Monk's Mistress - Midnight Sun Brewing Co.

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Dark colour, with white foamy head. Good roast aroma,roasted chocolate, stout elements, licorice and mollasses in the taste.Above average mouthfeel, with caramel, yeast, roast, nuttiness, suitable carbonation. A good crossover, and complexity. Drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2008 01:35:12 | More by northyorksammy

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

4.38/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Dark crimson-brown, like a cherry tobacco cheroot. While the crazed carbonation is barely visible due to the 'light's out' color of the beer, the glass-filling head is all the proof I need. It's golden ecru in color and falls over time to a wind-smoothed mesa of foam. Since this isn't the sort of head to produce much lace, I'm not surprised to see a clean glass.

LMDM smells authentically Belgian, even though it hails from the land of the Midnight Sun. It's powerfully dark malty with aromas of myriad dark fruits: raisins, black currants, prunes, black cherries. There's also a muskiness that I'll attribute to hops (or perhaps yeast) and an even more notable dark spiciness.

This beer is more than impressive. It's amazingly flavorful with layer upon layer of BSDA power and dizzying depth. It's a bewitching mixture of intense, mega-spicy, explosive dark fruitiness that I'm unable to fully explore before the mouthful is gone and I need to see about getting another.

I'm not sure if spices were added; it's probably just an ass-kicker of a yeast strain. Raisin paste and sour plums just got added to the flavor profile. Call me crazy, but there are also elements of the wee heavy and dubbel styles in this beer. I'll say this, the masterful brewers at Midnight Sun hit the proverbial nail on the proverbial head.

The mouthfeel is medium, leaning toward full, with that wonderful chewiness that I like in most all big beer. The still vigorous carbonation isn't annoying in the least. In fact, it's part of what makes the beer feel Belgian. I've just realized that I haven't mentioned alcohol. That's because it's nowhere to be found; a remarkable achievement at an ABV of 9.0%.

La Maitresse Du Moine does not translate as The Mattress from Des Moines, despite what some may think. The Monk's Mistress is the finest ASDA (Alaskan strong dark ale) that I've ever had. In fact, it's good enough to stand alongside some of the best Belgians. It's beautiful, complex, strong, sophisticated and exotic. I should be so lucky as to have a mistress with those qualities.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2005 21:25:34 | More by BuckeyeNation

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.2/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

I received this one graciously from Miss Dana Tayner. I was very anxious to try it as I have loved everything that I have tried from Midnight Sun, and this looked like it was going to be a monster so I did not want to wait to dive in. The nicely labeled 22oz bomber was served in a Chimay goblet at cellar temperature.

Appearance - The pour was absolutely beautiful. This had to be one of the best looking Belgian ales I have ever seen. It was just tremendous from the first moment I poured it into the glass. A rich, deep, dark brown was shown right before me, just barely letting the slightest bit of color come through to give it a nice tint to the reddish side. Lots of carbonation rippling up toward the surface though out. The head was enormous, towering to a height of at least four inches before finally settling down to a modest three inches! This thing was a beast, leaving behind enormous amounts of side glass lace everywhere it touched. One of the best, if not the best looking Belgian ale I have ever seen.

Smell - The aroma was extremely big as well, I could literally feel it popping in my nose as I took in every breathe. Really extremely well done. Big aroma of raisins, and figs started it off, with a nice little hint of spice and just the tiniest bit of alcohol way in the back making it a touch bigger. There was the unmistakable aroma of cocoa in there as well, which really threw me for a loop. Nice subtle earthy tones as well, overall this was extremely well done.

Taste - The flavor started out very nice. A rich, warming palate of dark fruits washed over the tongue from the very first sip. It had loads of rum soaked raisins, figs, plums, and was just very dark overall in its profile. The cocoa then showed up again as well, very sweet, and creamy hints of chocolate showing out here. It was fleeting at first, but then became wrapped up in the roasted malts and a slightly smoked like flavor. As it warmed though all of the subtleness of it then faded, and instead the roasted malts dominated, and eased up on the overall complexity of it.

Mouthfeel - This was a rather interesting experiment in how a beer can transform. It started out very well carbonated, with a nice smooth feel, and a near silk like consistency to it. Once it warmed up though it started to go flat, and really thinned out which was quite disappointing. The flavor fell out with it, and I am not really sure what happened there.

Drinkability - This was an easy smooth sipper for sure. The ABV was a little up there at around 1o%, however, it was well masked, and in the beginning it was very well carbonated. I could have had another, well at least the first part of another.

Overall I thought this was really well done, and one of the better strong ales I have had. The notes of chocolate were extremely well placed and the overall profile was very nice and full. If you can get this I would recommend doing so. It is definitely worth a bit of a hunt, as this is vintage Midnight Sun class.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2008 10:24:34 | More by mikesgroove

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.68/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle from Healthy Spirits in San Francisco. Served in a Midnight Sun goblet.

Pours a very dark brown color with a moderate off-white head with a bit of lacing on the way down. The nose carries some nice dark fruit esters plus a touch of malty sweetness. A slight touch of roast and anise in the background.

The flavor is fairly sweet with some light roasted malt in the background as well some dark fruits. This reminds me of fresh Russian River Salvation. There's a roastiness coming from the dark malts that I haven't experienced in many Belgian versions of the style. Still, it's fairly enjoyable.

Body is medium with moderate carbonation and a smooth creaminess through the finish. Lingering aftertaste with a touch of sugar. Pretty good; one of the better American versions of the style that I've had.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2012 00:37:58 | More by Thorpe429

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

3.73/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle: Poured a deep pitch-brown color ale with a large off-white foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of light dry fruit with a spicy yeast and some light alcohol ester showing. Taste is quite charming with good notes of dry fruits and some spicy yeast leading way to some warm alcohol. Body is fuller then average with good carbonation. I thought a bit too much alcohol was showing and the yeast strain that was used was somewhat too spicy.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2009 01:04:48 | More by Phyl21ca

metter98

New York

4.05/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: The beer is very dark brownish amber in color. It poured with a thin beige head that has good retention properties and consistently left a thin layer of bubbles covering the surface.
S: There are light aromas of dark fruits in the nose.
T: Similar to the smell, the taste has flavors of dark fruits.
M: It feels medium-bodied and quite smooth on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is very easy to drink because the alcohol is well hidden from the taste.

Serving type: bottle

06-30-2012 23:29:18 | More by metter98

drabmuh

Maryland

3.8/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to Thorpe for sharing this with me. Tickers unite. Served in a snifter. At the time of this review, this is #31 on the "Top Beers - Belgian Strong Dark Ale" list on beeradvocate.com.

Beer is dark brown and mostly clear with a thin off white head of small bubbles. Moderate carbonation, no lacing, low retention.

Aroma is yeasty, biscuit, esters, sweet, with a mild roast.

Beer is medium in body and sweet up front with a mild roast finish. It is a little too sweet and a little too bitter, there is an interesting yeast character on the finish. Nice but probably not a repeat.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2012 19:34:08 | More by drabmuh

zeff80

Missouri

4.1/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Poured out an opaque, dark, dark brown hue with an off-white, pillowy head of foam. Good retention that leaves behind some patchy lace.

S - Aroma is malty sweet with a good dose of dried fruits (plum, raisin).

T - A fairly spicy Belgian Dark. Good malt backbone of caramel and toffee with mild raisin and plum flavors.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. It has a pretty nice bite. A medium to full bodied beer.

D - This is a pretty darn good beer. Midnight Sun continues to impress me.

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2010 00:41:51 | More by zeff80

russpowell

Oklahoma

3.83/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a chestnut-hued mahogany with a finger of mocha head. Some lacing & zero head retention

S: Musty apples, plums & other dark fruit

T: A bit of green apple, plums & a kiss of booze up front. A bit of oaky dryness & some dark chcolate, a bit more booze burn, leafy hops & figs as this warms, Finishes with a bit of dirt, some booze burn & much dark fruit

MF: Medium, fairly spritzy

Drink pretty easy for the ABV, a bit of booze burn, & style. fair take on the style

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2009 06:07:41 | More by russpowell

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Bottled August 2007; Sampled January 2008
Quite well carbonated, a very careful pour produces a fat, five finger thick, light brown colored head that grows above the top of my tulip glass. The beer is quite dark, with an opaque, deeply burnt brown color that shows some clear, ruby hued highlights around the edges when held up to the lightly. Earthy, concentrated notes of dark fruit is the most evident part of the aroma; aromas of roasted, slightly burnt raisins is definitely noticeable. Quite spicy as well with notes of white pepper, substantial clove, some allspice, touches of mace and a woody, slightly savory note similar to a cross between sarsaparilla, birch and a touch of cinnamon bark. Quite aromatic, one of those beers whose aroma jumps out of the glass. This seems like quite a decadent tipple based on the aroma. Even 5 minutes later I still have four fingers of head on this brew, that is why I love tulip glasses as I can still easily get a sip of the brew under all this foam. This does leave quite a few patches of sticky foam on the sides of my glass as I slowly work my way through the beer.

Sweet tasting and quite redolent of dark fruit; raisin puree, prunes, dried figs and perhaps a touch of dried cherry and dried cranberry. The beer finishes with a cola like spiciness as well as a dusty, browned malt note, notes of cocoa powder and a touch of hop bitterness. While fairly sweet the beer is actually some what light feeling, at least it is light feeling for a beer of this strength and sweetness as this is most definitely a sipping brew. It is thick enough that the slightly excessive carbonation is barely noticed. The carbonation does add a peppery, carbonic bit to this brew though. There is quite a bit of dark malt character here; from toasty grain notes, to touches of chocolate, a dusting of roast coffee, lots of brown sugar notes and darkly caramelized, sweet malt. The beer has a touch of tartness to it in the finish that seems a product of both the dark grain and some yeast by products.

As the beer warms up a bit and loses more of the carbonation, it actually seems to get a bit lighter on the palate, becomes a bit less sweet with more of a balance to the chocolate/cocoa dark malt notes. A hint of tamarind becomes noticeable as it couples with the soft tartness in the finish. This has a lot more dark malt character than one would typically get in a beer from Belgium, but I like that added dimension in this brew (after all this isn't Belgian). The dark malt helps to balance the huge, dark fruit character. This is quite a good beer; it can be a bit sweet at first and perhaps a bit on the thin side after a while, but it is definitely enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2008 02:55:15 | More by Gueuzedude

Halcyondays

California

3.58/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

22 oz. bomber,

A: Pours a dark mahogany brown with a moderate white head, very good retention. Solid lace.

S: Strawberries, bubblegum and molasses, raisins take over as it warms up. A unique nose for sure even in the style.

T: Dark sugar is dominant, some Belgian esters for sure. Hint of hops on the back end but it is still quite sweet. Tasty, but not a lot of complexity.

M: Full-bodied, crisp carbonation as opposed to the soft feel of the average Belgian. Sweet, slightly cloying, clearly an American version in feel.

D: Too expensive for what it is as I've gathered with all the MS brews I've had. A nice version, but I'd rather go to Belgium.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2010 03:24:51 | More by Halcyondays

tempest

Pennsylvania

4.38/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Picked up a bomber for $12 at City Beer in San Francisco. In hindsight, I wish I'd picked up a second bottle. The beer open with a big spicy Belgian character that reminded me of Gouden Carolus Cuvee Van De Keizer (that's a big compliment). From there, the beer fades into subtle fruit and soft brown bready malts with a little toffee. What really sets this Belgian ale off, and sets it apart, are the clean, intermittent notes of chocolate that pop up. It's little touches like that that elevate this beer above other fine examples of the style. The body feels like a 8%-9% ABV beer, so watch yourself. It's delicious, just don't get too carried away. And make sure to buy a second bomber.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2012 21:45:36 | More by tempest

akorsak

Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A 650 mL bomber from Liquid Solutions.

A: The Belgian dark ale is beyond dark, a deep crimson red that could be considered black if there were less light in the room. A large head, over three fingers, blanketed the glass on the first pour. Subsequent pours tried to recreate that magic. No lacing.

S: The nose is loaded with fruit, dark and sweet. Raisins and grapes are prominent, as is baker's chocolate. Caramel malts and yeast (again the yeast) fire on multiple cylinders.

T: Bam! This is how a Belgian dark ale should taste. Dark malts, caramel and chocolate, lead off with dark candi sugars and Belgian yeast bringing up the rear. The middle of the sip is spice, the yeast adding a twist, that is coupled with a sharp bite from the carbonation. Delicious and warming, an excellent end to my day.

M: Belgian, sweet and mysterious, this has a taste that can't disappoint. Dark fruits sugars, caramel and chocolate all in one 650 mL bottle.

D: Over 11%, this one is a beer to sip slowly. The depth of flavor makes me want to come back for more.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2009 01:17:09 | More by akorsak

rhoadsrage

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

(Served in a tulip glass)
Just purchased this bottle in 1/11 but it has the old name on it and is notched March 2nd or 3rd week
A- The silky black body lets no light in and except for a few tiny bubbles stuck to the base there is nothing to see. The creamy tan head is thick with some big bubbles pushing through.

S- The dark toffee sweetness has notes of prunes and some very faint red wine vinegar notes followed by some sweet roasted notes like prunes in the finish.

T- The sweet dark fruit flavor has hints of prunes and cream with some softer candy qualities. There is a light tartness to follow with a soft woody quality in the finish and some red wine tannins to dry out the finish even more. As the beer opens up the red wine in the finish takes on more cherry qualities.

M- This beer has a medium mouthfeel with no alcohol heat but a slightly chewy texture in the finish.

D- The dark but bright fruit is sweet but not overly sweet. This beer has a lot of nice depth that is well blended and hard to pin down in words. It does go down way to fast for such a big beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-07-2011 21:25:26 | More by rhoadsrage

Wasatch

Utah

3.63/5  rDev -11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a nice dark brown color, nice carbonation, nice one-finger plus tannish creamy head, lots of nice sticky lacing follows. The nose is malty, slightly yeast, toffee, dark fruits, and caramel. The taste is malty/yeasty, with some dark fruits. Medium body. Drinkable, not really a fan of this brew, not a BSDA in my book.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2008 02:03:48 | More by Wasatch

jlindros

Massachusetts

3.83/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A big thanks to imperialbeachbrw for this one.

Pours a very light fizzy head that rises late, reaching about 1/2 a finger and fades even faster than it formed to essentially a couple small bubbles floating on the thin dark molasses brown almost black colored beer with hints of light sneaking through.

Nose brings a mixture of sweet Belgian candi sugar, dark candi sugar, some Belgian malts, some dark fruits like figs, hints of winter spices, a slight syrupy aroma, some boozy qualities.

Taste is fairly sweet and boozy, pretty boozy tasting, hitting at 11.5% it sure lets you know it. WIth that is a bit of dark candi sugar and molasses, plenty of dark Belgian malts and yeast fruits with more figs, plums, maybe even aged apricots, some light winter spices, and a bit of a spicy tingly taste as well. Finishes with a warming and tingly sensation as it goes down, some lingering malts and sugars, even a bit of a porter like roast flavor coming out, with just a hint of bitterness.

Mouth is medium bodied, lighter than I expected, with champagne like carbonation (many little bubbles) and tons of warming and tingly booze.

Drink is not the greatest either, with lots of booze that even burns the mouth a bit as if it was hard liquor, some sweetness that doesn't dry as well as I thought it would, and the weird carbonation take a few hits on it. It's tasty though, but just slow drinking.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2010 23:28:01 | More by jlindros

jdhilt

New Hampshire

4.8/5  rDev +17.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Pours with a thick, 5-finger plus, light brown head that gradually fades slowly, leaves hardly any lace. Takes 15 minutes just to pour. Dark, brown color. Nose is very sweet and malty. Heavy bodied but light carbonation. Starts sweet, finishes smooth and sweet with just a trace of hops. An excellent Belgian style ale. $8.99 for a 22oz bottle.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2003 23:32:45 | More by jdhilt

Jason

Massachusetts

3.98/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

22 oz brown bomber with a bottled on date on the side of the label.

Appearance: Quick to foam, slow to dissipate. Lots of action from the carbonation to keep the head alive, two shades away from black … very dark.

Smell: Faint licorice, soft yeast … dry malty twang. Quick flash of phenols, dark fruit and a light spicy alcohol.

Taste & Mouthfeel: Big alcoholic character, very boisterous and very warming. Smooth and crisp with a viscous mouth feel. Spicy up front with phenols and alcohol, very little hopping but it is not needed. Lots of dark fruit flavour; prune & black currant. Spices linger with clove, licorice, black pepper … further are some earthy tones, minerally.

Notes: Vastly complex, a sipping brew. Shared the bottle or spend the night getting through it.

Serving type: bottle

11-07-2003 02:02:17 | More by Jason

Billolick

New York

4.33/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bomber, $9.99 @ DeCicco's in Ardsley, NY. The label tells me it was bottled during the 3rd week of December.

Dark dark brown/black, dark tan head, leaves a tiny bubble film , larger collar and nice fine bits of lacing.

A coating of plump and pungent raisins, dark toast and Belgian yeasty goodness in the nose.

Full flavor BSDA, loaded with notes of raisins, ripe figs, dark toast, powdered sugars, burnt malts, all along with a supre dry and densly hopped finish.

Well done, very complex and enjoyable.

Go get some, happy to have this one now distributed to my local area...

Serving type: bottle

02-16-2012 02:08:10 | More by Billolick

Viggo

Ontario (Canada)

3.98/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bottle, bought at Biercafe in Portland.

Pours a very dark reddish brown, almost black away from the light, very thick tan head forms, slowly settles to a very thick layer, great retention, some lace sticks.

Smell is nice, lots of dark fruit, alcohol, caramel sweetness, yeast, kind of a powdery cocoa aroma, neat raisin character, a bit of banana, lightly spicy, some sweet toasty malt, not bad.

Taste is similar, very sweet and fruity, caramel, some brown sugar, banana, biscuit, a bit of light roast, raisin, really interesting character, maybe a bit too clean and malty for a BSDA but still pretty enjoyable.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with medium to high carbonation, pretty smooth and easy to drink, good stuff.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2009 04:54:49 | More by Viggo

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.28/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

From notes:

Huge thanks go out to my awesome wife for surprising me with a bottle of this for Xmas!

Pours a very dark chocolate brown color with very slight mahogany edges when held to a light source and a two finger frothy beige head that has excellent retention, only slowly fading into a lasting cap that coats the goblet with rings and streaks of soapy lacing.

Roasted malt aroma with hints of sweet dark chocolate, peppery spice, licorice, citrus peel and dark fruit notes. I'm picking up a bit of dark cherry as well as some plum, raisin and fig.

On the heavier end of medium bodied with some tingling tight carbonation up front. Lots of peppery, zesty spice notes ip front as well which are countered by a dark roasted chocolate maltiness mid-palate. I'm also picking up slight burnt toast as well as hints of cinnamon, pepper, licorice and citrus peel. Again, the dark fruit notes make an appearance, most notably cherry, raisin, fig and plum before finishing off slightly bitter and dry. Very complex, well balanced and unique with a well masked ABV making this extremely quaffable. This beer is awesome!

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2010 02:25:01 | More by corby112

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

4.3/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Yepper, that's right... this beer was on the nitro at the brewery the other day (as well as at Humpy's the very next day, where I got to have it again).

The beer pours a dark cola color with excellent, creamy head, good retention and lots of sticky lacing. The beer has an impressive nose of spice, rootbeer, chocolate and cherry. On the palate this beer is just delicious. I get plenty of creamy milk chocolate and cherry, with a slight hint of anise as well. As you might expect with a beer like this on the nitro, mouthfeel is soft, creamy smooth, and very, very long. The low carbonation really works well in this beer. Alcohol is well disguised, though you can tell the alcohol is up there and is sizeable. Very tasty stuff.

Serving type: nitro-tap

07-05-2009 17:12:48 | More by johnmichaelsen

glid02

Georgia

4.53/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Bottle shared by Joe - thanks! The label is the old Quebecois one and the date on the bottle is stamped with a 2003. Based on how smooth the beer was I believe it.

Pours a hazy brown color with a half-finger off-white head. The head recedes into a wispy layer on top leaving decent lacing.

Smells of smooth caramel and toasted malts with large amounts of molasses. Also present are brandy-soaked dark fruits - figs and plums - with hints of dark toffee.

Tastes very similar to how it smells. Dark malt flavors with hints of caramel and sweet toasted malts kick things off. Joining in shortly thereafter are moderate amounts of dark fruits - figs and plums as in the aroma with hints of boozy raisins - that come into play. The flavor profile sweetens midway through the sip with mild amounts of molasses and buttery toffee. The sweetness fades out a bit and carries through to a mildly bitter ending.

Mouthfeel is good. It's got a nice thickness with smooth carbonation.

Drinkability is great. I finished my glass very quickly and helped myself to a few more.

Overall this was a very good example of the style, better than many I've that were made in the country of the style's origin. Very much worth a shot, and probably worth letting age for a while if you have multiple bottles.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2011 00:03:49 | More by glid02

Gusler

Arizona

4.33/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer on the pour is a deep sanguineous color with a Bunyanesque head that is a creamy and light tan in color as it evanesces a silk like sheet of lace is left to provide privacy for the glass. The aroma of ripe cherries, maybe even pineapple, nice sweet malt under pinning, fresh, clean and very inviting, a portent of things to come, start is rich in malt, ambrosial with a middling to full top. Stingingly acidic is the finish with the hops mighty in their spiciness, vinous aftertaste and a bit of tummy warming from the 8.20 percent ABV, another fine brew from a most excellent brewery.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2003 00:17:42 | More by Gusler

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

4.43/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Transcribed from undated notes.

One of the last bottles of the original label. BOOO! to whomever agreed to sell out and go to an English, vice French, name for this beer!

Pour resulted in finger of rocky, light-brown head with low retention. Color was a deep, dark-brown with little light penetration. Nose was slightly sweet underlain with a mild anise scent. My uncle remarked that it reminded him of unrefined coal tar. Ha! Mouthfeel was medium with a lot of charcoal, coffee and chocolate notes on the tongue. Finish was very roasty and lingered with all of the intense flavors noted in the mouth. This was a hearty beer that cried out to be paired with red meat and potatoes. My my.

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2010 20:21:42 | More by woodychandler