Beer: De Struise Brouwers Black Albert
Brewery Location: De Panne, Belgium
Beer Style: Belgian Royal Stout (Russian Imperial Stout)
ABV: 13%
I certainly hear about all of the new beer that is coming to town, and the hype behind this beer was fairly intense among the beer geeks/blogs/beer forums. I try my best not to read anything about a new beer until after I've had it. I've found that inevitably a beer will never live up to the hype that it is given if you really get yourself wrapped around how good a beer may or may not be. De Struise makes some great beer, and one of my favorites is their Old Fisherman's Ale. If you make a great Quad, I will pretty taste anything you make after that.
This beer was brewed especially for the Ebanezer's Pub in Lovell Maine. The beer was actually brewed in Maine under the specifications of De Struise. They call it a new style: a Belgian Royal Stout, but it was brewed in the Russian Imperial stout style and where it is classified.
Appearance: This pours a deep brown color that is very close to black with a thin swirl of brown froth that quickly dissipated. The beer coats the glass extremely well, but left minimal lacing.
Smell: I let this beer warm for 45 minutes outside of the fridge, and the nose was still subtle with scents of chocolate and dark fruits, and it showed its Belgian roots with the unmistakable scent of Belgian style yeast.
Taste: The flavor profile is heavy on the front of the tongue with coffee and dark bitter chocolate. The middle of the beer gives flavors of dark cherries, plums, and figs before being ending on a bitter note.
Mouthfeel: The warming alcohol quickly catches up with you, but for a RIS this beer has a thinner mouthfeel than I would have expected and has the mouthfeel of a good Quad, but not a RIS.
Drinkability: The alcohol is well hidden for a 13% beer, but the price would keep me away from this beer.
I am certainly glad that I got to try this beer, and overall is was a pretty good beer, but not worth a dollar and ounce though is what is equates to. If this beer were in a four pack around 15-20$ I would buy it often, but 12 bucks for a 11.2 oz bottle it needs to either be one of the best RIS's that I've tried or one of the best Quad's that I've tried, and it doesn't make it into either category for me.
Cheers!
Matt
2 comments:
Thanks, hopefully it was a good one for you.
RHEINGOLD BEER BLOG
We all remember the standout beer brand of the mid 1900s, a beer called Rheingold which was first produced in the early years of 1883 and permeated society to become a top-selling beverage due to its fair pricing and solid taste. Rheingold’s appeal was so influential that during the 1950s, it accounted for a third of the New York’s beer market, revealing its widespread appreciation. Its pigeon mascot fits its New York origins and seemingly represents the soaring nature, specifically the taking off and popularity of this beer.
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I first came across this retro beer at a party a couple of weeks ago, and let me tell you that I loved its mellow flavor as well as the incredible amount of history which is associated with the brand. The fact that my dad used to drink this beer boggles my mind and shows just how pertinent the Rheingold brand is to various age groups, whether young or old. Everyone around me at the party enjoyed the beer too, as they kept on asking questions about this drink that they had never heard of before. If you haven’t heard of it or want to inquire about more information regarding this amazing beverage, hit up the beer’s website at RheingoldBrewingCompany.com, to be pleasantly introduced to New York’s Prime Beer! Take a look, then a taste, and you will agree with me that Rheingold is here to stay.
-Anna Guller
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