earthiness. Lingering notes of light fruits, caramel, honey, banana, clove, candi sugar, floral, herbal, bread, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a while. Fantastic balance and complexity of fruity/spicy ester notes; with a very balanced malt backbone and zero cloying sweetness after the finish. Medium-high carbonation and full bodied; with a slick and lightly syrupy mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with hardly any warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic Belgian strong pale! Big complexity and balance of malt and yeast ester flavors; and very smooth to sip on. A highly enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2013 04:38:05 | More by superspak

Bisho

Australia

4.73/5  rDev +14%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Holy crap batman!
This is like a souped up version of Cuvée Van De Keizer Rood. It is everything that beer wanted to be and more!
All I can say is pineapple, pineapple, pineapple!!!
If you love pineapple you are going to love this. The wife loved it because the high ABV sweetness masks the piney hop bitterness. I didn't even notice it was 12% (I was on the floor after a couple of these!)
Glorious bier and De Dolle's best.

Serving type: bottle

06-06-2013 13:02:57 | More by Bisho

jkane101

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -9.6%

06-05-2013 23:14:04 | More by jkane101

ThePorterSorter

New York

4.05/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer pours a relatively clear (speckled by some yeast) amber topped by a fluffy white head with modest lacing and a residual thin blanketing/halo. The nose is sweet and alcoholic, with yeast, honey, and a sun-dried fruitiness to it. The taste is also relatively sweet, slight caramel toastiness, grain, honey, raisin, booze, and a touch of bitter hops in the finish. It's approaching full-bodied, boozy, potently flavorful, gain-sweetness forward, and a bit too boozy to suck down quickly. I'd say this embodies the Belgian strong pale ale with its tremendous sweetness, yeast fruit, potent ethanol, and mild bitterness. This is probably not a repeat bottle for the price.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2013 01:46:12 | More by ThePorterSorter

cnbrown313

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

06-02-2013 23:36:01 | More by cnbrown313

smonice

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -3.6%

05-28-2013 21:17:29 | More by smonice

robertmitchum

North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

05-24-2013 09:13:31 | More by robertmitchum

InspectorBob

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

05-23-2013 20:30:11 | More by InspectorBob

drgonzo2k2

California

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

05-19-2013 16:54:31 | More by drgonzo2k2

jtladner

District of Columbia

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%

05-18-2013 22:00:07 | More by jtladner

Liquoric3

Germany

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%

05-14-2013 19:06:34 | More by Liquoric3

BierMeJohn

Germany

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

05-07-2013 19:14:07 | More by BierMeJohn

alamode

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%

04-29-2013 01:54:18 | More by alamode

deNerval

California

4.75/5  rDev +14.5%

04-28-2013 04:13:39 | More by deNerval

Reneejane

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

04-27-2013 23:37:36 | More by Reneejane

CanisMajor

Indiana

4.5/5  rDev +8.4%

04-24-2013 22:51:30 | More by CanisMajor

st9647v3

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

04-17-2013 03:04:00 | More by st9647v3

ThreeFishes

Florida

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

04-16-2013 22:57:07 | More by ThreeFishes

beernads

Florida

4/5  rDev -3.6%

04-11-2013 07:17:49 | More by beernads

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -3.6%

04-10-2013 19:20:45 | More by Rifugium

iL0VEbeer

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%

04-06-2013 05:10:32 | More by iL0VEbeer