Gouden Carolus Noël (Christmas)

Very rich, sweet Belgian. Pours dark walnut brown with thick head. Excellent strong ale!

Vintage 2003, matured on keg for one year.

The colour is clear brown with a small hint of red. The firm beige foam is two-finger thick and made of medium sized bubbles.

The smell is very complex and intense: Among the flavours I noticed marzipan, dark rum, cinnamon, caraway, preserved cherries, milk chocolate and a full apple pie. Wow!

The carbonation is robust and grand with small bubbles.

The taste starts with some sweet lactose-notes that slowly change into a full-bodied taste of apple pie, complete with cinnamon and butter. There is a slight flavour of alcohol, but it isn’t dominating at all. The long and multifaceted aftertaste includes such flavours as sweet Madeira wine, candid apples, clotted cream and, for that special contrast, a hint of bitter hops.

This is indeed a world-class yuletide beer. Yummy!

I talked to the publican at The Rover (in Gothenburg, Sweden) about this beer. He had stored it for a year in his cellar, just for fun. At that point, he wasn’t even sure that the beer had “survived” the maturing! We agreed that the keg probably needed to settle for a few days to reduce the carbonation a little.

Poured beautiful mahogany/ruby. Looks like rosewood! Head is only one finger but very dense and long-lasting. On the nose are aromas of herbs, spices, anise, clove, fruit esters, alcohol, bready yeast and malt. The flavor is most complex -- against an earthy backdround, there’s a malt smokiness blended with a berry sweetmess and a malty caramel, some treacle/brown sugar, the blend of 6 herbs and spices (I taste cardamon, ginger star anise, sweet woodruff, and caraway), and a warm complex 3-hop finish. The alcohol is not that evident. Mouthfeel is delisciously thick and chewy, slow to release carbonation, and leaves a pleasant aftertaste. This ale has it all earthy malt, fruity sweetness and tartness, some herbs and spice, and a nice hop finish.

750ml (no idea what year) i would love to know because it seems like it has been perfected. pours nice head. the fruitiness goes well with the right amount of spice. A treasure of a find. a delicious beer

Garrafa, 330 ml, em 2007 e em agosto de 2008. Coloração avermelhada, escura, creme bege denso e persistente, deixando uma fina camada perene. Excelente aroma: malte torrado, frutas vermelhas e fermento. Final levemente amargo e torrado. Consistência aveludada, densa. Cerveja complexa, encorpada e harmoniosa. Carbonatação média-baixa, muito boa. Álcool muito bem inserido no conjunto: presente, mas equilibrado.

Presentation: 75 cl corked bottle. Poured into a Leffe chalice. Dark reddish-brown, nice beige/tan head w/ good retention. Enormous, warm, spicy, in-your-face aroma full of the best Christmas has to offer. And then some. Gorgeously balanced taste; the powerful, richly warming, and complex spiciness is kept beautifully in check by a nice, bitter finish. Mouthfeel and drinkability are through the roof; I had to pace myself in order not to finish this one too quickly. Wow. This is one of the best beers I've tasted, and certainly the best winter seasonal, easily surpassing even the magnificent Brøckhouse Julebryg 2003. I cannot wait to see how this one ages; I'm afraid I'll have to ask my girlfriend to hide the key to the cellar, lest I prematurely break open one or more of the eight bottles of Gouden Carolus Christmas I've stashed there...

Shared at Coastal Wine Connection’s monthly tasting. Whiskey-colored. Big sugary aroma that almost scared me off. And while that explosive alcoholy-ness floats onto the palate before you actually drink, the actual flavors are surprisingly smooth and evenly malty. Outstanding.

2003 Vintage: Brown/Red Coloring with Good Tan Head. Cherry...Currant Spices..Bread Dough and Alcohol Aroma...On The Tongue...Bread Dough, Winter Spices..Tobacco...Giving it a Sharp Tang at the End. Good Warming...Nice Thick Body.. A Subtle Brew Overall and Quite Seductive, As It Slowly Lures You in To Drink More and More. VERY Enjoyable Winter Ale!!