De Dolle Stille Nacht

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

Sampled at the Impromptu Butter’s 6th cellar clearance. Hazy golden orange with suspended particulate and small ring of white head. Nose of honey and just the slightest hint of alcohol. Massively sweet honey flavor is verging on mead. Great hidden abv has a nice warming effect but no burning. Sweet but not cloying. Very enjoyable candi sugar finish. Expensive, but worth the price for a dessert wine substitute.

Bottled sample. 2005 vintage is light amber in colour with medium carbonation. Aromas of cherry pits, apricot, booze, and sweet pale malts. Fairly herbal and earthy upfront in the mouth, before the semi-sweet pale malt and caramel malts flavors take over. Finishes fairly dry and mildly acidic, with a medium body. Not quite the blockbuster I was expecting, but still quite drinkable for a 12% beer.

330 ml bottle from a trade with the cheeseman. im unsure of the vintage but this bottle seemed a few year old. this one was a very slow gusher but it still left me plenty of time to catch it. it poured a very hazy light brown with an average off white head that never goes away. the aroma was of aged belgian strong ale. if youve had some older belgian ale you know the aroma of this. the yeast has ahd time to work and change the aroma and its very distinct. the pale malts were showing but there were no hops in the aroma. the flavour was absolutly huge. big and full in the mouth with the malt really shining up front. belgian yeast through the middle and a bitter end the was very american hops based. the only thing that i didnt enjoy about this was the amount of sugar. i really feel that if the clocked in at ~8%abv it would have been a perfect 5 for me. the sugar had left a ciderish note that wasnt unpleasnt but i think without it this beer would have been perfect. thanks for the bottle Dan!

Pours a golden amber with a fluffy white head. Aroma is of dried fruit, dust, spice, alcohol and some piney hops. Big body, syrupy mouthfeel. Taste is very sweet malt at the front with slight trailing unripened fruit tang in the finish. Warming alcohol is present. One of my favorites. I’d think of pairing this with some stew and some good cheese at the hearth of an old fireplace on a cold winters night.

Aspecto: de un ámbar pálido con tonos anaranjados, turbio, casi opaco, con mucho sedimento. Contrasta con una gruesa cabeza de un intenso blanco. Aroma: potente presentación en nariz. El inicial olor dulzón deja paso a toda una amplia variedad de matices afrutados. Encuentro un ligero aroma a plátano y un fondo con algo de canela... Desconcierta la variedad de matices difíciles de describir. En la retirada se puede intuir levemente el alcohol. En boca: cuerpo firme con buena carbonatación que llena rápidamente toda la boca. Muy densa, intensa muy completa. Sabor: buena entrada en boca, algo fuerte, pero con un gusto dulce que lo tapa. Como nos decía previamente la nariz, la variedad de matices es increíble y difícil de describir. Hacia el final deja un regusto seco y algo picante que delata su elevado contenido alcohólico. Valoración global: una gran cerveza de invierno, destaca su intenso cuerpo, su variedad de matices afrutados y su final seco, disimula muy bien su 12% vol. pero al final se deja notar. ¡No veas como pega! En general una gran cerveza para disfrutar en estas fiestas. (15/20)

2008 bottle. Orange pour with big white head with all kinds of floaties in there. Sweet, yeasty, candied fruit aroma. Flavor of rum soaked fruits, apricots, candi sugar, belgian yeast. A bit too sweet. Big, thick mouthfeel. Some dusty spice in the finish.

Pours a cloudy amber orange with a large foamy white head. Aromas are candied fruits and yeast with some spices and hops aroma. Taste Sweet and malty with some spicy and bitter hops flavor to balance. I taste apples, citrus, caramel, sugar, and lots of yeast. This beer is thick and syrupy but with plenty of carbonation. I thought this was an excellent brew.

Bottle, thanks to WeeHeavySD for sharing! Pours a hazy amber, with a thick foamy white head. Rich boozy sweet aroma, with citrus, sugar, and malt. Taste is rich and sweet, of malt, citrus, dark fruits, and alcohol. Lingering richness. Very nice.