Lips Of Faith - Anne-Françoise Spiced Imperial Dark Ale
New Belgium Brewing Company

Well this is rate, a bottle courtesy of the champion of the canquest, woodychandler. Poured from a brown 12 oz. bottle. Has a dark brown/amber color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of cherries, oak. Taste is cherries, prunes, light oak and alcohol are present. Feels medium/full bodied in the mouth and overall is an enjoyable beer.

To date, this is the best beer I've ever had. Managed to find it on tap at the Angel's Trumpet in Phoenix, AZ while I was there at a conference in 2017. One of 3 locations on tap, at the time. I'll never forget that beer: Perfect balance of sweetness and spice.

 

 

This was one of a few beers picked up at Craft Beer Nation in Red Deer, AB. It was listed as having a best before date of May 28, 2017, making this a little over a year beyond its intended date. With that full disclosure aside, writing this will take that into consideration and make an assumption that it has aging potential.

A: Pours a deep amber, quite hazy--this could possibly be chill haze, but it's tough to say for certain. Head is a couple centimeters, though retention is strong and it leaves some sticky lace lattice around the edges, even before consumption.

S + T: The aroma here is quite complex and I would imagine that, given the age of the beer, much of the hop profile has faded. It doesn't seem to do any harm, however, and I note an interesting 'wintergreen' scent--almost minty. There are some fruity notes--something a little citrusy in there. Additionally, some soft malts blend in the background. The flavor is quite similar, especially the subtle, minty flavours. There's a peppery note that gives it a hint of spiciness.

M + O: The body is a little light, and carbonation adds a peppy zip. It does manage to leave a bit of a lingering taste on the tail end that I find quite pleasant. It's a pretty nice blend, and the added age doesn't appear to have a negative effect on the beer--it has likely mellowed out and allowed some of the more subtle flavours to come out.

 

Enjoy by date very faded but I think it says 28 MAY17. However, at 9.5% abv, this brew should be able to age.

Pours a brown- dark amber body with an off-white head, quickly dissipates to a thin layer of scattered foam. Nice lacing along the glass. Super soft aroma, almost undetectable when cold but after a while I caught some cherry syrupy notes with a hint of white oak and bready malts. Taste is first a semi strong wave of vegetal spruce tip flavor paired with a semi sweet malty breadiness which is then followed by a delicate peppery and citrus note, which I assume comes from the grains of paradise. The citrus note quickly evolves into more of a cherry syrupy kind of note. The white oak spirals are virtually undetectable for me, it may help impart a slight earthiness to the brew but I believe it may have helped most in the delicate aroma. Overall, the flavors are very subtle and sort of blanket over one another in delicate layers. Very thin mouthfeel for such a big beer, but the brew is still fairly active and tingly.

This beer truly does make me think of the forest and tastes extremely unique. The flavors certainly grew on me, especially as the brew warmed up. Not an everyday brew for me but certainly one worth trying. Plus it’s a very interesting collaboration!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A - Dark brown body (semi-opaque), slight tan head.
S - Excellent spice, cherry, rosated malt notes.
T - Lots of herbal spiciness up-front. Taste lingers for a bit, pleasant though.
M - Sticky/sweet open, medium amount of carbonation, subtle close.
O - Impressive spice/herb execution while still retaining it's aleness. The aroma may put some people off, but everything worked for me.

 

 

Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a medium to dark reddish orange with a half finger white head that dissipates to a thin film with nice lacing. Aroma of bready malt and an odd vegetal spicy smell that was hard to parse, but must be the influence of the grains of paradise; little pure alcohol at the end. Flavor is cherry cordial, candi malt, spice similar to coriander, light oak; finishes with mixed fruit esters including the cherry again with a spicy, but cherry cola semi-sweet finish. Medium bodied with light creaminess. An odd take on the Belgian ale style most similar to a dubbel, but with much more influence of fruit esters, probably from the yeast. The cherry flavor almost veers into cherry cough syrup territory because of the general spiciness and robust ABV, but is redeemed by the solid malt, which does not have much individual flavor, but supports the spices and yeast esters well. I was not able to detect the influence of spruce bows, but they must contribute to the overall spiciness. One of those beers that seems to be headed for the precipice of oddness, but ends up satisfying and interestingly drinkable. The aroma was almost off-putting and the cherry notes were odd at first but this one grew on me as I drank it. One of the better and fun to drink ales from this series.

From notes taken 04/22/17:

Dark metallic copper moving toward ruby, seems clear but this bulbous glassware obscures it a little. Golden-tan, medium-retaining but easily reactivated head, heavy froth. Lace looks like Northern Canada, a lot of small islands, a few larger territories and peninsulas in a giant bay. Light vegetal aromas, like peas or green beans. Almost reminds me of a Fat Tire that sat in the sun too long. Not really my thing, but not god-awful either. Besides that, a little toasted grain, spice, and some booze. Palate is, unfortunately, not much different. Wanted something that tasted dark and spicy and instead I got beans, peas, nuts, and a bitterness that does little to balance or entice. It’s still not awful, and I’m sure it’ll grow on me at least a little once I tease out some subtleties. Ah yes, booze, and — as advertised — pine (spruce tips). Yeah, those are there behind the vegetal nuttiness. As are toffee, and some soily, peppery spices that the label tells me are Grains of Paradise (in over a year of searching, I’ve not seen these for sale anywhere besides online, what gives?), but also perhaps some hops. Oh, and anise or caraway in the finish. Those would be good in a beer with either more sweetness to it or more toasted bread character. Some pepper besides the Grains of Paradise on the finish. Ok, so the flavor is better than the smell if you pay close enough attention. Medium-bodied, tingly and velvety to almost nitrous effervescence. Not as warm as expected, it’s well hidden amidst the vegetable flavors and spices. I really hated to be critical of this, and it’s not nasty, but it’s nowhere near as exciting as everything the label suggests. The imperial nature of this beer is too easy to ignore, the spices aren’t that great and do little to balance the beer from its overly vegetal nature. Above average points for appearance and mouthfeel, but I have to dock everything else for how similar to a warm Fat Tire it is. I love New Belgium, and much they have to offer, whether standbys or exclusives, but Fat Tire, though drinkable, and even enjoyable when chilled like a lager, has always been a lousy flagship in my estimation. In fairness, that brewery is not the only one that shoves the same mediocre beer down my throat whenever I purchase a sampler 12-pack. I can certainly name names, I’m sure you know some of whom I’m referring to. Ok, I got off on a tangent, but it was much needed. This isn’t the one beer from NB that I could have gone off like this on, but it happens to be one I had much higher expectations for, given how amazing other collaborative efforts and the rest of the Lips of Faith series were. Not to mention the style itself.

Draft poured into a New Belgium goblet.
A: medium brown and clear, tan head that fades to thick and tenacious lacing
S: prunes, malt, a bit of hay, a hint of the alcohol
T: malt, hops that seem a bit herbal rather than citrus, blackberries and prunes, a bit of pine or maybe mahogany, alcohol, mildly sweet, very well-balanced, rich and complex
M: smooth, creamy, medium thick
O: outstanding, incredible, just erased all the tension from driving for the last ten hours, an exceptional experience