De Dolle Oerbier Special Reserva

Brewed by De Dolle Brouwers
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Diksmuide, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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I’d like to thank either MRomero548 or Kinz for sending me this beer! I can’t recall which of those guys sent me the beer so I’ll just thank both of them… they are both BadAsses anyway so I can’t go wrong, right?!

Rating# 550
Pours a murky mahogany body and a fat and fluffy light tan colored head. The aroma is rather sharp with notes of bionomic vinegar and fresh apple cider. I can smell a depth to this brew a tartness that is clocked with a lightly toasted and sweet note of maple syrup.
The flavor is F-ing Spectacular! There is a so much going on as far as spice and bitter sweet contrasting… it’s absolutely insane!
My conceived mental recipe, but without individual ingredients: A hand kneaded lump of wheat bread dough, A few cups of Golden Delicious pressed apple juice, about a cup of red Merlot grapes, a good portion of orange zests, several hands full of raisins. All tossed and blended in a mortar and then hand ground with a petal: black peppercorn, rosemary, clove, and a suggestion of thyme. Now, add several ounces of grade-A maple syrup.. Mix the listed ingredients into a large conical and copiously blend the ingredients, then pour into a small oak cask that has recently aged a 30-year Porto. Allow a year for the earthy notes of the oak and the cloying and nutty flavors of the Porto to permeate / intermingle / and expand the fresh ingredients... and this MattA’s mental process! The palate is extraordinarily sticky, yet velvety.. an absolute work of genius I tell you!

Poured from a 11.2 oz bottle into a tulip. This is an aggressively carbonated beer. A large, off-white sea foam froth forms over a caramel amber beer. The nose is tart, with nice cherry notes. There is some oak, vanilla, and vinegar in the back. The flavor mostly follows the nose. It is simple, but nice. Tart cherries, The mouthfeel is really fizzy and bubbly. Even without a full body, it held the 13% ABV really nicely. It was tart and slightly acetic, but not incredibly sour. This is a nice Flemish sour.

Birra miracolosa, vero e proprio elisir. Praticamente perfetta. 5 è anche poco.

Vintage 08. Brown with a tan head. Aroma is caramel, redwine, balsamic vinegar and dried red berries. Flavour is caramel, balsamic vinegar, alcohol and dried red berries.

Vintage ’08. Pours a clear and ruby beer with a weak offwhite head. The aroma is malt, sweetness, fruit, dried fruit, balsamic and alcohol. The flavor follows the nose. The palate is dry with sweetness and alcoholwarmth. Overall a really good beer.

Medium body and intense aroma. Intensely sour finish but not altogether unpleasant. Might taste a bit of sour cherries in this. I’m not typically a fan of sour beers, but this one is undeniably well done.

Bottle brought to Qbrick by KyotoLefty. Thanks! Very sharp sherry or port wine aromas with lots of dark fruit. Sourish flavors of overipe cherries, prunes, raisins. Good carbonation (for its age). Thin body. Long sour aftertaste, gentle and sustained. Just the tiniest touch of oxidation, which actually adds to the flavor experience. Exceptional stuff!

2005 bottle. Nose of big dried fruits, wine or port, a bit of soy sauce. Very fruity flavor, grapes and cherries, some nice sour tang but in control, oak. Very low oxidation and still well carbonated—in fact, in simply wonderful condition. Great body. A fabulous beer that lived up to high expectations.

2007 bottle. Pours tawny brown with a trace of off-white head which quickly dissipates. Aroma is caramel and cookie malt, sour fruit, grassy hops, and oak barrels. Flavor is balanced malt, hops, and sour fruit esters; dry finish. Medium body, carbonation, and warmth.

This is one of the best things I have ever put in my mouth. It’s been awhile but I had quite a few 2006 vintages. Around 13% alcohol and very hard to detect even the slightest warmth. Beautiful sour notes and complex flavors make this big beer hard to sip.

Bottle, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010 vintages. Murky brown pour. Fruity, dark and dried (cherry, plum, raisin), vanilla, wood. Active body, sweet and sour.