Clarice Grand Cru
DESTIHL Brewery

 

 

500 ml bottle into tulip glass, 2014 vintage bottling. Pours slightly hazy deep ruby red color with a 2 finger fairly dense and fluffy light khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a good amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of huge raisin, plum, tart cherry, fig, peach, apricot, lemon, orange, apple, red grape, pepper, toasted oak, brown sugar, caramel, brown bread, light vanilla, floral, and yeast/oak earthiness. Fantastic aromas with awesome complexity and balance of fruity/spicy yeast, cognac foudre, and moderate dark/bready malt notes; with great strength. Taste of huge raisin, plum, tart cherry, fig, peach, apricot, lemon, orange, apple, red grape, pepper, toasted oak, brown sugar, caramel, brown bread, light vanilla, floral, and yeast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate yeast/oak spiciness and light fruity tartness on the finish; with lingering notes of raisin, plum, cherry, fig, peach, apricot, lemon, orange, apple, red grape, pepper, toasted oak, brown sugar, caramel, brown bread, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/spicy yeast, cognac foudre, and moderate dark/bready malt flavors; with a great malt/tart/spiciness balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light dryness from tart/spiciness, lightly increasing through the glass. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/grainy/bready, and lightly sticky/acidic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warmth lingering after the finish. Overall this is an incredible Belgian strong dark ale! All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/spicy yeast, cognac foudre, and moderate dark/bready malt flavors; very smooth and easy to sip on for the big ABV. The fruity cognac complimented the yeast character perfectly; and was very well balanced with the malt and oak notes. A highly enjoyable offering.

 

 

 

sort of a different take on grand cru. i know that isnt a style, but they usually end up being big thick dark things. this is decidedly not that, more of an imperial amber type as a base beer, with a lot of rich red colors even in low light, and a nice tall off white head with solid retention. smells sweet, definitely caramelized grain sugars and some specialty red malts happening. the cognac is there for sure, but i dont really get any oak, which is kind of odd. its a nice fruity boozy hit to an already fruity and already boozy beer, at least in the nose. in the flavor, its more well integrated, less hotly alcoholic, and more layered in the grain. dark and dried fruits for sure, like those little raisins they make out of black currants. honey sweetness in the middle and in the end, tastes good, but its a little too much for me. i wish i tasted as much of the cognac as i smell too, its a lot more mellow in the flavor. still delicious beer, but i think an opportunity to make this insanely amazing was missed. there could be a little more body too, it got a little light for what its trying to be, but the flavors here are excellent, and its one of the better beers i have had from thee guys. pricey but tasty.

 

 

Beautiful deep amber color with the slightest bit of tan foam. Smells of sour cherries. Mellow booze on the tongue, but this is very delicate for 10%. Baked apples, tart cherry, and earthiness of tree bark/wood. Really nice, and a style I hope to see again.

A - nice deep red/amber colour. Good carbonation. Big 3 finger off white head. Head retains at a full finger with a good amount of lacing. Good looking stuff.

S - Tartness, some grapes. Some heat. Cherry, plum, acidity.

T - Woah. Much more complex. Wine notes, more grape, cherry, some spirits. I don't drink cognac so there's that disclaimer. White port notes. Some tartness. Significant amount going on.

M - Good carbonation for the style, medium weight. Heavier end of medium to full body. Dry finish, very clean and smooth.

O/D - This is pretty cool. Different element from the cognac element. A really interesting beer with everything going on. This has tartness, sweetness, and the richness of the base beer. Good stuff.

 

On draft in a snifter

This is the first grand cru I've had so take this review with a grain of salt. I Googled "grand cru" and the term is most often associated with wine. Probably not a surprise then that it seemed to sort of taste like, well, wine. Certainly a more sour taste than you'd get in other dark, strong Belgians (like a quad) but was still pleasant. Had a very clean mouthfeel with just a small amount of carbonation. You can taste the alcohol but it's not overwhelming, even at 10% ABV.

It's certainly worth trying if you'd like to expand your beer pallet a bit and get outside of the "normal" box.

 

 

Pours a very nice dark Amber color with a thin layer of foam.

Aroma is of cherry or dark fruit.

Flavor is well balanced between fruity sweetness with a lightly tart finish. It is like a cobbler.

Smooth finish, very low bitterness.

Well made beer.

 

 

Dark cranberry with a firm thick nice khaki head

Nose is plum, red stone fruit, cooked fruit and pleasant

Mouth feel is actually elegant with light carbonation

Flavors are bold with red wine tones, hints of meat, lots of cognac. Quite nice with a bold, long lasting cognac, wood and red fruit tones