Grand Cru
Great Divide Brewing Company

 

Never shying away from a challenge, the brewers of Great Divide don't simply dip their toe into the world of Belgian beer making, but just in head first into the Belgian Dark Strong Ale.

Pouring a dark and rusty brown, the nearly opaque Grand Cru crowns with a sepia stained head froth. Popping with spicy aromas, an allspice medley balances with dark and stone fruit along with a fortified wine tingle of alcohol on the nose. Sweeter to taste, the early palate opens up with a brown sugar and light molasses character to suggest spice cake in its first impressions.

As the highly complex ale spreads across the middle palate, the sweetness relaxes to an almost cola-like character to allow the spices and fruit to elevate. Raisins, plum, date, fig and currant lead the way in their dehydrated and wine soaked character before being rivaled later with the spices of cinnamon, peppercorn, clove, ginger and nutmeg for that all around and general spiciness for a superior balance. The taste turns bitter, tart and boozy late on the palate as the hops seem to blend into a tannic brandy heat.

Full bodied in texture, the tandem of alcohol, hops and yeast spices word together to break up the malt and assist with a malty-dry finish and a medium long aftertaste of brandy, red wine and mulled spices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mohaggany or however that is supposed to be spelled. Aroma was boozy, not much else.

Taste hit the dark fruits, bitterness, and massive f'n heat. Burnt brown sugar. Serious, this is hot beer. Woof. In like a 1oz pour, sure, but drinking 12oz of this is like drinking fireball with raisins all night.

Had this on tap at the Town hall Brewery and from a 22 oz. bottle poured into a chalice.
A: Brilliant chestnut under a 2” dark cream colored pillowy foam collar that produces this lace.
S: Winey, estery aromas with dark dried fruit.
T: Yeast driven dark dried fruit flavors supported by dark malt sugars, toffee and traces of cherry.
F: medium body to medium full, medium to medium high carbonation
O: A well made, drinkable Belgian strong dark ale.

Sweeeeeeeeeeeet And thick. Hoping for a different grand cru

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poured into a Burley Oak snifter

A: A nice hazy dark brown that gets darker with depth. A decent finger width head with minimal lacing.

S: Spicy and sweet. Quite Belgian with what smells like some candi sugar.

T: Typical belgian spice and style that has a nice level of sweetness. Good flavors here, but it has this strange taste in there towards the end. Also, there is quite a bit of of raisins and dried fruit in here.

M: Overall quite smooth but you can feel a lot of bubbles in there that aren't too prickly. It is a bit thin, but still good.

O: Tasty and glad I was able to find it even though I wasn't looking for it specifically. It is much better than the new Peach Grand Cru. I feel like this is either on the cusp of going downhill or just passed it.

Opened this with some of my neighbors and they fully enjoyed it, but they are mainly wine people. Doing my part to share the goods.