Alvinne Podge Belgian Imperial Stout

Bottle. Explosive. Dark brown colour with huge beige head. Roasted malt and some hops in the rather discrete aroma. Nice flavour with plenty of hops, malt and English liquorice and a little bit of dark chocolate. Depsite the explosive opening of the bottle, the brew settles nicely and carbonation is not too rich.

Take your typical imperial stout...ok, got it? Now make it in Belgium...ok, with me still? There you go, that’s this beer. It’s interesting only so far as it’s an ok stout with a sourness to it that mellows out the typical roastiness. The alcohol is hidden very well and it looks good in a glass though.

THOUGHTS: Really nice imperial stout and very Belgian. Hid alcohol very well, until the finish and then it all hits. But alcohol did grow in intensity as it warmed. Still nice though. TECHNICAL: Bottle. Poured a hazy, dark brown with red highlights and a small, off-white head that mostly diminished and left good lacing. There were also small particles in the body of and average to thick density. The aroma was moderate cocoa powder and chocolate syrup; moderate yeast, vanilla, licorice, cola, spices and dark fruit. The initial flavor was sweet, lightly sour and slightly acidic; while the finish was rather sweet and sour with an average duration. There was chocolate syrup, dark fruit, yeast, vanilla and cola. The medium to full body, which was a little thin for the style, was fairly creamy, but also oily with lightly fizzy carbonation and a moderate to heavy alcoholic finish.

Bottle. Dark brown pour with a nice beige head. Fruity, roasty aroma. Tastes sweet, roasty, malty, dark fruit, caramel, plum. This is a cracking beer from Belgium. I know Chris Pollard very well and he is a great advocate of Belgian beer. Jolly good brew!

bottle, very dark reddish black colour with beige and stable head. Smell: roasted malt, drop and overripe dark fruit. Taste: also roasted malt, sweet, a bit bitterness, alcohol, fruity, caramel. Complex and lovely beer! drop in the aftertaste.

Bottle from Birraland. Sweet and sour, a gusher. A cross between a Belgian ale and an imperial stout. Smoke, coffee, trappist-like malty body. Very enjoyable.

Tap. Aroma very fruity with cherry, blackberry, boysenberry, even blueberry, I guess generally berry-laden, along with chocolate malt notes. Flavor again a mix of chocolate stouty maltiness with Belgian fruitiness, not really roasted, maybe just mildly. Really nice integration of styles here, grew on me a lot after being a little taken aback by the intense berry quality.

Opaque mahogany, thin, bubbly cream head. Fruity nose of cherry, raisin, and heavy caramel malt. The flavor is incredibly balanced with licorice, raisin, almond, plum, and light alcohol. Lightly salty finish, somewhat thin body and never sticky but quite long-lasting. A little too alcoholic with warmth, but still a very nice Belgian stout.