Extra Export Stout
Brouwerij De Dolle Brouwers

330ml bottle into a pint glass. Could not find any freshness dating.

Darkest brown body with some reddish tints. Small tan head shrinks to a ring, hardly any lacing.

Tart berry aroma with some underlying light roast malt.

On tasting, as is often the case with this style, it takes an interesting turn into a tart mixed berry flavor, with a few hits of dried fruit. The stout really only shows up briefly in the finish.

Mouth between medium and full, finish tart with a fleeting light roast.

Overall, interesting and tasty beer. Happy to have tried it, but wouldn't want a session of these.

 

A: opaque; very dark brown in color; a 3 finger light brown head that receded to a thin cap; no lacing;

S: funky dark fruit;

T: follows the nose crom start to finish; a little harsh throughout; mild to moderate bitterness at the end;

M: medium bodied; moderate carbonation; dry finish;

O: bottle was probably 12-15 years old;

Stark black with a surprisingly overactive head that stealthily jumps up like fluid, almost as if being filled from the bottom, forming a very tall tan head capable of building rounded peaks.

Molasses, licorice, tobacco, cacao and espresso characteristics are all reduced to a ferocious intensity, yet lightened by its extremely airy froth. A cedary bite countered by a hint of spiced date comes in shortly thereafter. The dark malt is so acidic that it almost becomes tart over a session, yet the light body makes for a chuggable feel in the end.

Unless my timing is off (and feel free to correct me beer historians!), overall this seems like it may have inspired a pantheon of American stouts in the early 2000s like Marshal Zhukov, BORIS, Yeti, Palo Santo Marron, Abyss, Expedition, Founders RIS, etc!

The last time I had this sucker was almost 10 years ago at Trentina's beer & vinegar fermentation class (RIP). I only remembered this going through old pictures then realizing I never reviewed it, even here on BA. Good thing I noticed this on Etre and was able to add it to my Drie Fonteinen proxy shipment just before the Trump tariff ban took place.

330ml bottle from Beers of Europe (£5.59):
Jet black with a large, 4cm foamy head that's light brown & thick looking, holding vey well too. Rich on the nose with sweet chocolate & coffee notes initially then some roasted malts, hints of alcohol & a faintly nutty aroma at the end. The coffee & roasted malts dominate the taste with a subtle hint of sourness, it's full bodied with some darker, dried fruits & fairly lively carbonation too.

 

I like the red bowtie on the neck of the bottle. The pour is onyx colored with a tan head of frothy foam. The mouthfeel is extra smooth & velvety due to a few years of aging. On the taste I'm getting rich roasted malt & baker's chocolate along with some hints of coffee, caramel, & toasted pecan. Moreover, the 9% abv is well hidden. Cheers! A-

33 cl bottle Vintage 2009.
Nose notes of dark chocolate, splendid tobacco, ash.
Poured it also had the courage to make a sexy beige foam that remains to top the apex of the beer.
Warm and sweet aroma of chocolate, "Bicerin" liqueur, fumée.
In the mouth, the body is dense like whale oil, warm and dense, but slowly thins out, allowing the aromatic range to develop widely.
Predominant taste of chocolate, tobacco, light toasted notes, licorice, anise, light but elegant liqueur note, soft finish with a hint of ash.
Complexity that develops on a dense body that thins out on the finish like tissue paper from which emerge chocolatey, toasted, slightly caramelized and delicately smoky hints.
Alcoholic note not noticeable in the mouth, but when the beer is swallowed a note of alcoholic heat pervades all the innards and rises to the head, without being alcoholic on the palate.
Beer of a rare complexity, maintained IN A CONDITION - which I would dare say - PERFECT.
Example of how a product can evolve by letting time work: slightly rounded body that allows the aromatic range to expand (perhaps) to the maximum.

N.B.:
On the glass of the glass, at the end of the drink, some black remains of yeast and other organic material formed over time that stuck to the glass of the glass.

 

Black colour, with no translucence. Brown foam, huge, momentarily popped out of the bottle depriving me of about half of its contents.
Aroma: intense coffee roastiness, slightly sweet, chocolate, with a character reminiscent of that of Belgium, dark fruits. The aroma promises a nice Stout.
Taste: here again coffee and its roastiness, further cherry sourness, spice and fruit accents.Clear bitterness with a roasted character.
Alcohol perfectly hidden. Saturation: beer evidently overcarbonated. Body surprisingly low, the beer is quite watery. Rough texture.
27.04.2019

Looks are typical of a stout. Got a pungent/sourness to the taste that I fine undesirable.
Dry on the palate.
Not a favorite or a fan. Too much like a sour beer.

 

Too thin on the body and bitter on the finish

330 ml bottle, as De Dolle Special Extra Export Stout, kindly shared by my beerpal Jan Magnus. ABV is 9%. Pitch black colour, big tan head. First a fairly moderate but very nice roasty aroma (gets even better as the beer warms up a little) with some vinous notes, hints of dark dried fruits and leather. The flavour is also vinous, oaky and roasty, hints of raisins, coffee and liquorice. Overall brilliant.

 

 

 

Easily one of my favourites, tried in on a whim attracted by the wonderful art on the bottle's sticker. Compared to other Export Stouts, De Dolle's offering is quite peculiar as it offers impressive smells of strawberry, cherry and other reddish fruits as it primary components, these are followed taste wise by notes of dark cholocate and cocoa, with a watery, fresh aftertaste and strong carbonation. Alcohol barely perceptible, and overall extremely drinkable.

 

Pours a dark brown color topped with a khaki-colored head. The latter has a texture far more befitting a Belgian ale...I mean of course, it IS a Belgian ale after all. The aroma is very much like a brown stout, focusing more on chocolate than roasted malt. This is one of the fruitiest stouts I've encountered, as the dark fruit and even berry qualities are downright intense. There's some distinctive tobacco as well. Overall, what can I say apart from the way it puts the "Belgian" in Belgian stout. The flavor profile doesn't work as well as the nose indicated. Dark fruits are the dominant flavor, with tobacco and chocolate following closely behind. Belgian yeast is *very* evident, bringing strong notes of pumpernickel bread and black pepper. The raspberry finish brings a surprising amount of tartness that could catch someone off guard. All in all, it's definitely a clever and tasty product in terms of the varying notes, but I also find it scattershot and imbalanced. This feels very airy on the palate, yet there's a subtle chewiness as well. Carbonation is assertive. I love how different it is compared to other Belgian beers, stouts, and even Belgian-style stouts, but objectively I can't quite call it a great stout. It doesn't seem like it's perfectly in sync - having said that, I find my palate adjusting to its relative weirdness pretty well. Think of it as a big Belgian dark ale with emphasis on the dark part rather than a stout for maximum enjoyment.