De la Senne Equinox Winter Beer

Brewed by Brasserie de la Senne
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Brussels, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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750mL, 2007 bottling: Dark brown in color. Fluffy grayish-white foam slowly settles and displays nice retention. Airy phenols and burnt malt hulls dominate the aroma. Hints of dusty cocoa, aniseed, molasses, flowery hops and bittersweet chocolate. Mildly tinny. Explosive carbonation expands the cheeks as it hits the palate. Rather graceless from the get-go, as palate-scrubbing phenols bludgeon the palate and clash with the harsh roast and burnt malt hulls. Quite sweet despite the high levels of phenols and acidity. Assertive cola-like sweetness mixes with the chewy residuals to further compound the sweetness. Malts develop some much-needed softness as the beer reaches 60F, but the emergence of metallic acidity and stale chocolate, coupled with an out-of-place chalky bitterness, tarnish a large portion of it. Rather flat in terms of structure (no fruity esters or bouncy malts to offset the overt and redundant roastiness). Alcohol is never a factor. Anticlimactic finish reveals an earthy potting-soil bitterness, stale black coffee and a muted plummy fruitiness. All in all, the phenols - which I suspect are an early sign of bottle infection - are overpowering. This also relies too heavily on the roast (which, to begin with, is flawed) and not nearly enough on their classy yeast character. Too bad because both their Zinnebir and Taras Boulba are among my favorite beers in the world.

11.2oz bottle poured into a Trappist glass. Pours a dark brown with not a whole lot of head. Aroma of dark fruits and spices. Taste is a little coffee and dark bakers chocolate, fermented dark fruits and spices. Medium bodied with a pretty thin texture. Fizzy carbonation and a decently long finish. Overall, it’s not bad. I wouldn’t seek it out but I’ll enjoy this one.

Bottle. Murky brown with an orange hue and a decent off-white head. Malty aroma with notes of roasted maks, nutty biscuit, raisins, cocoa, orange zest. Flavor is sweet, nutty, roasted, with herbal and spicy notes and hints of cocoa. Medium bodied with a smooth texture and a dry medium bitter, warming finish.

The beer in the glass is deep brown and ruby red, withoff-white, creamy head. It smells very chocolaty, caramelly, with roasted malts and subtle hoppy. Starts malty and bitter, with lots of chocolate and bitter, slightly smoky and sweet nuances. The middle part shows alcoholic, smoky, peaty, again with lots of bitter chocolate and roasted malts. Goes into an alcoholic-warming, chocolaty and roasty-bitter finish!

Malts and fruit in aroma. The flavor is heavy on grapes/raisins, with a decent fruit and malt combo after that. If the grape flavor would have been more subdued compared to the other flavors it would’ve been better, otherwise it was decent as is.

Bottle picked up at State Line in Elkton, MD. Served in a De La Senne tulip. Pours a dark brown with purple-ish tints to it. Good head and lacing. The nose carries plenty of dark fruit plus some semi-sweet malt. Good yeast character. Flavor is similar. Nice yeast, but nothing really taking it over the top. Medium body with a touch of alcohol. Solid.

Pours dark reddish brown with a thin wispy tan head. Notes of spice, dark fruits, plums, raisins, vinous caramel malt, fruity esters. Medium to full bodied, lightly boozy with lush carbonation. Enjoyable.

pours dark mahogany, frothy tan head that persists. modest lacing. Nose is yeast, brown sugar, caramel malts, chocolate, dark fruits and burnt wood. Roasted malts, faint brown sugar, less sweetness than I anticipated. subtle dark fruits. chewy and dry with distinct burnt chocolate notes on an average finish. ABV well hidden as this went down like a session beer so I enjoyed it.

Pours a hazy medium brownish amber color. Aroma is lightly malty, hoppy, yeasty, with a touch of fruit. Flavor is a nice mixture of malts and fruits.

33cl bottle. Dark, pretty opaque brown color with a medium-sized, light beige head. Flowers, dry dusty cocoa, and some tangy dried fruit in the aroma. The flavor is dry and somewhat boozy with a little roasted malt and finishes with a vinous and boozy fruitiness. There is also a little lingering spice but it’s pretty nondescript. The body is on the light side; highly attenuated on the whole. Carbonation is medium and pretty soft on impact. Relatively nice overall but the alcohol is a little too present for a beer that is only 8% ABV.

Bottle @ Polku’s tasting session. Originally rated on 21.9.2010. Quite generic, but well balanced dark Belgian strong ale.