Abbaye des Rocs La Montagnarde (Ambree)

Pours out a nice cloudy brown color. Aroma is yeasty and the flavor is very well balanced. although not as good as the Brune, this is a nice brew that I will be purchasing again.

Brown colored pour - wanted to try this and anything else from this brewery. Lots of floating shit in this one. Yeasty, sweet, and malty smell. Pretty good, not as good as brune, but very nice. Very nice beer.

After cleaning up three remote controls, a TV tray and carpeting I am now ready to rate a beer that completely exploded on me and is now in two glasses. I hope the beer is better than our introduction. Pour is a nice amber with quite a bit of carbonation, white head that stays nicely on top of the beer. Aroma has the Belgium earthy yeast tones, nutty flavors, and raisens. Palate is lighter than expected from the aroma and the brewery. Lighter mouthfeel, some nuttieness and earthiness. There is definitely some complexity, but quite to the standard this brewery usually does. There is an earthy buttery essense to the taste and the finish continues with the butteriness and an astringency that is not expected, but not bad either. A very nice beer that is well worth the price, but not quite as good as other offerings from the ’des rocs’ line.

Bottle: Poured a extremely cloudy dirty brown color ale with a super huge off-white foamy head with good retention (lots of ‘’chunks’’ were discernable in the glass). Aroma of floral malt with some funky yeast. Taste is dominated by sweet caramel malt but the yeast presence was just shadowing most of the taste profile. This wasn’t a particularly bad thing as I did appreciate the funky feel from the yeast. Alcohol is well hidden and body if fuller then average.

The bottle was marked for drinking before then end of 2006 and seemed the oldest of my Abbaye des Rocs lineup, so I decided to give it a try. Even with cautious use of my bottle opener, an eruption of foam bubbled out the semi-open seal. As I poured into my Trappist glass, a voluptuous cappuccino head fluffed up from the deep sanguine body. Suddenly, the volcanic container began to ineluctably vomit a legion of large chunks. From experience, attempting to decant the liquid is absolutely futile, and I would instead suggest capitulating to the valuable nuggets by gently stirring the bottle halfway through to homogenize the mixture. What resulted from this nearly disastrous pour, was actually more than potable.

The nose is powerful and striking in richness and complexity. Initially pineapple and chocolate dominate in a surprisingly agreeable blend and with minimal effort one can dissect the three chocolates in the aroma. Dark, milk and white are equally present and create a smooth creamy yet slightly bitter character. With a second sniff, café au lait appears in conjunction with a thick bready odor that provides a dusty and slightly musty aspect continually accumulating in complexity. The dynamism of Montagnarde’s nose makes it difficult to untangle as each inhalation reveals new scents. The general aroma feels earthy and smooth, malty and yeasty but also fruity and spicy. Green vegetables such as artichoke and string beans are present and reflect the slightly caramelized, brown sugar sweetness that one might find blended in nouvelle cuisine. Figs, plums, banana, apple and vanilla appear as soon as you think of fruit. Irish cream emanates from the background leaving a buttery yet slightly sweet alcoholic tinge in the nose. A woody and gradually spicier fragrance becomes noticeable as the liquid warms.

Finally, I take a sip. Beautiful lacing covers the glass and slides down phlegmaticly as it leaves a speckled painting reminiscent of Jackson Pollock’s work. Coffee and vegetables appear first: carrots, green beans, brussel sprouts, flavors skip from one to the next as the liquid wraps smoothly around the tongue. Goat cheese, meat, steak sauce, bread, a veritable dinner in a bottle! L’Abbaye des Rocs’ Montagnarde is what Willy Wonka’s gum must be like. A substantial brew that displays incredible complexity, an instant favorite. The creaminess of sweetened fromage blanc emerges in conjunction with caramel, butter and a slight burnt character. Spices mark the final touch as the velvety liquid ends in a bloom of milky flavors and the gentle trace of alcohol. The description is spot on with gingerbread in that finishing gust of spices which also includes black pepper, cinnamon, anis, cardamom and nutmeg. A brilliant concoction that has left me tremendously impressed.

Pours amber thick, hazy, carbonated and chunky. 1" loose head. Spicy, papery aroma with some pear. Nice body with flavors of caramel, apple, pear, dried green raisens. A bit oxidized. Finishes a little tart and bitter. Quite effervescent.

Pours brass colored, with a small,but infinite head. Aroma is supremely yeast,with banana and caramel. Flavor is a similar mix, with a emphasis on the banana. Finish is hoppier than exected, as well as being surpringly dry. The spices carry from start to finish. Alcohol is not well masked, and dominates at times. A little sharp.

33 cl bottle. Yeast at the bottom. Brown colour with a weak head. Aroma of candy, toffee, yeast and kandis. Very smooth great flavour of complexity, dried fruit nearly like portwine. Ends up with a sweet and warm feeling from the alcoho, very nice endeed.l