Barbar Bok

Brewed by Brasserie Lefebvre
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Rebecq-Quenast, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

From a 330ml bottle on 30/11/2010. My bottle makes no reference to ’Winter’, and comes with a stylish Grolsch like bottle seal. Pours dark, almost like cola. Has a quite strange aroma of alcohol and methylated spirits. Has a fairly subdued flavour for a beer this big. There is a dollop of sweet honey, a little bit of dark fruit, and not much else other than a distinct dash of alcohol. Has a thinnish mouthfeel and moderate bitterness. Quite disappointing and uninspiring.

330 ml bottle from SAQ, served at cellar temperature in a tulip glass.

App.: Very, very deep mahogany with a large, greyish-tan foam. Aroma: Rich, crunchy, chewy malts, lots of raisins, prunes, figs, dark dried fruits, some herbal notes, sweet brown sugar bordering on molasses, there’s an ephemeral note that is a little...savoury?, tart fruit notes, a bit of alcohol, overall quite nice. Palate: Medium body, full, plump effervescence. Flav.: Much like the nose with plenty of rich, boozy fruits, sticky malts, some nuttiness, some bubblegum esters, minty herbals, sweet honey, a really nice winter warmer; somewhat sweet with a little bitterness and a lovely sweet, fruity honey and brown sugar finish.

Lovely stuff.

Bottle at the BevMo fest. Pours a hazy dark brown color with a one-finger tan head. The aroma is rather spicy with big caramel malts, anise, toast, and chocolate. The flavor is rather sweet but tasty. Caramel, chocolate, and quite a bit of licorice to it, along with some dark fruit notes and spices. Medium-full bodied with average carbonation and well-hidden booze. Pretty tasty winter bock beer overall.

330 ml bottle @ Konttori.
Pours a dark reddish brown colour with a patchy white head. Aroma of bread, grass, toasted malts and syrup. Flavour of toasted malts, raisins, syrup and loads of sweetness but not too much. Quite balanced. Medium/full bodied with a thick mouthfeel. Not bad and very drinkable.

Bottle from SAQ at Fairview Mall in Montreal. Medium beige head shrinks quickly. Body is black, almost opaque, lighter at edges. Bready, yeasty, licorice and chocolate aroma with milky notes, and faint alcohol. Taste is chocolatey licorice with yeast notes and alcohol heat. Lots of carbonation in the mouth initially. Sweet. Slightly watery. Dry licorice aftertaste. Quality but not exceptional.

Bouteille 330 ml. 8%. Couleur brune rougeâtre, mousse beige, bonne effervescence. Arômes de malt grillé et de fruits. Goût de cerise noires, fruits rouge, malt, miel et alcool. Finale avec une légère amertume. Bonne.

Kerstbierfestival 2009. Clear brown pour with a thin, light brown head. Aroma of honey and malt. Flavor of honey, spices and malt. The body is light to medium while the carbonation. is lively. Definitely interesting and surprising.

330ml bottle, very dark brown color, with a big fluffy beige-tan head, yeasty, spicy curaçao, coriander nose with a soft toasted, caramel, biscuity, chocolate malt accent, with some dark dried fruit, candi sugar notes in the aroma follows through on a medium-bodied palate with a warmth, sweet candyish sugar, dark honeyed toasted, caramelized, wheat malt character, with some dark dried fruit, mild spicy coriander, curaçao, nutmeg flavours, with a chocolatey praline undertone, leading towards a warming malty, chocolatey, candied fruity, molasses sweetness finish.