Hoegaarden Verboden Vrucht

Brewed by Brouwerij Hoegaarden (InBev)
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Hoegaarden, Belgium

This one says 8,5 % vol. 33 cl bottle. Muddy light brown colour with a small head. Lovely aroma of yeast, dried fruit, malt, bread and some spices too. Nice flavour of yeast, wheat, little sour and with a light hoppy and dry finish.

Bottle It starts with a sweet aroma of molasses and toasted grains together with some citrus and spicy hints. It pours a copper hazy color with medium to large particles all through the glass. Its head is off-white, huge and rocky; it lasts fully and leaves an excellent lacing. Its initial flavor is sweet though with some bitterness in it--and its more bitter as it gets warmer. The aftertaste is long and alcoholic well balanced with its full body, creamy texture and soft carbonation.

(Bottle. 03/2006). Alas ... a bit disappointed! Was expecting more! Which isn’t to say there wasn’t a bunch here, but ... so much hype! Yeasty, fruity aromas -- but almost certainly from fermentation, not hops. Deep, dark amber ... nice head that lasts. Orange, and unfortunately, IMHO, a bit o’ banana in the palate. Some acetic sourness (approaching balsalmic tastes -- a nice aspect, actually), but just barely ... mostly tastes for dark malts. A relatively full, lasting, coated palate (oily? hmmmm .... ). Not bad, but again ... all the hype!

Bottle. Creamy white good fully lasting head. Amber colour. Powerfull hoppy,malty and yeasty aroma. Hints of orange and banana in flavor. Very nice oily palate.

Heavy aroma. Creamy off-white head, excelent lacing. Mostly lasting longevity. Brown clody body. Very heavy initial flavor. Average duration.

Bottle, exp.date 18.12.00 Clear reddish brown with a small offwhite head. Very sweet nose, sugar, red berries of raspberry, maybe even strawberry, faint notes of toffee. Sweet taste, fruity again on a woody-caramellike background. Very soft mouthfeel, mediumbodied at best. It doesn’t taste as old as I thought it would be, what did InBev put in this to keep it in this shape? However, after many years, this is a non-complex, sweet and pretty enjoyable beer.

Pours a clear (with a few floaties) pale cobber with a slightly tanned head. Sweet with aromas of caramel malts, dark fruits, yeast and alcohol. Portlike. Medium bodied. Dry finish with aromas of dark fruits, Also warming alcohol in the finish.

Aroma is nice, fruity. A bit cherry. Flavor lacks of complexity and balance, but is however enjoyable. A bit fruity, a bit spicy.