Gulden Draak

Brewed by Brouwerij Van Steenberge
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Ertvelde, Belgium

Bottle at home with friend. Very complex ale with good balance between rich sugary malts, fruits and hop bitterness. Has taken an hour to finish the glass and it is growing on me all the time.

11.2oz dusty bottle of unknown vintage pours murky dirty brackish brown with amber hues and 20 second tan head. The moderate aroma brings up soft smooth dark fruitiness, brown sugar and not much else initially. As it warms the dark fruity notes grow. The taste is much more assertive than the nose with sweet sugar coated raisins, prunes, grape jam and boysenberries. Behind these notes are faint brown sugar and smooth aged spices.

One of my favourites. Liquor aroma, toasted caramel, but fresh at the same time. Nice carbonation and a good head. On palate, nuts, coriander, berries and malt. Softer than expected from the aroma.

Bottled 33cl. It pours a beautiful nut brown beer with a nicely remaining rocky beige head. Great nose with molasses, whipped cream and mince pies dominating. A huge amout of molasses, christmas pudding, walnuts, nougat, brown sugar and mince pies in the taste. Sweet. Full bodied. Some plums sneaking in. This beer reminds me of rum. Plenty of character. Beautiful lacework. Slightly salty. Smooth. Extremely low bitterness. Mainly candy floss and nougat in the finish. Flawless and deeply pleasant. A great label too, in my opinion. A perfect winter warmer.

Reviewed 11/5/2008 (bottle): Pours a dark chestnut brown body, clear. Average creamy light tan head, somewhat diminishing. Very floral aroma, some dark fruit. Some alcohol in the nose. Some nuttiness too. Somewhat watery body, soft. Floral taste, some fruitiness like strawberries. Toned down taste compared to the nose. Maybe some toasted or roasted notes. Definitely some dark fruit.

Bottle: Pours a brownish deep amber with a thick lacing tan head. The aroma has some very mild roasted notes. Some sweet and toasted dark Belgian malts are present- vanilla, brown sugar, dark fruits, fig, and raisins. Standard Quad aroma. Lively carbonation. Has lots of Belgian toasted malts in the flavor. Brown sugar, a touch of toffee and dried fig. Has a soft sweetness throughout which is honey-like. Finish remains toasted with a peppery alcohol note and mild dryness. Well hidden alcohol, and drinkable considering it’s stature. Solid Quad.

330ml Bottle from the LCBO as part of a Belgian Ale Sampler pack The aroma is quite mild sweet and malty Pours a nice cloudy light brown And oh my the taste is wonderful spicy and sweet but not too much of either a little bit of alcohol taste to be expected I guess from a 10.5 ABV Very very good

I tasted this beer before I got my account with ratebeer, so I can’t really remember all the flavors.