Duivels Bier - Brouwerij Boon

crnipeter

Slovenia

3.53/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

BBE 28.07.2011, into Chimay chalice. Bubbly beige head collapses to a stable sheet that remains firmly spread over the surface till the last sips of caramely brown body. The dominant green olives/young cold pressed olive oil aroma is unlike anything I've ever came across, subdued are apples, some pear, faint caramel and light spicy alcohol. Flavor profile is composed of fresh olives, apple tartness and lightly bitter hoppy finish. Thin bodied and slightly prickly from delicate although abundant carbonation.
This beer is characterized by highly unusual green olive aroma/flavor which gives it some sort of vegetable component unlike to find in any beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2010 20:53:23 | More by crnipeter

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a barely foggy dark brown with orange/ruby hints. Thick and frothy creme head. Flavor is fairly robust. Dark sweet tones like brown sugar with minimal fruit tones. Thick malts, noticeable spices. Feel has an extremely full carbonation in the mouth. Liquid is well bodied. This is a decent brew. A bit too much carbonation IMO, but still nicely drinkable enough. Something to sip on and relax with.

Serving type: bottle

03-21-2009 10:45:16 | More by RblWthACoz

wl0307

United Kingdom (England)

3.13/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

I'm quite sure that, if the picture is right, this is the same beer as another entry "Donkere 8° Duivel 1883", as the bottle I'm drinking has the same information as printed on the other's beer label that I've kept from five years ago. At 8%abv., this bottle has a scratched/blurred expiry date printed as something like 07/0_/08, served lightly-chilled in Westmalle's broad-rimmed goblet.

A: pours a cloudy dark russet brown hue with a thin layer of fluffy foam and pretty light carbonation.
S: very understated on the nose, showing mostly brown-sugary malts, boiled Chinese red beans, and a lightly sour tinge of raisin-like fruitiness. A swirl gives rise to chocolates, licorice-root-like herbal scent, and meaty yeastiness.
T: flat-textured sour-sweet (raisiny) stone-fruits and brown malts in the foretaste are followed by a slowly expanding herbal-ly bitterness with unidentifiable spicy hints and coke to boot, finished with faint hints of lightly smoked prunes, cold coffee, and lightly chewy palate of bitterness as well as lingering sourness as a result of residual sugary bits and yeast sediments.
M&D: maybe this beer having expired when being consumed doesn't put it in the most positive light, as the carbonation comes a bit dull and the body falls thin in the end of every sip. Also suffered is the flavour structure, being somewhat simplistic and not quite "evolving" as most quality (Belgian dark) ale should demonstrate. I guess the nearly non-existence of alcohol gives this bottle at least something to enjoy, but only just. I need to try it again when it's much younger.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2009 01:35:36 | More by wl0307

Absumaster

Netherlands

3.7/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A dark brown beer with an off-white head that recedes into a small layer of creamy foam.

Smell is very much chocolate and figs. Mainly dark roast smells, caramel on top. The yeast adds a solvent and very light tart smell.

Taste has strong chocolate malt notes, maltbitter and roasted. Some caramel notes that support the roast. The yeast adds a light sour tartness. Not the vinegar-like sourness, but this is more a yeasty tartness. Body is thin and the beer makes an alcoholic impression. A real sugar beer this is. Aftertaste is dry and sticky. Drinkability is good, but this is caused by the use of a lot of sugar. Although the yeast is kind of special, this beer is spoiled by the use of copious amounts of sugar, but that is just my opinion.

Serving type: bottle

04-05-2008 16:51:35 | More by Absumaster

thierrynantes

France

3.83/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Beer bottle (33cl), tasted in 2000.
Appearance: A warm color wooded clear, abundant foam and quite tenacious.
Smell: Nose particular, mild (candied fruit).
Taste and mouthfeel: Happy marriage balanced and unusual flavor and caramelized acids. Rear taste sourish sustainable and enjoyable.
Drinkability: Good beer flavor uncommon.

Review added 11-10-2007, translated from french 3-3-2008.

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2007 18:59:16 | More by thierrynantes

msboyd

Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I enjoyed this beer at the Bierhuis in Ghent, Belgium. Tremendously tasty beer; malty with spice undertones, but never too sweet or cloying. Probably my favorite beer out of everything I had while in Belgium, so high praise indeed!
It is a bit darker than similar beers that make it to the US and it is very drinkable -- almost an ideal session beer but with more of a spice kick.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2007 18:41:32 | More by msboyd

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottle – Poured a dark, almost ruby, type of brew with a nice bubbly head with good retention. Aroma of malt and spice is quite interesting with some floral aspect to it. Carbonation is good with just above average body. Mix of spice is quite interesting and most resemble Duvel, or a darker Duvel. Never tasted the original beer that was brewed before Boon took over but I still like this one. Many Thanks for my friend traveling in Belgian for bringing this back. Also, beautiful bottle that seems like it was used 100 years ago for the first time.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2004 14:29:54 | More by Phyl21ca