New Glarus Unplugged Belgian Quadruple

Bouteille 12oz, courtoisie de Hogtownharry. De couleur cuivrée foncée et claire. Nez fruité (pommes, léger de poires et de raisins), malté sucré (léger de sucre bonbon) moyennement boisé (fût de chêne), léger d’alcool. Moyenne-ronde en bouche avec un pétillement moyen et une texture crémeuse et aux notes sirupeuses. Goût fruité (moyen de pommes aux notes cidreuses, de raisins blancs aux notes vineuses et de cerises vieillies, traces de poires et de figues), moyen de vanille et avec des notes épicées (notes de cannelle et de clou de girofle) lors de l’entrée en bouche auquel se rajoute un goût malté (léger de sucre blanc avec des notes de sucre bonbon et de caramel toffee) ainsi qu’un léger goût de pain. Parallèlement, l’on retrouve un moyen goût d’alcool réchauffant jusqu’en finale, où on note également la présence d’une légère aigreur fruitée (raisins et pommes) ainsi qu’un goût boisé (fût de chêne) légèrement asséchant. Post-goût moyen-long et un peu sec, moyennement boisé (fût de chêne), légèrement amer d’alcool doux et avec une très légère aigreur fruitée fruitée (moût de raisins vineux et de cerises, pelures de pommes).

Pours a dark amber in color with no head to speak of.
Smell is spice and some sense of tartness. Taste is very yeasty brett and some very nice spice. Mouthfeel is crisp and fruity. Very good beer. The best of the unplugged beers I’ve had this weekend.

Bottle from Hezron, shared with Fin, Loz and Traci at our American beer tasting night. Bright copper, fine off-white head. Floral aroma, rose petals, mint. Golden raisins and a touch of alcohol fumes. Lingering around the edges dried apples and old barn boards. Lots of gentle dried fruit flavor, verly light alcohol warmth, sherry. Rather sweet, but an easy-going sweet that finishes without stickiness. A bit of lingering walnut. The tasting party agreed that this seemed more like what we’d expect from a barleywine than a quad (some of the soft sherry notes compare favorably to Harvey’s barleywines), but a lovely well-balanced beer whatever name it sits under.

Bottle shared with Casey, Tracey and Loz at a great American beers tasting evening 11-04-08 hosted by Casey and Tracey, cheers mate! Wonderful stunning coppper colour with great clarity. Some sourness on the nose and also a lovely wafting noble rot lingering scent gently carresses the nostrils, mmmhhh... Loz got copper pipes and I can see what she meant. The sweetness, mostly honeylike rushes in with some light alcohol. There is a constant battle going on here between the sweet and sour with the sweetness always going to win through in the end. The yeast is also there both on the aroma and also coming through on that bed of sweetness which by the way is never cloying or sticky. Tatse is more barley wine like than a Quadruple, but call it what you want it’s really good.

Foam Rangers tasting. Deep reddish brown pour with small head. Nose is pitted fruits, vanilla, nuts, grapes, spicy cinnamon and oak. Flavor is cherry, vanilla, bourbon, charred oak and sugary sweetness. Just a great beer from a great brewery.

Bottle. Fantastic bonus from Degarth. Pours a chestnut brown w/ small head and no retention. Sour yeasty aroma of apples and oak. Yeast comes through in the taste as well, with a nice fruitiness. Alcohol is hidden well. Very nice.

This bottle was aged a year. It pours a cloudy pure yellow with minimal head. It has an eggy yeasty smell, and that is in the taste. Not complex and fruity, it is still an interesting fullmouthed Belg, with a salty aftertaste.

Bright copper and clear as crystal, an off white foam dissipates quickly. Already we seem far from the Belgian masters that inspire the brew. The nose is confused and confusing. Pear, apple and lemon provide an unexpected sourness opposed to the sterile scents of rubbing alcohol and talcum. Ginger, clove, cherries and a somewhat inappropriate bretty oak character add to the commotion. The aromatic experience does not fall completely amiss as a semblance of unison is reached after breathing. The flavor follows with an odd, almost artificial combination of strawberry, cherry and vanilla, underlined by malapropos nuances of bourbon. Nutmeg, apple, nougat and honey are present and appreciated but do not contribute enough weight to counteract the overwhelming alcohol. The unpleasantly sour, dirty finish leads to a conversely enjoyable caramel and banana aftertaste. I’ve had a streak of good luck with New Glarus and especially their Unplugged series but this effort was decidedly unbalanced and not up to par. Such is the nature of these one-off productions, I suppose.