Schloss Eggenberg Urbock 23°

Bottle, 2000 vintage tasting @ Den Tatoverede Enke, Copenhagen. This is by fare the oldest cellared beer that I have ever tasted. Again I haven’t had this beer fresh, so I had nothing to compare it with. Still I thought this was a very interesting experience in my struggle to find great tasting beer from all over the world. Head was spare and what was there might have been white. Head was also immediately diminished. Lacing was spare to none exciting. Color was clear and light amber-golden. I thought the aroma was very complex with notes of heavy malt as the predominant. Rye bread, grain, nutty, toasted and some pear and peach in there as well. I defiantly had a feeling that there was some sulphur to be detected in the nose as well. However at the tasting they did not agree with me on that one. Full bodied with a light alcoholic texture and a very flat carbonation. Flavor was heavy sweet, with light balance of bitterness. Finish was sweet and average lasting. With the cellaring, this was quit an amazing Experian.

.33l bottle. Slightly hazy, clear golden beer with a small white head that drops to a ring. Pleasant fruity, malty aroma with an alcohol note. Flavor is very malty and alcoholic, a little sweet but not overly so. Sort of a high proof malt liquor, with just a touch of saaz bitterness at the end. Tasty, complex, and a really nice alcohol hit that is well disguised though not completely hidden. Immediately interesting, and enjoyable throughout.

Noget gammelt noget vi fik til smagningen på "Enken". Klar lys orange farve og ikke skyggen ag skum. Dufter og smager af rugbrød, karamel og er alt for sød og har alt for meget alkohol. Den giver en brændende varm fornemmelse. Det er ikke en rar øl efter min smag.

Bottle (very old) at DTE - Ratebeer night (06-01-07). Clear amber - no head. Lots of bread, sweetness, berries, hoppy, licorice, wood, lots of everything - very smooth.

Appearance is clear gold, a sort of maple leaf turned early. Bottle hissed with minor carbonation and indeed bubbles are few but steady, leading only to a thin white halo around the top of the glass. The smell is of alcohol, malt, and sweet iced tea with mint. Mouth-feel is dense, like caramel syrup. But the carbonation regains life on the tongue, forcing any excessive sweetness away from the tongue and bringing forth a mellow bitterness. This is a complex taste that lingers and coats the back of the throat, warming yourself as it flows down. Internally this is a lively beverage that awakens the intestines, perhaps best suitable as a digestive following a heavy, fall meal. Me thinks it would serve well after dark meat, like lamb or veal. As the temperature drops the malty sweetness becomes more dominant; notice the sugar coat on the lips. Served in a Samichlaus tulip.

Clear orange color with no head. Nice fruity aroma. Flavor is a bit sour and fruity with a decent finish. Not too bad.

Pours amber, with extremely thin white head. Aroma is sour apples, malt. Knocked back by the first taste of this beer. Flavor seems to vary between several different types of sweetness- a little fruit and carmel sweetness, some sugary warmth on the palate, finally a near cloying sweetness that finishes with a bit of alcohol in the aftertaste. That bit of alcohol gives a nice lingering bite to a beer that seems to stay within a pretty limited range of flavors. Hop aroma and flavor is there, but barely noticable, nicely balanced in that regard. A good brew to sip and ponder.

Golden color. Chewing gum in the aroma. Very sweet flavor with malt and chewing gum. The alcohol is totally hidden, but you can still taste it is a strong beer. Sugary and warming.