t Smisje Catherine The Great Imperial Stout

Another Belgian with a black pour and HUGE cream head. Some roasted malt aromas, more fruity and sweet than a stout would have. Some roasted malt, molasses, dried fruits, slight nut. Could have been very intersting but again, to me the carbonation really confuses everything. A quad? Get them (Belgian stouts) their own category and stop insulting the poor RIS’s everywhere!

Bottle. Pours a dark muddy brown with a huge thick tan head. Aroma of Belgian yeast, spices (clove, coriander), sweet fruits, and very slight roast. Yum! Flavor not quite as tasty as the aroma. Roasted nuts, roasted/charred malts, light Belgian yeast. Of course, more of a Belgian strong ale than Imperial Stout as it’s not very American at all! (falls into the un-recognized category of Belgian stout). Interesting and pretty good.

Bottle. Well, first off, this ain’t no imperial stout. A shame that’s what it has been named. A formidable beer in its own right. Aroma quite nice, some roasted notes but predominantly a mixture of light fruits (notable apple), dark fruits (notably plums), and as it warms a bit some spices in the area of liquorice. Flavor not overpowering, more sprightly and fruity with nutty and roasted notes appearing toward the finish, and increasingly so as the beer warms. Average carbonation, medium body. Again, this did not resemble an imperial stout, nor did it resemble any variety of stout, Belgian or otherwise. Really it was more of a Belgian strong/quad with a bit of roasted character. And a very tasty one at that.

11.2oz bottle. Poured an odd shade of murky brown with a well-retained creamy cap of tan head.. didn’t look like a stout. This didn’t smell like a stout either.. Brett-like and similar funk hit first with Turbinado sugar, toasted dark fruits, and a bit of dry-roasted chocolate in the background.. struck me as a strong, dark Belgian Ale with a tad more roast than typical. The flavor had dark fruit at the core with dry chocolate providing more feel than flavor at the edges.. rye and black peppery spices joined in about halfway through, with rum-infused star anise peaking right at the back and through the warm finish.. odd, but it grew on me. Medium-bodied with active, fluffy carbonation on the palate.. dry and scratchy feel at the edges with earthy spices and bitterness.. a bit brighter at the end with more spice. This was definitely different and rather well done.

33cl, from De Hopduvel Gent, complex Stout, but not balanced, heavy, cloudy, rocky head, nice brew