Kasteelbier Donker

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

Dark brown coloured, with some very ligth carbonation and an average off-white head. Sweet malty aroma, very fruity (dark fruits) with some clear caramel-yeasty touches. Very nice full body, finish is sweet with some very ligth bitter touches. A clear alcoholic ending with very nice fruity caramel touches. A very nice beer.

Bottle. Dark brown colour with a huge moslty lasting light brown head. Aroma and taste of sweet malts caramel, fruits and spices.

Anno 2005, dark brown mahogany color, with some reddish highlights, with a beige head, but falling quickly, fruity nose of plums, raisins, dates, hint of molasses, brown sugar, toasted malt, with a port cherryish accent, sweet malty aroma follows through on a full-bodied palate with a smooth sweet malty, syrupy, fruity character of plums, raisins, dates, with some roasted, caramelized malts, with a nice port-like flavor, hint of molasses, brown sugar,leading towards a sweet alcoholic warmth malty finish.

Dark brown almost black with fast dissolving light brown head. Sweet caramel malt aroma. Sour caramel ends with a tongly sweet malt. Awesome flavor combination

11.3oz bottle. Dated 03-2010. Served in my NB worthy snifter. Dark red, nearly brown color, small head (probably due to my careful pour). Aroma is strong malt, deep, dark, overripe fruits (plums, prunes). Taste is oaky vanilla, malt, dark overripe fruits, and yeast with a lingering sweetness and fruitiness that is finished at the end by a moderate alchol warmth. It has been a while since I have had a strong belgian like this (not much different than an abt/quad) and I find myself loving them. The one bad thing about the beer it is clarity, where is the yeast? Mouthfeel is thick and chewy.

750 ml 2003 bottle. Poured medium cloudy brown with a nice huge head that left amazing lacing throughout the glass. Aromas were very sweet. Caramel and dark fruit. Raisin and wood. Flavors were similar with a lot of added alcohol warming. I thought it was pretty good.

"01-2004 This really wasn’t a double to me. Poured a medium brown color with and okay head. Aroma was of caramel and alcohol. Flavor of caramel malts and apples, and something that made it way way to sweet and ALCOHOL for a double it was overbearing. There also was a little wood flavor to this."

Vintage: 01-2004 bottling. Nothing special here. Could have aged a lot more for the sweetness and abv. Was expecting a double until the first whiff. Poured a caramel brown color with a decent head in the tulip glass, but not so much in the abbey chimay glass. The aroma was of caramel and vinous notes. The flavor was caramel malts first and foremost, lots of sweetness. The vinous and apples, and dark fruits came through a bit (in that order), but the alcohol dominated along with the sweetness. Aftertaste was oak-like. The mouthfeel was thin for a Belgian Strong, decent carbonation. Nothing to return to, although the pricing wasn’t bad.