Alvinne Balthazar

Brewed by Picobrouwerij Alvinne
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Moen, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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33cl. bottle: Rich dark stained walnut wood pours from the bottle while a thick creamy dark tan foam climbs the sides of the glass. A sweet and spicy aroma rises and fills the air. Liquified licorice (the dutch black cat variety) with indian candy-coated anis seeds and some cardomom. Green herbs hide away in the back. Thankfully the flavor is less sweet and licorice derived than the aroma led me to believe. The licorice is still there though, just not as big as I expected. There is a quick shot of coffee that quickly turns herbal before mellowing into chocolate roast. Sweet overall but the roast caught me off guard at first because of the aroma. Sweet but balanced decently with the roast. Yeasty bread floats around with caramel but never completely surfaces above the roast. There is a bit of an herbal sting at points. Lively carbonation and medium body, ends nicely dry with alcohol notes.

On tap at Max’s Belgian Beerfest 2010. Translucent burgandy with a thin creamy head. Sweet, medicinal licorice aroma with alcohol notes, a bit heavy handed. Taste has lots of alcohol, sweet malty Robitussin. Sweet alcohol finish.

Muddy pour. Lots of spices in the smell and taste as well. A bit of chocolate and liquorice. Too much spice for me to really enjoy, but a fun experience.

Bottel@home - witch almost emptied itselves when opening it. Pours dark brown and hazy (maybe from the yeast) with a gigantic huge off white head. Aroma with notes of ginger, yeast and herbs, and some sourness. Taste of coriander, ginger, yeast as well as some sourness. I also sences the same cooling feeling as when you eat menthol. The mouthfell is medium body, slightly oily with a very lively carbonation. all in all a nice belgian brew.

Wonderful beer. Tried it at Erasmus in Bruges on tap. Strong taste of pectoral candy. Lovely long lasting head.

A red Brown coulered beer with a beige creamy head, not stable, a thin layer stays behind. Aroma is very complicated: ginger, raisins, spicy, port, fruity, malt and caramel. The basic taste (scale from 1 to 5): sweet: 2, sour: 1, bitter: 1. The aftertaste: sweet: 2, sour: 3, bitter: 1. Dry in the finish. Enough information on the label. This beer did me thinking of the taste of a heavy wine. A remarkable beer but not my type.

Bottle @ Kerstbier Fest, Essen. Very dark, almost opaque appearance. Nose of oak, caramel, licorice and chocolate. Complex palate of raisins, oak, ginger, chocolate and more. Slightly bitter finish. A sweet, yet a bit tart Belgian barleywine. Very enjoyable.