N’Ice Chouffe

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

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

2002 bottling. Rich, malty, sweet, spicy and complex aroma, with a hint of the thyme, vanilla, candi sugar, orange peel, coriander, raisin, faint hops, a generous, doughy, yeasty fruitiness, flowers and faint alcohol. Lots of elements on display. Medium garnet in color, with an uneven, creamy and lasting off-white-pinkish head and copious lacing. Flavor is surprisingly mellow, lots of malt sweetness up front, fading into a blend of spicy hop, yeast esters including some bubblegum, and a bit of peppery alcohol towards the lengthy finish. Hefty body, with a creamy, effervescent mouthfeel. Blended so that no one aspect stands out too far, which is nice. Would definitely be a fine candidate for a few years worth of aging. O.G. 1099, 25 IBUs.

Chocolate, licorice, wood and dark fruits in the aroma. Sweet, creamy, malty palate. Smooth milk chocolate coats the palate, while a citric spice in the finish provides good balance. Fair alcohol warmth in the finish without ever appearing too strong.

"Poured a cloudy broan amazing fluffy long lasting lacing head. Aroma was spices and dark fruit. Flavor was candy sugar spices dark fruits. The alcohol wasn’t hidden in this at all. "

Dark pour with a fluffy head. Aroma has spice, sweet candied fruit and some caramel. Flavor has more rich fruit, plums and some sherry with some more caramel and mellow spice. Nice.

Cloudy brown with a thick off-white head. Raisins, grapes, and spice make up the aroma. Light but creamy mouthfeel. Sweet wine, banana, spice, and caramel malt dominate the palate. Orange peel, hops, and alcohol bring up the rear and stay with you. Good balance, good beer.

Bottle, 75cl. Pours a nice, dark brown body with a dense, but small, beige head. Nice lacings as well. Sweetness and dried fruits dominates the aroma, but there’s also a little spicy note and some alcohol. It is not very complex, yet it is a beer that smells so delicious that it can be sniffed for hours. Flavorwise it is much the same, quite sweet and warming, with dried fruits and a bit more pronounced spicyness than in the aroma. Full-body and a pleasant carbonation. It’s a bit soapy in the mouth, hence my lower rating on flavor. There’s a herbal bitter-note in the finish, as well as dried fruits and brown sugar. A really lovely, warming beer, well suited for the cold season, and not to forget, Christmas. Pity it’s so expensive in Norway, and so hard to get. (071224)

Dark Brownish red color, hazy, with a moderate whitish tan head. Aroma is alcoholish, fruity, sweet, and yeasty. Flavor is dry(alcohol) with a sweet finish, with some hop bitterness