Cherry 17
Unibroue

 

 

On tap at Winter Warmer: Poured a deep dark color ale with a medium size foamy head. Aroma of spices with a good amount of candi sugar notes with light ester of typical Unibroue yeast. Taste is also a mix between some candi sugar with light dry fruits notes with some spices (cinnamon and coriander) with the typical yeasty Unibroue finish. Body is quite full with good carbonation and no apparent alcohol. Interesting though a bit too much residual sugar at the end of the day.

 

First had: bottle that I shared at Stone Soup '13. Bottle was unlabeled, and just scribbled on by the brewer. This was a '12 vintage, and it specifically said "has to age," so it'll be interesting to see how my other bottle tastes after a few more years in the cellar. Presumably, this is the 17 Grand Reserve aged on cherries.

Dark mahogany pour into a Stone taster glass, nearly opaque from what I could tell, a foamy tan head receded to a ringlet; I made no note of any significant lacing. In the nose, dried fruit, brown sugar, cherry candy, light spice. Not quite what I expected tastewise, but still pretty good. The cherry taste came through more like candy, bordering on Luden's cough drops, fruitcake sweetness, nothing really sour or tart going on (which is what I expected to get, I guess), caramel malts and brown sugar. Body was about medium, a bit sticky, carbonation moderate. It was decent overall, but I think it might hit a sweet spot after at least another year or two on the shelf.