N’Ice Chouffe

Brewed by Brasserie d’Achouffe (Moortgat)
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Achouffe, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

Dark brown colour, tan head. Aroma is sweet, of caramel and dry fruits. Flavour has fruits and caramel. Alcohol present. Dry ending.

75 cl bottle. Appearance: dark brown with light brown head. Aroma: malty and sweet with slight fruit. Flavor and Palate: malty and alcoholic, but not that heavy. Seems to be a "copy" of Chimay Grand Reserve and not a bad one. Some traces of orange peel. Overall a nice trappist-like beer.

UPDATED: SEP 8, 2009 2004 Bottle, pours a clear dark brown but looks to be a medium ruby when held up to a light, off-white head, nice lacing that shimers on the glass as it moves with each drink, aroma of chocolate dipped berries, dark candy, caramel and malt aromas, dark bread and faint funk fragrance in the background, dark tree bark, faint mint fragrance, faint alcohol in the background, flavors of blond brownies, some chocolate, I felt some alcohol warmth on the palate, dark malt, caramel, has the pepper on the finish, dark candy flavor, faint herb and spices (from the Thyme?), plum, blue berries, sort of a faint taste of berries dipped in nectar and dripped onto my tongue flavor, the alcohol does not not grow as this ale warms which is a good thing, there is a tingle of bitterness on the tongue to balance the sweet, this was lively on the tongue, light on the palate, has good carbonation, a thin to medium mouth feel, a nice drink to stay warm during the Winter nights.

Bottiglia da 75cl al Cantinone di Sampierdarena, versa colore ambrato scuro con non molta schiuma beige abbastanza evanescente. Aroma caldo e fruttato, al sapore dolce con forti sentori di uva e qualche accenno di frutti di bosco e un accentuato piccante d’alcool. corpo piuttosto robusto. Ottima.

750ml, 2006 bottle. Syrup colored pour with a loose beige head. Slightly tart smelling with a little sweetness in the back that doesn’t really balance it. A tiny bit of alcohol comes through, but it’s really well hidden. The flavor is really interesting - tart but slightly fruity, with some bread and nut notes. Really actually very nice. Slight pithy bitter finish. Well done.

750ml bottle. Slightly hazy orange/amber body with a huge, foamy beige head. Complex aroma of sweet caramel, brown sugar, dry fruit, spices (coriander, timothy etc), yeast and a tiny but warming hint of alcohol. Possible to just there and sniff at the glass for eternity! Flavor is no disappointment, harmonic, warming, fruity, sweet, caramel, malt, sugar, raisins and spices. Full body and extremely delicious, alcohol is well hidden but very warming. Just love it.

Bottled 75cl. It pours a dark ruby beer with a dense, slightly beige head of a rather big size. The nose is of malt, alcohol, oranges, plums, raisins, rosemary, brown sugar and thyme. Lots of yeast showing up. The taste is very sweet malty, syrupy with lots of melon, toffee and yeast. Extremely smooth and nicely spicy with oranges and banana appearing which are accompanied by chocolate and molasses. Highly drinkable despite its strength. Caramel, alcohol, licorice and a lot of yeast in the finish. Definately quite a lot of thyme in there.

Deep cherry red pour with a touch of brown. A light hint of sour fruit and spice, and caramel. A rich solid flavor of fruit and a hint of bitter. Carbonation is good palate is solid. Rich spicy full bodied holiday beer. Winter warmer comes through well and spicy campfire warmth.