Abbaye des Rocs Grand Cru

Brewed by Brasserie de l’Abbaye des Rocs
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Montignies-sur-Roc, Belgium

This beer pours a very merky carmel colored amber with tons of pulp like particulate matter suspended in it. It also has a nice thick head with some decent streaks along the sides of the glass. The aroma is very punget and fragerent with a wide variety of fruits from apple to plum and everything in between. As you drink it the flavor is so complex that your taste buds go crazy. You get some nice fruity notes which pop with the carbonation and then finish off with honey and carmel malt. the palate duration is very long and you can still taste the fruits long after the beer has left your mouth.

Pours out a heavily particulated orange/brown with a massive tan head that leaves globs of lacing. The particulates look like orange pulp and are large enough to be detected on the tongue as they pass over. The nose is a complex bouquet of light and red fruits, including pear, apple, grapes, plums, cherries and a slew of other fruits I can’t identify. Floral tones are jump out too. There is definitely an aroma of hoeny and caramel behind it too, as advertised. As it warms a buttery presence accompanies the other scents. The flavour is like candy, with overripe fruits, almost like caramel apples, with some molasses on the finish. There are no metallic, plasticy or astringent notes to be detected, just intense malt sweetness. As it warms, the depth of the malty flavours increases, with cookie-like flavours. The smoothest velvete palate I’ve ever encountered, finishing sticky and slightly dry.

Dark brown/deep red hue, lots of sediment, decent sized head. Lots of lacing, tastes of plum/fig/raisin/banana/oranges. Somewhat sweet, but not overly sweet like a barleywine. Easy-drinking beer, alcohol is present but not over the top. Delicious.

(bottle BB 2010): Darkish brown body, fizzy w/sediment suspended but quickly settling. Foamy off-white head, average & somewhat lasting. Very strong dark grape/plum aroma. Some alcohol, some floral. Some bourbon-like aroma. Some of that bourbon in the taste, floral aftertaste. Some alcohol but mostly dark plummy taste. Goes good with chocolate, it mutes the flrvors. Better as it warms.

Murky brown hue with a soapy medium sized white head. Aromas of plums,dates,raisins,roasted malts, and a hint of chocolate. Sweet to bitter. Dry finish with moderate carbonation. Nicely balanced. Great Grand Cru.

Delicious beer. Pours a reddish brown into the glass with a good-sized tan head. Taste is quite sweet, the alcohol comes through a bit. Fruity and very smooth. 1 pt. 9.4 oz. bottle.

Flavor is of brown sugar and cherries. Many flavors come through; brown sugar, caramel malt, cherries, raisins, fruit. Complex and a fun to drink. Mouthfeel is sticky and it has a warming alcohol sensation. I drank this while watching American Gangster. Pretty good movie.

bottle. average tan head into cloudy reddish-brown body. aromas of strong ripe fruit (figs and cherries), caramel, very light chocolate, some vinousness, sugared candy, and also some light oxidation. average carbonation. long, long, long duration on finish. very complicated but satisfying belgian strong ale.