De Molen Hel & Verdoemenis (Hell & Damnation)

Bottle #17 Pours out or should I say POPS out. Like ditmier said this brew exploded more than any beer I have ever had. They have some still at a local bar. I think I may pick one up and have the bartender open it for me. Once we let the foam settle. It was very nice. Black with a tan head. Aroma was of dark bitter chcolate and dark roast. Taste was more of the aroma lots of chcolate, molassses, and brown sugar. Very nice treat thanks a ton Sam.

Bottle at The Penguin Beer Bobbing/13 Beers of Halloween tasting (Bottle 103, brewed 09/03/09, bottled 14/04/09, 10.2% ABV). Black and still as ink, tan specks of halo, no head or any attempt at one. Aroma of puffed wheat, charcoal, chocolate ice cream. Creamy and charred with high cocoa, coal, Sugar Puffs, chocolate ice cream with brandy drizzled on it, vanilla. Faint soap of grapefruit and dark Chocolate Orange beneath the silky carbon. Underwhelmed, and faced with having to kill a 750ml bottle of this by myself (nobody else wanted it), it got tipped irreverently into a glass, stuck in the fridge, chilled and forgotten about for several days. At which point I returned to it to find a delicious glowing slurry of brimstone, Lindt 60% and incinerated pistachio drinking like a 4% mild. Tasty stuff, but overrated.

Bottiglia nr 567/1056 - 33cl - prodotta il 14 aprile 2009, imbottigliata il 21 maggio 2009, assaggiata il 20 ottobre 2009 Aspetto: nera, totale assenza di schiuma. Carbonatazione minima. Profumo di ciliegia leggermento legnoso. In bocca: liquirizia, legno, note di tostatura. Persistenza lunga, soprattutto con toni di liquirizia. Ottima birra ma un po’ deluso dalla mancanza di schiuma.

2008 Bottle #17 - Thanks Sam!...well I got 3 twists into the cage that looked like it had about 6 more turns before this fucker exploded all over my ceiling...thankfully I had learned from the last time to not put my mouth over it and opted to cover with a palm and run to the sink...given the cage being torqed a few extra times, I would expect that De Molen knew this might have gotten a healthy priming dose at bottling...at any rate, we filled 4 glasses and it still was foaming out the bottle...pours thick and vicsous almost black with a understandably massive brown head...aroma is sticky like my kitchen floor, massive cocoa, roast, coffee, brown sugar and molassas, with some hops as well...flavour was all of the above, milk chocolate, anise, burnt wood to boot...slight deduction for the suspended bits of gelatenous smegma at the bottom of the glass, but the smooth (and boozy) flavour help you to forget about it quickly, along with anything else that may have happened in the 2nd half of the night... overall, an amazing beer that succeeds in spite of itself...

Bottlenumber: 114. Listed as 10.2%. Easily the most violent gusher in sometime. Easily in the top three, as the cork started to extract itself and when the seal was broken proceeded to spray liquid 10 feet across the room, on the computer screen, keyboard, pictures on the wall, etc. May have half of the liquid left. Needless to say, hugh head that settles after some time to a dense, tight tan head with a heavy, dirty sheet of lace. Dark brown liquid with chunks of yeast settling on the bottom of the glass. Aromas of sweet roasted malt, molasses, pine and juniper (akin to OSA of yore). Lightly oily feel. LIght roasted malt, pale malt, sweet licorice in the front lead to almond and some juniper flavors. Just a wonderful balance of malt and hops. The black malt comes back into play in the finish and into the linger along with a bit of oak. I was a bit worried about opening and finishing this one tonight, my concerns have been diminished as I look at the puddle in the trash can, bespeckled wall, and the brown liquid soaked towel. Now I wish I would have the last half bottle to enjoy while watching the Big Ten weekend preview. Guess it’s time to wash the shirt, pants and towels. I will definitely pick some more up and perhaps I need to super cool it prior to opening. Still worth it, even though I thought it was pricey prior to losing half the bottle.

Dark pour but not quite inky. Really thin beige head. Aroma of coffee, raisin, and cocoa. Vanilla and oaky tannins up front. Chocolate, coffee, fog, heavy roast (almost smokey) and carmelized sugar. Dry finish. Silky smooth mouth-feel

Pours very very dark brown, pretty much black by most peoples standards. No head to speak of, great aroma of coffee, dark chocolate, plum and raisins waft immediately from the bottle. Aroma from the glass: more coffee and very dark choc, some burnt sugar. On the palate lots of dark fruits, and stone fruit, dates, figs, plums, some muscovado sugar, molasses, almost a root beer quality to it. Lots of coffee, earth and chocolate, also some kind of spirit, rum or something of that ilk. The feel of the beer is excellent, soft, velvety with no carbonation, it’s just like taking gulps of an oil slick... this is literally palate coating brew of the highest order. Great complexity but seriously intense. Not as good as the Tsarina Esra but still a cracking piece of brewing. Finish is nicely bitter with a bit of a tang, but not nearly as cloying as you would first expect. Good work.

Dark mahogany with big, flotsam, mottled brown head / Slightly metallic, muted nose of cigar box, chocolate, and roast barley / Medium to full body, moderately chewy, very malty but with excellent hop balance, and good, although slightly hot, finish / Rich flavors of cigar box, semisweet chocolate, dark roast coffee, vanilla, oak, and bourbon / Must be spectacular upon aging.