Struise Pannepot

Brewed by De Struise Brouwers
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Oostvleteren, Belgium

Poured a very dark brown with a nice frothy head. You could smell this elixir on the pour. Dark fruits, and belgian yeast dominate. The taste is even better than the nose. This is a wonderful beer. More dark fruits. I notice more than what was in the nose, Blackberry, plum, grape. There is a lot going on in the taste. Nice and complex. The mouthfeel is full and creamy. I could drink this all day long.

Bottle from Cracked Kettle. One of the all-time greats. A dark and inviting body. Nice roasty nose of sugar, raisins, shortbread and malts. Very syrupy taste with chocolate, toffee, dark berries. Very warming and smooth. Wondrous.

2006 bottle. appearance: very active (despite sitting still in my basement for 9+ months), pours dark brown, but large khaki head of very fine bubbles that lasts forever. aroma: licorice(?), chocolate fudge cake, carrot cake. tastes great, a lot of body, very creamy, chocolate mousse, molasses, moderate chocolate sweetness; "dessert in a bottle" is apt. Sturdy warm alcohol backbone, without being boozy, along with a fabulous wood note in the finish as it warms up. Something incredibly distinctive about this beer; I haven’t found anything else at all similar yet.

Wow, really enjoyed this one. Smelled sweet and rich. Poured with a big head that diminished into a small head that lasted. Flavor was chewy caramel, chocolate, tons of spice, all blended just perfectly. Mouthfeel was almost that of a champagne, with very small bubbles in the mouth. A very full flavored belgian brew.

Label reads 2006. First off I have to preface this by saying that Quads are not exactly my thing and I haven’t had a lot of experience with them. That being said... My friend tasting it with me says it looks like coca-cola, and I have to agree. Nose is totally odd and unique and extremely complex. At first I thought it smelled like old, concentrated cotton candy. Then my friend pointed out that she thought it had a fragrance like banana Laffy Taffy (which it certainly does). There is just a load of things going on with this nose. Flavor is spice forward. Very sugary sweet like brown sugar and a slight biting alcohol presence. After a swallow and it settles on my tongue I get a heavy coffee aftertaste. The feel has a coffee flair to it as well. Like old coffee that was brewed with five times too many grinds. Extremely drinkable. But this puppy is heavy of course and I bet after some time in the cellar, it would even out and be even better. Highly suggested.

Bottle. Nose is intense spice. Nutmeg, anise, mint, citrus, rasins, figs, candy-sweetness. Cola like look-- brown-black with solid brown head. Creamy palate with tons of flavor. Lots of what’s in the nose, with a burn in the finish. Thick and serious beer with purpose.

Bottle split with Pat. Bottle. Pours deep, deep brown, with a nice beige head. Aroma of raisins, candy apple, scotch, vinegar, malts, yeast, and caramel. Medium body with a warming finish. This beer is extremely well balanced; with flavors perfectly complementing one another.

2006 bottle. Hazy brown, nice head. Dark fruit and toffee aroma, flavour of plums and licorice. Impressive body, not being overly sweet. Great balance, excellent finish with a nice alcohol warmth. After the rather disappointing Struise Mikkeller, I didn’t expect much, but this is astonishingly good, up there with the best of them!