De Molen IJsbock

Formerly brewed at Brouwerij de Molen
Style: Eisbock
Bodegraven, Netherlands

Serve in Dimpled mug, Snifter, Stein

Date: July 30, 2010
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party
Appearance: clear dark brown
Aroma: sweet dark caramel aroma
Flavor: sweet caramel flavor, lots of earthyness
Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 13/20
Rating: 3.2/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **+ /4

Bottle. Pours amber with an off white head.Aroma of malt, , caramel, warming alcohol and fruitiness.Flavor is sweet and warming with some malt, grains , raisin, caramel and alcohol.Medium to full body, soft carbonation.Nice warming and malty brew.

Appearance: Pours a clearish, dusky, garnet-hued body sans head. Smell: Aromas of toasted, crusty bread, sea salt caramel, pureed fruits, and a big nostril-dialating whiff of alcohol. Taste: Dark caramel-coated toasted dark bread with a flood of warming sherry and fruity flavors of tartish strawberry and raspberry jams. Pinch of pipe tobacco, dash of spice. Stagnant, coagulated yeast provides some earthiness. The initial sip of sherry coarsens into an astringent solvent alcohol harshness, thwarting the other tastes. Soft, dry, hot finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-plus, viscous body. Very low carbonation. Overall: Good enough for a slow, cautious sipper! Boldly alcoholic, I’ll say, but it isn’t exactly easy to simply tuck away nearly 17% alcohol, though it starts to mask as the booze begins to numb the palate.

Im Antrunk ist dasBier leicht hefig, was sich stufenweise steigert. Die Malzigkeit fällt meistens unter den Tisch, was nicht heißen soll, dass sie nicht im Vordergrund steht, vielmehr stielt die Hefigkeit ihr meistens die Show. Daher schmiegt sich das Malz an die Hefe, was aber nicht ganz zusammen passt. Harmonisch trotz 16%, die Intensität ist angenehm. 13/11/11/13//12

Thanks to Jan for this 18cl bottle. Pours an opaque mahogany that shows through as a hazy amber around the edges. There is a small collection of bubbles after the pour that recedes to a thin collar. Aroma is boozy and very sweet. Lots of overripe fruits with some vanilla and coconuts. There is a definite alcohol presence, almost sherry-like. Taste a actually has a crisp hop character up front before the massive sweetness of the malts and fruits take over. Maybe some licorice in the taste in addition to tobacco and, of course, a massive alcohol burn going down. The mouthfeel is slick with low carbonation and seriously boozy with the burn lingering almost like a liquor inn the finish. This is a big dessert sipper though the interesting hoppiness inn the taste was unexpected and kept things a little lighter than I was expecting given the ABV.

18 cl bottle, thanks to fonefan It pours brown with little carbonation. The flavors are of tobacco and dark chocolate.

Bottle. Pours with really no head whatsoever, even with a bit of a vigorous pour, but managed to get a lightly tan film over a dark cola brown body that is definitely dense looking. Sweet tobacco in the aroma, deep dark fruit, very intensified traditional bock aromas. Faint whiff of alcohol, but it’s really hidden nicely in the taste. Sweet, dark fruits, rich maltiness, very warming and provides a bit of a burn at the back of the throat, very liquor like in the ’feel’ of this one overall. Thicker, viscious body with fine, subtle carbonation. Interesting, but not overly complex.

Dark brown pour with a thin light brown head. Aroma of chocolate, fruits and alcohol vapors. Good flavor of chocolate, fruits, decadent malt, sweetness and alcohol warmth. The body is medium with a liquorous texture and gentle carbonation. I’ve had better eisbocks, but this is still a very good one.