Kwak
Brouwerij Bosteels

KwakKwak
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From:
Brouwerij Bosteels
 
Belgium
Style:
Belgian Pale Strong Ale
Ranked #123
ABV:
8.4%
Score:
86
Ranked #20,083
Avg:
3.8 | pDev: 12.89%
Reviews:
771
Ratings:
1,928
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 09, 2024
Added:
Jun 30, 2001
Wants:
  72
Gots:
  438
In Napoleon’s time Pauwel Kwak was a brewer and owner of the ‘De Hoorn’ inn in Dendermonde. Mail coaches stopped there every day. But at that time coachmen were not allowed to leave their coach and horses in order to have their thirst quenched along with their passengers. As a result, the inventive innkeeper had a special Kwak glass blown that could be hung on the coach.
In this way the coachman had his Kwak beer safely at hand. Today Kwak is one of the few remaining historic Belgian beers and is still served with respect for tradition in its original kwak glass. Recognizable, special and just as idiosyncratic as the taste of the beer itself.

Kwak is a traditional strong Belgian amber ale, a perfect blend of malt and hops with a great complexity of flavour.
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Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Cyberkedi:
Photo of Cyberkedi
Reviewed by Cyberkedi from Georgia

4.55/5  rDev +19.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Malty aroma has an overtone of sweet apple and a hint of caramel. It pours a clear coppery brown with a fairly thick, if not persistent, pale tan head that leaves some respectable lacing. Scrumptious flavor has firm notes of malt, caramel and apple and just a hint of cloves. It is slightly sweet and slightly bitter, and these two components nicely balance each other. Smooth, full-bodied texture has a firm fizz and leaves a subtle tingle and a malty, fruity finish.
Dec 31, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.04 by Kost97

Feb 09, 2024
Photo of cabsandking
Reviewed by cabsandking from Ohio

4.19/5  rDev +10.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
11.2oz poured in Kwak glass
Dated 15/10/22

Creamy head fades too quickly, nice lacing.
Nose is mild, bready, caramel.
Hops are light, low bitterness. Roasted nutty malt, caramel, plum, some berry.
Medium mouthfeel a little slick, creamy carbonation builds in the mouth.
Very enjoyable!
Jan 19, 2024
Photo of MrOH
Reviewed by MrOH from Maryland

3.89/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Slightly cloudy amber, off-white head, ok retention, rings of lace
Cinnamon, caramel, dried cherry nose
Caramel, dried fruit, bready flavor
Medium-heavy body, a little hot, could use more carbonation
It's ok, wouldn't seek it out, though
Dec 16, 2023
Photo of Hephaistos
Reviewed by Hephaistos from Netherlands

3.45/5  rDev -9.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Not sure how you can call this a pale ale. Poured from a 330ml bottle at around 6-7 degrees in a kind of tullip tumbler.

It is morelike a belgian Double.
Ambre beer, pretty, a bit high in carbonation, small bubble, but very low on the foam and bad retention. 1-2 finger head, white head disolving soon.
Beautiful ambre colour. small bubbles, a bit of life in there.
Smell is like almonds. Bit of gingerbread.
Mouthfeel smooth, good balance in between sweet and bitter, with a bit a herby, bitter aftertaste.
On the lable it says there was corn added to this and some not natural carbonation.
I think both additions are a bit a work around for a not too well made beer. Something off making this short of a top rating.
The the end result is an acceptable beer though.
Dec 07, 2023
 
Rated: 4 by AbeO

Oct 28, 2023
 
Rated: 4 by BrisLoganite from Australia

Oct 13, 2023
Photo of Nass
Reviewed by Nass from Florida

3.89/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
The pour is amber colored which I'm sort of surprised by because this style of beer usually pours a golden color. The body is medium & the taste is honey, spice, white bread, & mild caramel. Cheers! B
Oct 06, 2023
Photo of KleinSchwein
Reviewed by KleinSchwein

2.53/5  rDev -33.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.25
From notes.

Poured from a 330ml bottle.

Pours a reddish brown with an off beige, short lived tight bubbled head. The smell is of caramel , malt , fruitiness and alcohol. The taste is rich and strongly of alcohol , too much for me . Honey and malt fight in the background but they're hard to notice because of the overriding taste of alcohol. The mouthfeel is warm from the alcohol, thick and syrupy, unpleasantly so . Overall this beer is way too forward on the taste of alcohol, every other flavour is overridden and it tastes way stronger than its already ample 8.4%. Some beers can be strong and subtle about it , this isn't one of them . Disappointed.
Aug 24, 2023
Photo of JohnniEMc
Reviewed by JohnniEMc from Pennsylvania

4.07/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
The clear pint glass is nearly filled from a tap. There's about a quarter of an inch of light tan head on top of a beautiful dark copper-amber liquid. It straddles the middle zone between translucent and opaque, but it's not cloudy. The aroma is malty, yeasty and hoppy, in that order. That's the taste, too, but with a heavy dose of Belgian-style esters in addition. There's also a hit of alcohol the nose didn't smell coming. The malt is its best feature, then it gets to be too much of a mouthful. It's rather viscose, even for a Belgian ale and the taste of alcohol is distracting. To be fair, this is in the 8% plus ABV category. This is an institution onto itself and for that reason, a must try, especially when it's on tap. Lovers of the Belgian style should like this even more
Aug 18, 2023
 
Rated: 4.03 by MrJones07 from Spain

Aug 16, 2023
Photo of MonDak_Joe1953
Reviewed by MonDak_Joe1953 from Minnesota

4.01/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
330ml bottle. Bottling date marked on label is '07/01/2021', with a suggested best by date two years hence (07/01/20230, so a little past best by.
Clear, medium amber colored body. One thin finger of light beige head. Later this is an island and a ring. No lacing.
Aroma is green apple, raisin, fig, and toffee.
Taste is rich toffee, raisin, fig, date, and green apple. All sit on a base of dark sour bread. Sweet but has a sour note. Some spice in the aftertaste.
Smooth and silky mouth feel. Alcohol ABV% is warming. Quiet carbonation.
Balance of fruit and toffee, with a sour bread note. Enjoyable mouth feel.
Aug 11, 2023
Photo of Beersnake
Reviewed by Beersnake from California

4.06/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from a 750ml bottle at fridge temp. A few chunks came out with the pour. Not a ton of head, but some. Color is a medium brown with a hint of red. The nose is rich toffee, dark bread, figs, sherry, raisins, and a bit of apple. Really smooth.

The taste generally follows the nose. Very malty. Rye bread, Belgian yeast, toffee, bitter oak, raisins, almost a hint of citrus peel, and lots of plums and dates. Very enjoyable. Sweet, but not too sweet.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a fairly sweet aftertaste. Overall, really glad I got to try this.
Jul 16, 2023
Photo of NCSapiens
Rated by NCSapiens from Indiana

3.99/5  rDev +5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Interesting yeast and malt with a lot of character and a cool glass.
Jul 11, 2023
Photo of kdd230
Reviewed by kdd230 from England

3.67/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
330ml. bottle in Vientiane, Laos.Pours a clear amber colour with a small white head. Aroma of bread, yeast, toasted malt. Taste of spice, alcohol, malt, Balanced sweetness with a small amount of bitterness. Average carbonation. Very pleasant.
May 17, 2023
 
Rated: 3.83 by HarlotBronte from District of Columbia

May 06, 2023
 
Rated: 4.17 by Ox8840bo from Illinois

May 02, 2023
Photo of sokol_1993
Rated by sokol_1993 from California

4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Got one in Paris. Quite a good beer, a mouthful of taste, but quite heavy, so it's an after dinner drink :)
Apr 28, 2023
Photo of mikeinportc
Reviewed by mikeinportc from New York

4.17/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Bottled 5/11/2020, so ~9 1/2 months after the 2yr BB suggestion . Let warm to almost room temperature [58F, +/-]

Deep orangey-copper, with light, quickly-dissipating light tan head.

Smell is mix of dried fruit (prune + fig+ date?), a little toffee & caramel, and a slightly boozy almost-brandy aroma.

Taste is brown bread (as in the base bread of gingerbread) , toffee, date, fig, and finishing with a bit spiciness (coriander,allspice,black pepper?) . Light bitterness. Didn't get any banana or orange that's in the description on the bottle.

Feel is smooth, and slightly slick, with light, very,very fine carbonation tingle.Light drying after-effect.

Overall, pretty good. Not an everyday sort of thing , but one I'd gladly have again , occasionally.
Seems as though it'd be a good dessert/after-meal sipper. (I'm having it before. ;) )
Though it's old, by the brewer's standard, still quite good. I'd like to try one fresh for comparison,.
If Orval [which I'm -rDev% on] was a bit fruitier, and sweeter, it might be like this.
Mar 18, 2023
 
Rated: 4 by seakayak from Massachusetts

Mar 10, 2023
Kwak from Brouwerij Bosteels
Beer rating: 86 out of 100 with 1928 ratings