Gouden Carolus Cuvee Van De Keizer Blauw/Blue

Brewed by Brouwerij Het Anker
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Mechelen, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Wow. A honey sweet Belgian strong ale with champagne bubbles and a silky smooth palate. This tastes like the promise that braggat never lives up to. My new favorite beer.

2011 version. Dark brown pour with slight reddish hint. Massive and lasting thick head, and sweet aroma of malt and ripe fruits. Taste reflects the aroma, but is even more intense with raisin, plums, sweet carmel. I find it intensely sweet to the point of being overdone. Finish is lingering sweet malt with all the flavor notes in tact. Looks like this one gets aged a lot, and I can see why.

In a 750 ml bottle, sounds great when popped, lots of aroma in the pour, cherries, apple, blackberry, blueberry, sweet caramel malt, rich Christmas pudding. A slow sipping fine Belgian ale, the abv is well hidden. Very sweet, tasty and delicious.

750 ml bottle, vintage 2012, at home, all alone. Poured into a tulip glass. ABV 11%. Great appearance, with a very deep ruby colour on the body, even more beuatiful when the light happes to pass through it. On top of it a two fingers tall head, beige in colour, with good retention and medium lacing left around the glass. The aroma is to die for! Very wine-y, lots of black grapes, less caramel, sugars, spices. Trully excellent! Wow, what a taste! Also very wine-like, brings to mind the greek mavrodaphne (or mavrodafni) wines. Alcohol very well hidden, no way I could tell this is 11% if I hadn’t see it on the bottle. Again, some sugars, some spices, a little bit of prunes too. Nice thickness on the body, with the carbonation being as much as it is needed. Overall this is a great beer, it’s hard to believe that is so widely available and in a such a low price as well. I would give it a perfect score but I think I’ll reserve that for the bottle I have from 2000.

Pours dark brown with medium head. Aroma is hot and sweet. Flavor is candied fruit and sugar, again with the heat. Like the best fruit cake you’ve ever had. Great beer.

aroma, alcohol, maybe some notes of bread. fine maple color, the head is thin, sweet beer with a slight bitter aftertaste with long body,. fine soft carbonation.

Sweetness really hits you on the nose and hints of the full body. Taste is plums and almost licorice like. Yum

My favorite... Great lacing and taste... Color is great... Nothing bad to say.... Love it

Hard to describe this beer because it was different than anything I’ve had including other Belgians. Bit in a good way, it was amazing. Alcohol was well masked. I remember it being dark with red, head that doesn’t last. Well balanced and very complex. A whole array of malt and fruit flavors melded together.

75cl bottle from dranken Geers in Oostakker. Bottle date 2013. Dark brown body with beige head. Aroma of smoke and roasted malts. Taste of drop, caramel and drop. The previous year was less "smoked" what i prefered. ***