Struise Pannepot

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

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

Perfection. Sweet, liquorice and red wine on the nose. Tar blackness in appearance, my only sticking point here being the lack of head (presumably due to my glass and ineffective pouring technique as it surely can’t be a fault of the beer?! Either way, 4/5 for that to be fair). Sweet and syrupy, very rich with a hint of smokiness that only complements all the other flavours. Thoroughly enjoyable from first sip to after taste. Overall an amazing beer, combining various flavours, and giving a feel of drink wine and or rum/bourbon but all in a beer. BLOWN AWAY. Couldn’t drink many of them though as very heavy going.

Small bottle (33cl), ‘2007’ listed on the bottle, this drink had a dark brown pour with yellow-brown and coffee tan colored bubbled head that eventually lowered to a thick cover with a good billowing effervescent island (this drink was a dark ruby with brown at the edges of the glass when held up to a light), the bottom of the bottle was completely covered with black, caked sediment, the aromas were cherry, roasted malt, fruit citrus, mild spice, dark bread, caramel and faint brown sugar sweetness, I had to let this ale warm up a bit before the nose revealed its goodness, but even letting this drink warm up, the nose is not as strong as I thought it would be, there were dry, dark malt flavors, dark bread, chocolate, Bakers Chocolate (no sweetness) and chocolate cake with dark fruit flavors of prune and raisin, faint yeast and light spice, it had a small tartness on the palate, there was lots of malt flavor without the sweetness that I am used to tasting in a BSA (this ale was dry for a BSA), it had some initial sweetness but it turned dry thereafter and had some bitterness at the finish and afterwards, there was some alcohol warmth on the palate but was hardly noticeable (the alcohol was hidden well), pouring in the sediment of the bottle dulled the flavors a bit, the mouth feel was medium with generous carbonation, this drink was different than what I thought it would be, it had more tartness than what I was expecting, and the nose was not as big as I was expecting, I found much more flavor than what was present on the nose, again, I found this beer had lots of malt flavor with little sweetness.

Pours a five-finger+ light tan pillowy head that fades slowly leaving a good lace. Black color. Sweet spicy nose. Light-medium carbonation and very heavy bodied. Flavor is sweet, spicy and complex; high ABV is hidden. Clean finish. I don’t see anything wrong with it. $5.20 for a 330ml bottle from Tully’s Beer & Wine Wells, Me.

Bottle thanks to Papsoe. Thanks mate. Medium brown coloured with decent light tan coloured head. Falls away pretty quickly leaving only minimal lacing. Aromas is quite complex with lots of christmas pudding like spices, dark fruits, candii sigar sweetness and some alcohol. Nice. Flavours are not quite so complex. Very sweet initially with some spice and alcohol on the finish. Medium mouthfeel.

A bit disappointed with this one. Nice dark appearance, but an offputting aftertaste prevents this form getting a superb rating.

From the tap poured a dark brown color with a fair amount of head. Strong sweet malty flavor with a lingering finish.

6 oz sample from Capone’s. Pours a murky brown with a creamy, cask-like head. There is a great amount of sugary dark fruit and sweet bread that becomes slightly outdone by spicy Belgian esters. Taste closely follows the nose with remarkable balance and quaffability. I was done this glass much sooner then expected.

33cl bottle from Beermania, Brussels. Pours a dark, almost black with a small, well tanned (coffee) head. Nose : Very lively aromas of dried fruits and coffee malts. Alcohol. Sip : Full body, almost like a milkshake. Very little carbonation. I would also add that the body makes me think of an egg yolk. First strike is delicious mix of nose aromas going into bitter coffee domination. There are some background smoked wood notes too. Fantastic Imperial Stout like beer. Rich in aromas and flavor, hiding just enough the 10% alcohol and the body is intriguing. It’s a great example of a well nourishing stout. Another "bravo" for a belgian brew.