Chimay Grande Reserve Barrel Fermented 2024 (Brandy Edition)
Bières de Chimay

Overall good. More interesting than the base beer.
Enjoyed at the Yokohama Belgium Beer Festival.

375 ml corked & caged bottle, from Vinmonopolet, Nettbutikken. ABV is 10.5%. Deep brown colour, large off-white head. Aroma of malts, brown kandij sugar syrup, dark dried fruits, oak and brandy, hints of mild spices. Flavour with the same elements. Good beer, but not the very best in the series.

Pours a dark brown color with virtually no head. Aroma is dark fruits and spices. Taste is slightly tart dark fruits. Smooth with a pleasant alcohol warmth.

Not simply resting on their traditional beer and brewing history to carry their brands into new eras, Chimay brewers have some pretty unique ways to not only stay relevant, but thrive.

Fermented, and not simply aged, in spent brandy barrels, Chimay Grande Reserve sees new life; pouring a deep russet burgundy and bubbling with a dense and rocky froth. With the complex scent of dark fruit, peppery spice, vinous woods and candied malt, the nose offers a ton of promise. A dry malt sweetness hits the tongue with impressions of hard candy, caramelization and coffee cake to set a grain-sensitive tone.

While the malt dries quickly on the middle palate, the fruity esters show a varying array of dark fruit- date, raisin, fig, prune, red grape, dark berry and prune all take a dehydrated and condensed character while a spicy balance brings flavors of cinnamon, clove, peppercorn, ginger and nutmeg in a subtle holiday spice blend. All wrapped in the peppery woods of brandy barrels and the tone of the session trends dry and spicy with brandy and oak.

Medium-full in body, the ale may have a malty balance but it is certainly not sweet. Dry, warming and pleasantly prickling on the tongue, the ale finishes with a fruity-spicy balance and with a medium-long aftertaste of peppery brandy in a very succinct and drinkable collection of flavor.