Unibroue 16

This bottled brew from Chicago poured a very large sized head of foamy finely sized mostly lasting tan colored bubbles that left behind a very hazy dark orange brown colored softly carbonated body and a poor lacing. The aroma was floral with soft hoppy notes complex and full of interesting but hard to describe notes. The mouth feel was tingly at the start and came on a bit in the finish with a mild well hidden vinousness. The flavor contained notes of floral hops, mild light brown malt very smooth and drinkable with a mild hop bite in the finish.

Sample, tasting of Saison and Christmas beers by Philippe Wouters, at L’autre oeil, savoured on February 21 2007; eye: burnt orange, hazy, no effervescence, creamy almond head; nose: "Unibroue", cigarette (?), caramelized malt, bread, cardamom; mouth: velvety, syrupy, caramelized malt, alcohol, pepper, candied fruits, creamy texture, medium body, alcoholic texture, lightly astringent, average carbonation, mildly sweet, light bitterness; overall: correct FRANÇAIS Échantillon, dégustation Bières de Noël et de saison par Philippe Wouters, à L’autre œil, savourée le 21 février 2007; oeil : orange brûlé, voilée, pas d’effervescence, mousse amande crémeuse; nez : « Unibroue », cigarette (?), malt caramélisé, pain, cardamome; bouche : veloutée, sirupeuse, malt caramélisé, alcool, poivre, fruits confits, texture crémeuse, corps moyen, texture alcoolique, légère astringence, carbonatation moyenne, moyennement sucrée, légère amertume; en résumé : correct

Pours a dark burnt orange/amber with a nice white head. Aroma is of some cloves, smoke (peaty? I dunno), citronella candles, cheese and mold. Odd. Tastes pretty nice though, with some caramel, cloves, brown sugar, some dry bitternes that could be hops, and a strong spicy yeast presence because it’s a Unibroue beer. Finishes continuess the spiciness and adds a dry bitter quality. Unexpectedly cloying. Pretty good overall. The aroma offered some unexpected twists, but the flavor was straight-up Unibroue. Another good Unibroue ale, on lees no less!

Very fine and unexpected brew here. Like many raters, I’m pretty familiar with this brewery’s stuff and have come to expect a certain kind of malty Belgian boldness and bigness (e.g. Fin du Monde, Don de Dieu, etc.). Bold and big this is, but it’s actually like a higher octane Maudite tweaked to the point where it exudes some lovely qualities of a Flemish sour. It’s not dominant but it’s in there amidst the candied malts, the traces of pepper, the alcohol warmth, and the autumnal fruits/spices. Fizzy, warming, complex. I’ll have to grab another couple bottles of this.

reddish brown appearance with a strong white head and a nice malty nose. the flavor has a well balanced complexity with some alcohol warmth at the end. a nice brew

Pours a murky dark amber with a very tall head. Earthy aroma. The alcohol is not so noticeable. The flavor does have a brown sugar like presence.

Pours a slightly opaque dark brown/amber with a nice head and some lace. Wonderful sweet & fruity aroma, slightly floral hops. Tastes fantastic! Amber and some brown malt, floral and slightly ferric hops, dark apple and cherry flavours as well. Great creamy body, slightly over-carbonated. Great beer, wonderful balanced flavour, nice body, If this weren’t $10/bottle I’d keep it on-hand at all times!

Mahogany with a frothy head and stringy lacing. Nose is full of yeast and malts. Some candy aromas and almost a touch of soda. Flavor is just a bit metallic. Not much, but just a hint of penny in the beginning there. Sweet caramel and brown sugar roll in next. This is definately a dessert beer. A bit of heat at the end as well.