 ClarkVV (3550), Allston, Massachusetts, USA
Apr 19, 2005
On draught at the brewpub 4/16/05. Dark milky brown colored beer, hazy and very unfiltered, with a small but fairly well-lasting light beige head. Aroma of cardamon, ginger, light earthiness, brown sugar, Belgian yeast, and light dough. Flavor is lightly spiced up front, transitioning in to a creamy malt and yeast profile that sticks to the palate. Perhaps more simple than some from the motherland, but no alcohol is noted, little to no astringency and just a fantastic body that gives a wonderful mouthfeel and solid medium-full body. Light nuttiness, hints of dark fruits and more spice round out the finish. Much like Watch City Biere de Bordel was on tap (though more dry and phenolic).
josarah (75), Hinesburg, Vermont, USA
Oct 26, 2008 Tap at brewpub (from a previous visit) nice off white head, sour herby aroma, dark brown color. Rich fruit, spice and subtle tart blend well. the thyme really adds another dimenson. Another grand slam by John.
jcwattsrugger (4087), Florida and, New Jersey, USA
Oct 10, 2007 on tap-pours a minimal off white head and dark mahogany color. Aroma is vinuous, dark/medium malt, sour dark fruit. Taste is vinuous-cherry, dark/medium malt, sour dark fruit, brown sugar/cocoa powder, some yeast, hops bite, some alcohol not to the style of a Bruin, towards a Flemish sour ale style. OK carbonation.
notalush (2129), Rawn-kawn-kohma, New York, USA
Aug 5, 2007 Tap at the brewpub - beautiful burgundy/purple pour, with a lasting tan head - earthy, cellared aroma, with faint whiffs of wild yeast way in the back, underneath thick, dark fruits (plum, date) and light peppery notes - wonderfully complex flavor - dark fruit sweetness and some wine grape vinous character up front - the sweetness is tempered by a mild wild quality that will probably make this beer quite funky with age - the thyme really comes through in the finish, complimenting the earthiness really well - wonderful beer.
Glouglouburp (2113), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Jul 9, 2007 Updated: Jul 24, 2007Cloudy mahogany body topped by a beige ring of foam. Grainy malts, dough, apples, no hops noticeable. 8% well hidden. That’s all the non-spices notes I have. Cooking spices totally take over the beer. Cloves, ginger, curacao and all kinds of herbal spices. Wouash! I like spicy beer as much as the next guy but this was gross. After half a glass (thankfully not served in pints) I was totally grossed out. The Alchemist brewer is too skilled to have screwed up like this so I assume this was the intended result. However I’ve got to give it the below 1.0 drain-pour rating because I couldn’t drink even a single glass of it. And me not being able to finish a glass of beer at The Alchemist is like Rosie O’Donnell not finishing her first plate at an all-you-can-eat buffet.
<br /><b>Update</b>: after a quick beermail exchange with the friendly brewer it seems as if I was served a glass with a certain amount of yeasty sediment from the dish shaped bottom their serving tanks. The staff should have picked it up and not serve me the glass. It was a very very busy Saturday night (1 hour wait for a dinning table) which would explain the mistake. Also I didn’t bother checking with the staff to see if it was normal that my beer tasted like that because it was a very very busy night. I’ll make sure to try it again next time I’m at The Alchimist. So for now this rating should be taken with a grain of salt. I won’t change it for now because I always rate what I taste, not what I should or could have tasted.
SuIIy (1117), W Newton, Massachusetts, USA
May 23, 2006 Draught pint at red bones. Pours a muddy dark brown color with a small brown/red head. Nose is lightly spicy with some nice brown sugar notes, dough, light yeast notes. Palate is chewy and creamy. Flavor is again lightly spiced with some ginger notes, some milky notes with sweet malt and dark fruits. Some apple like notes are found as are a few dark fruit notes.
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