Brigand Christmas - Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V.

Arno

4.66/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

This is one hell of a brew. And quite a kicker too. Take 2 and you'll get woozy for sure :)
This one was riped for a year as well, giving it that bit of a extra ripeness to it. Any proper bar does this.

It's a full on sweet malty flavor with some spices balancing out the typical belgium yeast like flavor to keep it's own character. The belgium yeast can get quite boring and overpowering, but this one really has it's own character, balancing those typical yeast flavors out. Together with some deep ripe tropical fruits and some dark slighly sweet en little hop bitter kick makes it a highly recommended beer. If you come across it, try it, you won't be dissapointed!

If there was a downside, it might be the slight metallic after taste to it. Other then that it's perfect.

Serving type: on-tap

02-02-2013 01:54:55 | More by Arno

BlackHaddock

United Kingdom (England)

4.38/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Very difficult to get. Only brewed for export to specialist beer bars in Holland and always in casks, no bottles. I managed to review it at the 16th Essen Christmas beer festival 2010, where they always try and get a barrel.

Darker than the regular Brigand and with a better head which remained intact for longer than the regular too.

Stronger in flavour also, maltier and spiced? I could detect coriander both in the smell and taste. The hop content is certainly overpowered by the malty character of the brew. The alcohol is masked by a sweetness from the malts, but this isn't one of those sickly winter brews you sometimes come across in Belgium, this is very good indeed.

Serving type: on-tap

12-29-2010 10:49:59 | More by BlackHaddock