Ape Regina in botte
MC-77 Birrificio Artigianale

JANUARY 2026.
An even more complex version of their "Winter Queen Bee" (a Belgian Dark Strong Ale with honey and 9.5% Vernaccia di Serrapetrona grape sapa), which, in turn, strengthens their historic "Queen Bee" (a Belgian Blond Ale with 6.9% acacia honey).
This "Queen Bee in the Barrel" uses acacia honey, grape sapa (a honeyed syrup made from unfermented grape must, typical of the Marche region), and the beer is aged in select barrels of ex-Marsala wine, rye whiskey, and bourbon ex-Pedro Ximenez sherry, ready to be enjoyed the year following the harvest.
On tap, 0.25 cl glass (€7 at Luppolo 12 pub).
This one is already very intense and enveloping on the nose, with aromas of molasses, honey, caramel, baked apple, and cherries in alcohol... It's already extreme on the nose.
The nonexistent head, a color somewhere between dark burgundy and purple, reminds me of mulled wine.
On the palate, the substance is incredibly dense, with a sticky and very sweet finish, warmed by this alcoholic note of fruit in alcohol, with a flavor reminiscent of honey and cooked sugar.
I don't detect any bourbon barrel notes, but the Sherry flavor prevails.
This heaviness makes it seem even more alcoholic than it looks.
An extreme beer (for me, too extreme), characterized by density and a sweet complexity that perhaps risks being an unidentifiable blend of honeyed notes, marzipan, molasses, etc.
I can't find the balance that would have made this beer worthy of being enjoyed in all its complexity, which is difficult to appreciate, especially if you've previously been on a pub crawl that then leads you to this one.