Kasteelbier Donker

Brewed by Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Ingelmunster, Belgium

Pours a murky chocolate brown with a medium frothy beige head. Aroma of toffee and chocolate, dark fruits and a hint of grass. Very rich first taste, simple sugar, toffee and tootsie-roll. Dark fruits, earthy, roasted malt and some grass. The sweetness is very similar to a German doppelbock, however too much sugar, not enough flavor. Some alcohol in the finish, vinous. Slightly goopy syrupy body with larger but soft carbonation.

33 cl, bottle on 071102. Translucent chestnut with a creamy half-inch head that frosts the glass. Aroma is dark fruit with slight chocolate and sour notes. Initial taste is almost cloying, with flavors of fig, prune and dates soaked in rum and brown sugar. On subsequent swigs, the alcohol and (maybe) a few hops tone down the sweetness half a notch: flavors of sangria soaked bananas, apples and light orange mingle with chocolate, caramel and the dark fruit. Medium-heavy body is smooth and syrupy, with a small touch of alcohol warmth. Wow, I like sweet-malt brews, but this is almost too much even for me; definitely a dessert beer.

750ml, bottled 07-12-2007. Pours a deep whisky color, and the lasting camel foam is as smooth as fondant. Each sip swathes the glass with gravity-defying gossamer lace. A rummy, yeasty nose begins with figgy and burnt marshmallow scents, followed by peaty smoke, five-spice, roasty/earthy, and beach breeze aromatics. The flavor starts almost too sweet, but after a few sips the sweetness fades from sugar bomb to mellow maple. Otherwise, the taste is redolent with stewed fruits, Bacardi Black, candy corn, pralines, musk, and sugared cashews. A feather-light, back-of-throat caress of alcoholic warmth belies the beer’s stunning 11% abv. The cola finish melts into a bourbon, jasmine, and red velvet cake aftertaste. Surprisingly, the mouthfeel is not heavy or filling… a semi-syrupy palate pairs with exceptionally fine carbonation…the result is wickedly creamy and as fluffy as whipped nougat; I struggle to describe how truly luxurious and decadent this beer feels in the mouth, and would seriously rate it seven out of five if allowed to do so. Put succinctly, Kasteel Donker is a hedonist’s delight, an epicurian epiphany, a veritable wet dream of an ale.

Bottle, 2005. Small light brown diminishing head with fair lacing. Dark brown cloudy body. Heavy malt aroma of caramel, grain, nutty, raisin, plum, prune, toffee and brown sugar. Light hop aroma. Heavy in alcohol, full body with a sticky texture and a soft carbonation. Heavy sweet and light bitter.

Bottled on 070416. Smell is sweet earthy figs, plum, wet hay, brown sugar and slight hints of vanilla. This is a very sweet aroma, quite fruity and a little spicy. The flavor had an early bite to it, but after a few sips it smooths out more. Flavor is more hearty, fuller and has a flavor or sweet bread and dark fruit flavor. Quite the fine strong Belgian ale. Balanced, sweet, fruits and a good texture.

Rich dark brown color in the pour- translucent and offset by a ruby red hue. Nice beautiful tan head and sexy Belgian lacing that covers the rim of my snifter after each sip. Aroma is delighfully warm and spicy, filling the nose with cinammon, nutmeg, clove, coriander, and spruce. This is like a rich, filling Christmas barleywine with all of the malty, caramelly, burnt sugar sweetness and roasted, intense herbal earthiness to warm the soul on a cold winter night. Unfortunately, it’s still summer here, but this beer is still amazingly flavorful AND, at 11% abv, still quite easy to drink, with a velvety soft mouthfeel. This is an easy complement to rich desserts and spicy, fruity holiday treats. Niiice.

This is a top 5 beer. The total bomb!! Richest beer since I can remember. Black color, not much head, good lacing. The flavor of powerful malts and lite hops makes this one Xtremely drinkable and rich. Touchdown!!!

Start with no head at all, aroma is promising - ripe fruit and chocolate, flavor - BAAAAAAA.....pure sweetener no other flavor could be sensed beyond it, hope it is this bottle only, disaster, goes down the drain.