Struise Pannepot Reserva

Brewed by De Struise Brouwers
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Oostvleteren, Belgium

Dark brown of color with a beige head. An aroma of raisins, spice and prunes. A flavor of spice, sweets, prunes, raisins and port.

Dark chestnut colour with a light brown head. Rich and complex aroma (hardly surprising) with figs and dates first. Then some malt. Spices. Orange and other citrus notes. The fruity and malty flavour is rather dry, and finishes very dry. Perhaps one nuance less perfect than the regular.

Bottled. Brown colour, small brown head. Aroma is spices, caramel, cookies, malts and some slight wooden hints. Flavour is caramel, spices, alcohol, some cookies and licorace. Long spicy aftertaste. Not as good as the normal Pannepot’s I have had.

Bottle at home, vintage 2005. Unclear, dark brown with a large light brown head, mostly lasting, nice lacings. Aroma heavy malty (dark fruits, caramel, brown sugar, alcohol/vineous). Flavor heavy sweet and though in perfect balance because of the alcohol and taste of the barrels. Full body. Perfect. Maybe the raring should have been even higher.

Nearly black, opaque body with slight red hues. Large and dense off-white head. Huge aroma, layer upon layer. Strong liqourice, spices (cinnamon), caramel, dark fruits, and a nice oak presence (more vanilla). Deep malty taste, very assertive and complex. Starts out aggressive, with a spicy bite, then the fruity sweetness takes over, and the oak elements start to come out more. The finish is very long, with strong liqourice notes, and a bit of tartness - it finishes surprisingly dry! Dense mouthfeel, suits the beer perfectly. Excellent.

Bottle at Chris o Shindig. Normal Pannepot aroma. Lovely and rich. Carbonation dies down over time. Rather creamy and full in mouth. Got a bit of wood/oak on top of the vinous notes. Stunning, but not as good as the 2004 and 2005 regular Pannepots that I have had. This was a little morse harsh and woody. Thanks to Ungstrup for bringing it, thanks to Sim for allowing me to drink her glass and thanks to all the guys at Struise for brewing it. 4.2/5 Re-rate bottle at Kulminator the weekend of Zythos 09. 2007 vintage. The previous woody nose has faded to a glorious Bordeaux red wine aroma. Too carbonated to start with but then this calms down. Really good druits. Good strawberry through to blackberry. Just the wine character blows me away. Bit of burnt coffee on finish.

Bottle, chris_o shindig. Dark brown, tan head. Smooth aroma, acidity just at right level. Very complex. Citrus. Flavour is complex, oaky sweet malt, slightly coriander, clove, spice, cinnamon. Palate is a little sweet. Excellent, so spicy and complex. Could drink this all day.

This one came from Santa!!! Deep chestnut brown, very sexy appearance. Head rapidly vanishes, leaving only a hint of what it once was. All the wornderful aromas are still there, the sugars, spices, raisins, dates, figs, vanilla and yes, oak. Nothing is in your face, yet oddly enough, everything is easily perceived. Flavor is a joy, great mouthfeel, thanks in no small measure to a level of carbonation that seems perfect. I do hope this beer hits the US soon, as one bottle is simply not enough.