Scaldis Caractère
Brasserie Dubuisson Frères sprl

 

 

Perky head settles quick, no lacing. Yeasty and bitter with a slight sweetness. Musty afterfeel. Fantastic beer.

I continued to enjoy my mussels with this beer.

Poured from a bottle into a shaker pint. Murky, orangish yellow color with with good head and lacing. Sweet fruit smell and taste. Sweet fruit smell and taste. Nice yeast notes along with pears, apples and apricot, maybe a bit of white grapes. Not boozy but definitely has a kick. Good feel. Overall an enjoyable beer.

 

 

330 ml. bottle no date
Darkish amber color with two fingers variegated cream head. Full lacing curtains and thick surface ring.
Winey grape, grass, malt, pear, ginger, light alcohol spirit burn.
Sweetish apple, pear, pepper, light banana and malt notes.
12% ABV well hidden, good carbonation, spicy aftertaste and dry finish.
Very enjoyable flavor combination but don’t rush, the alcohol kicks in about half way through.

 

330mL bottle stamped A 1 05 0 poured into a snifter at just above fridge temp 12% ABV. This bottle is labeled as "Scaldis Caractére", but I believe it's the Amber. The beer pours slightly hazy in a medium amber color. The head is light beige and a thin cap. Slight lacing. The aroma is moderate in strength featuring sweet malt, clove, mild banana and some additional yeasty notes that I can't place. The taste is semisweet malt with hints of orchard fruit. There is a slight alcohol burn in the flavor, but it's well integrated along with moderate bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium plus bodied with higher carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Overall, very good to excellent. Not a traditional BSPA, but suits my tastes and preferences more than most in the style.

#1685 - Blind-tasted except for the beer's name, ABV% and brewery/country, zero reviews below read (yet!)...
This bottle is labelled (at front) 'Premium Belgian Beer - Bush - Ambree/Amber - Caractere 12%'
L- Amber indeed, under a halogen desk-light it's almost a glowing dayglo orange! Pours clear (filtered) with a 15mm just off-white pillowy head. ps 10mins later. Holds really well and forms lacing on the way down.
S- Ooh! Lovely Belgian ester notes (think 'Pear Drops' sweets).
T- The taste follows, + slightly spicy on the palate, then almost slightly peppery? Big ester-notes, quite literally mega banana notes, it's wonderful. The ABV% also can't help but peak out to be spotted. Rich but as it warms a touch perhaps nudging a sweet note here and there. [serve well chilled and don't linger is my 2c]
F- In a beer of this heft there are times I think the Taste and Feel almost have to combined as in a beer as solid as this they are so deeply inter-twined. It's big, it's solid, it's a slow-sipper, it's a perfect winter-warmer. It has quite notable richness but the clear esters, meaty presence and solid ABV% balance that.
O- Wow, Bush Scaldis Amber, for such an understated bottle this is a high-class thumper of a beer. 'Thumper' seems impolite for it, but the 12% isn't exactly shy either. I like this, perhaps just a touch over-rich for me, but it is a demonstration-quality beer for anyone who needs a great example of Belgian esters featuring BIG and evident.
Love it, would happily grab one of these any day, and year-round too (just not at the px I paid!).
Review/scoring all done, now the reveal, I get to read the bottle lables to see what I missed! ==> Ingredients include sugar. That's not for any Bottle-Cond either so rather disappointing.
330ml bottle £4.55 BB: 25/01/2023 Bought from BeerMerchants, Kent/UK as part of a large pick-your own consignment to London.
ps. With ref to the previous reviewer suggesting this is the strongest Belgian beer, nah, it's not. I've reviewed BE beers here to 13% and I'm sure there are many others I've not encountered yet. But yes it certainly is a statement of a brew! :)

(330 ml bottle, 04/07/2020; purchased single off shelf... chilled only long enough to reach desirable drinking temp; no cold settling... decanted into teku glass, similar enough to the one shown on the beer's profile page on the Dubuisson site)

L: polished-clear, fiery orange-amber liquid; tall, tight, amber-dusted off-white head, building tall on pour, but receding from the onset... its color is lovely, jewel-like; one mottled bar of lace at the non-sip end

S: caramel syrup, vanilla extract; sweet ethanol, vague floral and milk chocolate flourishes... smells of a syrupy, quad-y malt liquor; scented candle... excellent intensity, but lacking nuance

T: caramel champagne; moderate+ dry aftertaste with hints of floral ethanol and spicy yeast (esters, bordering on fusel)... second sip and beyond: hard-candy caramel and an stealth, exponential, crescendo of ribbon-spread thread of spicy alcohol... its intensity catches attention, but its lack of depth begs a dump or slug

F: soft, lithe, subtly-bouncy spread to its body; cut, cleaved, clefted, lifted by the point of spirit originating on the front of the mouth, spraying back to the aft of the palate, but its angle directing it more or less halfway, while the back of the palate remains relatively un-engaged... dangerously moreish, despite its flaccid carbonation

O: ok, so this may have been at least a year or two old; the joint I bought it from has had it in stock as long as I can remember and has replenished their shelf stock at least twice, so somebody else IS buying this... pretty sure I had this once or twice along my winding path... basically a one-dimensional vehicle for booze and 'Belgian' flavors; could maybe (and probably should) accompany a sweet, creamy dessert... even a single 330 ml would be best shared; not a savor-able sipper (1699)

 

 

 

 

Look: Bright copper. 1 finger white foamy head that fades quickly leaving a ring around the circumference of the glass.
Smell: Bright, apples, caramel and hay.
Taste: The high ABV (12%) is apparent. Sugary and caramelized malt. I'm not picking up any of the expected nuttiness.
Feel: Smooth and creamy. This beer fills the entire mouth from top to bottom. Only the very back of the tongue is left out.
Everything about this beer brings to mind brightness. The taste is the weakest element of this beer. (Overall I'd give it a solid B+.

 

 

A: Poured from the 750 ml into a Chimay chalice. Body is clear copper with big bubbles of carbonation and some sediment apparent.

S: Nose of ripe apples, caramel/toffee and brown sugar.

T: Follows the nose, with caramel malt, butterscotch and ripe apples. Finishes with some modest boozy heat (not surprising given the 12% ABV).

M: A little on the slick/oily side. Drinks/feels pretty light for a beer that packs a 12% ABV punch.

O: Good stuff. This one has been in my fridge for God-knows-how-long. May have affected overall impression.

A-Pours a nice amber color with a nice head and lacing
A-Aroma has nutty and caramel malt hints
T-Taste follows the nose with a nutty and caramel malt flavor
M-A medium bodied decently carbonated beer
O-A good Belgian Strong Ale

 

 

 

Cerveza ligera, de carbonatación media y de aroma dulce. Es una cerveza con un final agridulce. Tiene un 12% de alcohol por lo que es una cerveza "pesada" que puede alegrar a varios.

Holy moly was this a hot beer. Pours well, amber an cloudy, plenty of chunky material in the liquid. Darker amber with a 1/2" off white head. Aroma was mostly alcohol. A little bit of caramel, but mostly hot ass almost fusel like alcohol.

The taste reveals a bunch more alcohol. The caramel is a burnt bitter kind of sting. Roasted nuts are too obliterated by the high alcohol to be anything more than a reference in the commercial tugjob, but not really discernable in real life. The belgian yeast is discernable and not helpful. This beer is a lot of things I don't like. The bitterness isn't really about any hop quality.

So if you like your beer to come off like a shot of liquor, this could be your thing. I really did not like anything about this beer.

This beer has a boozy kick, but in a way that feels intentional and is manicured to accent over flavors of caramel malts, belgian yeasts and spices, and array of delicate fruits such as grape, peach, pear and raisin. Smell gives off more booze than taste, but does well to have big yeast and spice notes too.

 

Amber color with a thick thin head with decent retention.
Aroma with notes of banana, orange marmalade, peaches in caramel, mild pine and crystalized fruits.
Flavor with notes of herbal hops, booze, apple puree, orange marmalade, banana flambé, apricots and some spices shadowed by its sweetness. Dry aftertaste with a mild bitterness.
Medium body with slightly effervescent carbonation. Alcohol of 12% is felt, but it is well hidden considering its strength.
Belgian Strong Ale with lots of ripped fruits. But I found this overly sweet, especially considering it was not refermented in the bottle as its daughter the Bush Ambrée Triple. As the other version, I also felt this as a beer reduction.

 

 

 

Golden amber colour, medium head with short retention. Good crying lace.
Aroma of honey, pears, bananas, esters from fruits.
Medium to full body, texture is reamy and fruity, with green apples finish. Carbonation is OK.
Taste of green aplles, bananas, pears, honeyGreat but dangerous beer, very pleasant and hidden alcohol.

 

 

Nauseous taste, drank half a bottle, the rest poured into the sink-I'm not a masochist.

 

 

 

Mixed feelings about this one. Considering it's 12% there are times this would be a beer is be happy to find in the fridge. Standing on its own the taste reflects the malty yeastiness one expects from a strong Belgian beer. The first time I had it I found it tasty enough if not outstanding. But this time around I drank this just after finishing a La Trappe quadruppel. In comparison, now this beer seems like a Belgian version of a convenient store bomber. none of the depth or complexity of a truly great Belgian beer. In conclusion, 12% is it's own animal, I wouldn't ever be unhappy with this beer if that's what I was looking for, but if there were superior Belgians on the shelf or tap I would pass on this.