Abtsolution
De Proefbrouwerij (bvba Andelot)

AbtsolutionAbtsolution
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From:
De Proefbrouwerij (bvba Andelot)
 
Belgium
Style:
Belgian Dark Strong Ale
ABV:
9%
Score:
90
Avg:
4.04 | pDev: 7.92%
Reviews:
38
Ratings:
98
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Dec 01, 2021
Added:
Jun 11, 2017
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  14
We are thrilled to welcome Daniel Carey of New Glarus Brewing Company as our 11th annual partner in this series. A long-time student of classic Belgian ales and early practitioner of Belgian-style brewing among American brewers, Daniel brings a rich and diverse background to this collaboration.

In the true spirit of this project, we have created a beer based on the classic Belgian Abt style, with unique Wisconsin contributions including Santiam and Chinook hops. To further highlight the Dairy State we've added lactose for extra mouthfeel and richness. The result is a dark ale with fruity esters, a velvety smooth palate and balancing wood notes from our use of French and American oak along with spicy hop notes. This ale is designed to drink now, but we believe will evolve beautifully over the next 1-2 years.

Enjoy Abtsolution with roasted meats, rich cheese and of course, friends. Cheers!
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Ratings by RoyalT:
Photo of RoyalT
Reviewed by RoyalT from Michigan

3.34/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Appearance – This is a little light for the style with a moderate head.

Smell – The nose comes out right away with dark spices, currants, and a roasted malt aroma.

Taste – The taste is a bit of a disappoint and doesn’t match up to the big nose. It is mild, consisting mostly of flat malts.

Mouthfeel – Hardly medium-bodied, this one lagged it’s peers at the taste. The carbonation is weak.

Drinkability – This Belgian ale is way overpriced, and although a decent beer failed to deliver. There are many more examples of the style worthy of your tall dollars than this one.
Sep 16, 2017
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.78 by TMoney2591 from Illinois

Dec 01, 2021
Photo of Mitchster
Reviewed by Mitchster from Michigan

3.44/5  rDev -14.9%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
These were at blowout prices, $2.99/ 750ml bottle so I bought a case of these. No date on the bottle. 9% ABV. Aged in french and american oak. Hopped with Santiam and Chinook. "Newcork"'ed and caged. Pours out to a limp deep chestnut brown, quite cloudy, forming a small wisp of a head which quickly recedes into nothingness. No lacing. Very mild carbonation, maybe 1.5 carbs or so. Nose of prune juice, soy sauce, raisins, plums, port, Mouthfeel is soft, smooth, medium-dense bodied,moderately syrupy. Bitterness is very mild. Taste is a recap of the aroma...lots of dark fruit and soy sauce. Moderately warming, peppery finish. Not much Belgian yeast character, more like drinking an old barleywine.

I wonder if these were on blowout because of the carbonation issue. Worth the $2.99. Definitely not worth the $12.99 I've seen these at.
Apr 14, 2021
 
Rated: 4 by NickThePyro from Washington

Dec 21, 2020
Photo of bushbeer75
Reviewed by bushbeer75 from Michigan

4/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
poured from a 1pt. 9.4 fl. oz. caged and corked brown bottle

De Proef Abtsolution poured into a tulip glass a cloudy dark amber hue. Atop sat a ¼ finger off-white head that reduced to a foamy color and produced spotty lacing. The nose has picked up notes of; sugar, caramel, dark fruit (i.e., raisins, plums). The taste matches the nose with dark fruit upfront followed by candied sugar and hops at the finish. Mouth feel is high-medium bodied and smooth.

Overall, a nice BSDA that is a little hoppy for the style.
Aug 13, 2020
Photo of Alieniloquium
Reviewed by Alieniloquium from Florida

2.6/5  rDev -35.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5
750 mL bottle. No pop after I struggled with the synthetic cork. Pours murky brown with no head. Smells a little sweet with some dark fruits. A little earthiness. Tastes sweet up front before bitterness and earthiness take over. The bitterness is reminiscent of oxidation, but that's the only sign of oxidation. A little twang in the finish. Medium heavy. Flat. Didn't drink much of this. It wasn't all that pleasant.
May 04, 2020
 
Rated: 3.77 by Bunuelian from Minnesota

Mar 02, 2020
Photo of unlikelyspiderperson
Reviewed by unlikelyspiderperson from California

3.74/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
I think about 2 years on this bottle, can't find a proper bottling code
Pours a light mahogany with ruby highlights. Thin head forms a dense ring with a sheer layer of bubbles covering the top.
Smell is boozy sweet with some tart cherry/raspberry notes. Warms up to a more vinous character with some subtle spice coming through.
Taste features toffee and a nutty malt character along with some subtle 'mulling' spice sense and a bit of dark stone fruit sweetness. Mildly boozy but no alcohol heat.
Mouthfeel is an odd and somewhat off putting mix of slightly thin and slightly sticky. It is certainly full bodied but there is a bit of wateriness that is off putting.
Overall this is a pleasant beer, I'd imagine it is a bit better fresh. Nice complex spiced fruit and toffee flavors going on and a very clean drinking beer. Mouthfeel was off for me and it was all a bit muted in my opinion (quite possible it's just showing it's age)
Nov 19, 2019
 
Rated: 3.75 by imperialking from Illinois

Sep 03, 2019
Photo of Viaduck
Reviewed by Viaduck from California

3.79/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
It’s not the prettiest beer, a light mahogany/ dark tea color with a puny head that resembles soap bubbles. The aroma is banana bread with raisins soaked in alcohol. Taste is moderately sweet with mild salty/bitter. Flavor: a bit of a disappointment, caramel, toffee, alc, brown sugar& hop flavors. Medium viscosity, virtually no carbonation, fair amount of alcohol burn. Overall: it’s a hoppy caramel banana & for me it does really work that well.
Jun 29, 2019
Photo of Lavoied
Reviewed by Lavoied from Florida

4.44/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.25
Had about 2 years after bottling. The mouthfeel is smooth and creamy and the taste has aged wonderfully. The malted grain has aged very nicely and the Belgian yeast has mellowed considerably. Perhaps not on par with the olden trappists but is a unique beer worth experiencing before the tap runs dry
May 11, 2019
Photo of sokol_1993
Reviewed by sokol_1993 from California

4.25/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Got one on tap at Public House, La Jolla.
An excellent beer. Dark fruit all around, with sweet Belgian sugar candi and yeast. Little hoppiness though.
Apr 08, 2019
Photo of macrosmatic
Reviewed by macrosmatic from Florida

3.61/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Reviewed from (very) long-standing notes. Poured from the 750mL bottle into an El Catador Barrel-Aged glass. 2017 vintage bottle, reviewed late 2017.

A: Murky rich brown, just barely translucent. Still manages an average amount of visible carbonation. Forms a half-finger of light tan head that fades quickly to a lasting ring of foam.

S: Quite low amount of aroma. Some toasted malts, Belgian yeast esters, and a weird metallic or medicinal note in the background. A mild caramel or toffee sweetness. Not off-putting (except for that weird metal aroma), but this isn’t anything inspired.

T: Sweet, lightly toasted malts, with brown sugar and toffee. Belgian yeast esters – apple, pear, and milder banana. Some oaky tannins and mild hop bitterness add a degree of counterpoint to the sweet flavors. More brown sugar and caramel and some dark fruit as well. An almost rummy ethanol sweetness at the swallow, then more sweet caramel.
NOTE: As this warms to room temperature, it does get a bit better. The flavors become more unified and mesh better, though the notes I can pick out remain the same.

M: A sticky mouthfeel and full-bodied. The alcohol is noticeable but not overly hot. Carbonation sensation fairly low, but it seems to fit the beer.

O: Really not my favorite. It just seems to be all over the place, without doing anything particularly well. It’s not god-awful, but I won’t be drinking it again. Belgian meets wood meets hoppy barreled beer just doesn’t work out. Of note, reading the label – I get no particular lactose presence. And I don't know where that would have fit into the equation at all. This might be the beer equivalent of Mom’s clean-out-the-refrigerator-of-leftovers-meal.
NOTE: Since it did improve as it warmed, I'm going to use that higher set of scores. Interestingly, the aroma never did open up. Even warmer, it's far from great, but I would still highly recommend letting this warm to nearly room temperature before even bothering to drink it.
Mar 24, 2019
Photo of pants678
Reviewed by pants678 from California

3.3/5  rDev -18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25
Dark between, opaque.

Malt, yeast.

There's a beer without lactose here that I'd enjoy. Mutes the flavor far too much. Date, raisin and something like blueberry.

Enjoy the viscosity but this beer has no bite.
Mar 03, 2019
Photo of teromous
Reviewed by teromous from Virginia

3.77/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
I don't see a bottle date listed.

Appearance: It is dark brown and hazy with a thin and creamy light tan head. It has a subtle ring of foam around the edges.

Aroma: Before approaching the glass there is a banana aroma. It fades upon closer inspection and is replaced by a more dominant scent of dates and plum jelly. There is a nice fig aroma to the beer.

Taste: Brown sugar and caramel make an appearance at first. These two either artificially or realistically seem to spice the blood sugar levels quite a bit. Either way it seems to immediately boost the feeling of sugar in the bloodstream. There is a nice toasted toffee flavor with a bit of raisin. A touch of tobacco flavor and a bit of sour tartness lingers at the end.

Mouthfeel: It feels thick and full bodied, sweet, low carbonation, and smooth. It feels under-attenuated.

Overall: This beer is very decadent and I highly recommend sharing it. It's has an abundance of sweet aromas and flavors. It does feel too sweet at times but the flavors are still good. You will likely need something to cut the sweetness of the beer. I would still recommend drinking this beer but it's the kind you might only ever drink 1 or 2 of.
Mar 03, 2019
 
Rated: 3.9 by Eric_T_07 from Illinois

Feb 24, 2019
Photo of sjrider
Reviewed by sjrider from California

3.94/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Pours a a deep brownish mahogany with quickly receding off white head leaving scant bubbly lacing. Sweet stone fruit hits the senses as soon as I opened it. Taste follows with candy sugar,earthy wood ,yeast and some mild hoppiness. Finish is smooth and almost creamy with a hint of alcohol.
Jan 16, 2019
Photo of Dope
Reviewed by Dope from Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Opening up this 2017 vintage now, almost exactly a year old I believe.

A: Pours a very very dark brown with reddish tinges. Tall and frothy tan head that sticks around excellently. Huge swatches of thick lacing. Top-notch appearance.

S: Sweet caramel and some toffee. Sugary (belgian candi?). Light earthy spices.

T: Very nice. Again, sugar and caramel with additional toffee here, up front anyway. Some mild hoppiness lending some fruitiness that I can't quite place. Lightly oaky, especially on the back end, along with a nice rush of booziness to balance out the sweetness. Some more of those hops on the back end again adding a little bit of bitterness and flavor.

M: Fairly heavy and creamy. Quite smooth really, with a nice bite of alcohol to balance it out.

O: Interesting BSDA. It's dark and sweet but boozy and hoppy and creamy at the same time. Not very traditional but a nice take on a classic style.
Dec 12, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by Grinky from Illinois

Dec 02, 2018
Photo of vette2006c5r
Reviewed by vette2006c5r from Minnesota

4.27/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Abtsolution pours a dark brownish color, with a small, lacing head. Big sweet aroma, with lots of dry fruits. Flavor is sweet, lots and lots of dry fruit,nice mellow candied flavors. Good body and feel. Overall, a very good beer, great complex flavors, nice to sip.
Nov 16, 2018
Abtsolution from De Proefbrouwerij (bvba Andelot)
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 98 ratings