Guido
Brouwerij Smisje

GuidoGuido
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From:
Brouwerij Smisje
 
Belgium
Style:
Belgian Dark Strong Ale
ABV:
8%
Score:
87
Avg:
3.88 | pDev: 11.86%
Reviews:
68
Ratings:
94
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jan 20, 2018
Added:
Feb 03, 2002
Wants:
  8
Gots:
  4
No description / notes.
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Ratings by dprophet:
Photo of dprophet
Rated by dprophet from North Carolina

4/5  rDev +3.1%

Jan 22, 2012
More User Ratings:
Photo of chinchill
Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

3.9/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
330 ml stubby brown bottle dated ?-21-2012. \

Pours with a clear amber-brown body with a fizzy, short-lived beige head. Minimal lacing. Cloudier after adding last 2 cm of the bottle's sediment-laden contents.

Aroma - unique, complex and interesting. Dark dried fruits including raisins, hints of wood and spices.

Flavor - lots of dark fruit notes with faint spices. Sweet as well as lightly bitter. Alcohol is partially hidden.

Smooth, full body, with lightly prickly, medium+ carbonation.

O - enjoyable, distinct and complex ale; Recommended!
Jan 20, 2018
 
Rated: 3.99 by Birdlegs from Washington

Mar 26, 2017
 
Rated: 2.5 by jrob21 from North Carolina

Oct 23, 2015
Photo of Pug
Rated by Pug from Minnesota

2.61/5  rDev -32.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.25
Maybe it was a bad bottle, but this was horrible and smelled rank.
Jun 18, 2015
 
Rated: 3.94 by DrBier from Pennsylvania

Mar 10, 2015
 
Rated: 3.5 by eric5bellies from Australia

Oct 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by mattfancett from England

Sep 02, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by csrbv from Pennsylvania

May 27, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by theCoder from Minnesota

Oct 25, 2013
Photo of LiquidAmber
Reviewed by LiquidAmber from Washington

3.97/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pour a dark, muddy mahogany amber with a fine half finger off- white head. A careful pour still had a bit of particulates in it. Nice aroma of plums and dark dried fruit, sweet caramel and bready malt. Flavor is sweet caramel malt, dried dark fruit, plums, honey and a bit of cardboard; finishing with sweet dark fruit juice and a hint of hops. Medium body with a reasonable creaminess. A sweet, but very pleasant dark Belgian that leaves my wondering how old the bottle is and whether the cardboard is due to age or design. Still quite enjoyable and if it is old, has held up reasonably well.
Aug 23, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by WOLFGANG from South Carolina

Jul 03, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by mrfrancis from Kentucky

Jun 18, 2013
Photo of Misanthropy_Sipping
Reviewed by Misanthropy_Sipping from Nebraska

4.49/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
It took me several times returning to this beer to get into it and appreciate it. A one time go at it is a bit surprising. It's also odd, but I think it puts out a lot of originality, even though similar ideas/styles have been done before.

Pours a very nice dark amber, a bit dirty looking. Almost looks like a jar of really good honey. Fairly lively.

Smell is pretty pungent. There is clearly the honey which is listed on the label coming through and a touch of sugary raisins. A strikingly earthy yeast smell, and also a hint of caramel and fermenting flowers. A little bit of booze comes out as well.

Taste is very nice, warms up great. There is clear amounts of delicious honey. A perfect amount. There is tart apple thing that snips the end. The raisins come through very gently, definitely more of a golden raisin in taste that mingles with touches of Belgian candi sugar. Tons of earth on this, a very interesting, dirty taste. But it remains somehow clean and crisp in a way. It's odd. Slightly sticky with a touch of caramel. A tad bitter on the end... very very very low bitter, and a bit dry. Booze is pretty well hidden.

Mouthfeel is really nice, comes in a bit thick and sticky, but is then scoured away by a sand grain and perfect carbonation. A bit dry, but the dryness is very nice.

Overall, like I said, I have had this few times and it took several runs to come to a decision on it. At first it was a bit too odd even for my standards. But it is Smisje, great quality and always intriguing. Once you get used to it or if you are just in the mood for earthy and mellow sweetness, it is pretty awesome. A very respectable brew. I'll be happy to come across this again, I'll continue to buy this when I'm given the chance.
May 11, 2013
 
Rated: 4.25 by Thomas_Picton from Florida

Apr 26, 2013
Photo of JohnnyHopps
Reviewed by JohnnyHopps from Indiana

3.79/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
The ale was poured into a snifter with a cloudy brown color. I can't recall ever seeing a beer with so much sediment in a beer. It looked as though there was a sandstorm occurring in my glass. The lights in my house were like the sun being blocked out as I peered through the glass. A modest dark head was produced, showing lacing on the sides of the glass. In the aroma, I detected a mild grape note. I suspect much of this comes from the raisin. In reality, the aroma was fairly tame. In the initial taste, one first detects the funky Belgian yeast. The honey smooths the potential harshness of the alcohol, moments before one detects the tang of the raisin. For a Belgian strong, the alcohol is reasonably modest. Still, one can easily detect the mild warming in the throat with the aftertaste. Guido had a fairly smooth and modestly thick texture, making this a easy drink. I am not sure that I liked it a ton, but it sure was interesting.
Jan 19, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by AdamBNYC from New York

Dec 10, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by steve8robin from Massachusetts

Nov 03, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by Martstar from Ohio

Sep 15, 2012
Photo of brentk56
Reviewed by brentk56 from North Carolina

3.77/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Appearance: Pours a slightly hazy russet color; the rather modest head quickly fades to a ringlet, though it leaves some dotty lace behind

Smell: Woodsy aromatics, with tawny port, caramel, fermented honey and herbal elements

Taste: Herbal caramel, up front, with the sweet port and fermented honey character building by mid-palate; dark fruit flavors build, in the middle, adding additional sweetness as well as a hint of tartness to the melange; the finish is earthy, woodsy and herbal

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with low carbonation

Overall: Interesting beer, though it tastes a little tired to me (Though I just purchased this from a store that is relatively new, I suspect this beer is a pre-2008 brew as the brewery is listed as de Regenboog which, according to the brewery profile on BA, changed its name to Smisje in 2008)
Jul 16, 2012
Guido from Brouwerij Smisje
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 94 ratings