De la Senne Equinox Winter Beer

Brewed by Brasserie de la Senne / de Zenne Brouwerij
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium

Draught at Capone’s: Aroma of chocolate and Belgian malts. Poured brown in color with a small, tan head around the edges only. Opaque. Slightly sparkling. Excellent lacing. Flavor is light to medium sweet. Tastes of chocolate, Belgian malts, slight roasting and light caramel. Medium body. Dry texture. Average carbonation. Chocolate and roasted malt finish is lightly dry. 8%ABV is totally hidden throughout.

Bottle. Dark brown with an off-white foam. Aromas are coffee and peat with some vegetable notes. Cola with herbal and peppery aspects. Flavours are coffee and chocolate with earthy notes. Bitter grapefruit and lemon, quite resinous in its fruitiness. Good stuff.

Pours a dark red burgundy color with a nice tan color head. Aroma of roasted malts and dry fruits with some honey. Flavors of roasted malts, coffee, liquorice, and some chocolate. Low carbonation with a grainy texture, and a sweet and bitter dry finish.

Bottle. A very malty aroma, very light sour, later on some coffee. The creamy white head disappears fast, the body is brown. It tasted of coffee, nice bitter with a hidden malty sweetness. The body is creamy, medium strong and with a soft carbonation. A modern label but a classic good taste!

750 ml capped and corked bottle purchased at Blue Max in Burnsville, Minnesota. Pour is a murky cloudy brown copper with a nice one inch tan head. Aroma is really malty, nutty, chocolate sweet, even a hint of roast in there. Behind that is some clove phenolic spices and yeastiness that melds with the malt nicely. The taste follows suit, malty, brown sugar sweetness, the signature De La Senne grassiness, finishing with the spice, clove and phenols of the yeast. Palate is medium, coats the mouth nicely. Nice one.

.33l. Beautiful dark brown pour with creamy offwhite head that leaves quickly. Tart, boozy nose, lovely belgian yeasts too. Dark and red fruits. Sharp bitterness at first taste on top of sweet leather and malt. quite effervescent for the body, which is moderately heavy. Very bitter finish (maybe i’m out of practice...), a bit like some stouts. Spices are nice oldworldy winter touch.

Deep amber, long lasting beige head, good lacing. Aroma is lightly spicy, toffee sweetness, dark fruits, some yeast. Flavour of dark fruits, moderate bitterness, yeast, moderate sweetness, some alcohol. Lightly bitter mouthfeel, medium body, high carbonation. Finishes long, bitter, warming.

Nicely done, warming alcohol, very nice balance.

750ml bottle obtained in a trade with Boutip, thanks Phil.
Opened on February 11, 2009.
No date.

Nice deep brown coloured body with a very thin tan head. Aroma of nice fragrant malt, tart cherries, alcohol, sour grapes, caramel and nuts too - very interesting, but very nice. Very effervescent mouthful, medium-bodied; Strong assertive roasty malt up front with some mild nuts and caramel flavours. Aftertaste shows alcohol, some vanilla and oak and a very minor cherry flavour. Overall, a pretty good beer - better in the nose and in the glass than in the taste and afterwards. I sampled this 33 cL bottle purchased at Beer Mania in Bruxelles, Belgium on 28-December-2007 sampled on this side of the Atlantic the day before I head back over to central Europe on 06-November-2009.