Noir De Dottignies
Brouwerij Brasserie De Ranke

 

 

Chestnut brown; translucent on the edges, with an opaque center. Head fades fast, with little aesthetic residual. The aroma is mild, comprised of sweet fruitiness and alcohol. Excellent flavor with a classic combination of yeast snd malt. Mouthfeel is also exceptional, providing a sensory experience comparable to an imperial stout.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

De Belgiuminabox. En copa Grimbergen. Viendo Facebook (se ha ido la luz). Si bien se le echa en falta mayor presencia de frutas oscuras, tiene una suavidad y sedosidad encomiables que animan a querer repetirla

 

L- Extremely dark chestnut brown, some light does get through it though so it's not strictly speaking black/'noir'. Pours with nice 2-3cm beige super-fine bubble creamy looking head.
S- Cocoa and British Xmas cake, ie rich+deep fruits.
T- Wow! Quite deep and pungent, cocoa, Xmas cake, and with a minor sour but apparent higher ABV% brush across the palate into the finish.* I'm about 1/3 way through this and it's now giving out notes of if not a liquor shot or two added to thsi beer, then the ABV% pungency of a fortified wine. It's like the impact of the ABV% keeps on growing.
F- It's quite intriguing, it's pungency seems to grow as I sip my way through it. Carbonation in the mouth almost passes me by since the flavour rather dominates, it doesn't seem lacking though. The head is still holding at 1Cm+ 15mins after pouring. This for me is a slow-sipping beer, it's too deep and full-on to rush. I could drink it in place of wine, or as an afetr-dinner drink. Would work better in colder months when my palate craves depth/character vs simple refreshment.
O- Really veeery good indeed. Zero 'wrong' that I note here. It is pretty amazing the brewery managed to construct this vast tasting/feeling beer upon a foundation of 8.5%ABV. I would VERY happily drink this wee beasty of a beer again. It is seriously classy!
330ml bottle. 'Brewed: Dec-19 Exp: 20/12/2024', wow 5 years for an 8.5% beer... and yes my bottle is 8.5% vs 9% in the Description^.
Bought from BelgiumInABox Antwerp/BE for home delivery to me in London/UK.
* In contrast my wife got chocolate and a hoppy flourish into the finish.

Look: Very deep brown. One finger of off-white head with very short retention.

Smell: Yeast, doughy malt, molasses, cherry.

Taste: Chocolate, dough, dried fruit, mild roast malt. Little to no hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Full and highly carbonated.

Overall: A very nice, hearty, sweet dessert beer.

Pours a murky brown color with a bigger, stable and fluffy head.

Smells of raisins, dried hops and glazed caramel among toasty walnuts and lighter cinnamon.

Drinks incredibly silk, smooth with a well working effervescence, which seemingly is coming out of nowhere during the beer‘s finish.

This tastes of bakers chocolate, which immediately gets enhanced by a sweet note of caramel, a good amount of roasted malts and toasty nuts, as well as slightly bitter grassy hops. Offers a big layer of melted milk chocolate, entangled into slighly fruitier turning hops, which find their balance in the profound roastiness in this. Despite its rustic character the beer appears utmost creamy, exhibiting a huge amount of whipped cream, highlighting the complex chocolate as well as the hops in this, creating a long lasting, versatile aftertaste.

A real treat, which is incredibly intense on the tongue, balanced by a world class mouthfeel. Every flavor in this is on point and able to connect to each other, creating an astonishing depth.

 

 

 

This brew has been aged for a good 7 years or so as of this review.....

A- This has an incredible looking foam head that is fizzy around the rim, yet the inside of the top is very dense and puffy.....it looks like we have plentiful yet fine carbonation happening within this light tan colored head! The beer itself is a dark hazy red/coffee/milk chocolate coloration, and there is plenty of suspended yeast floating throughout. Lacing is modest at best, with most to all of the foam swiftly sliding back into the abyss after a good swirl.

S- Red licorice sweetness, toasty grains, oaked nuances, milk chocolate, rummy Christmas fruitcake, almond nuttiness, creamy yeast and some mild funky spices about say what I am smelling overall. Starts out very sweet and malty, stays that way throughout and finishes with very mild hop presence....

T- The flavors spill over onto the palate, much the same way they smelled. Rummy Christmas cake is probably the biggest characteristic, followed by lots of creamy yeast, raisin like flavors (similar to what a fortified wine is like), some milk chocolate and root Earthiness cross over my tongue as well. Dark chocolate notes along with almond cream, bread, mild Belgian funk and a finish that is just clean enough yet alcoholic and somewhat bitter. Quite robust overall!

M/O- Full bodied.....I think the long aging assisted in this process, and the carbonation is velvety smooth. I think that this beer is quite drinkable and to anyone that reads this and has some patience, let this sit in a cool dark place and forget about it for as long as possible. Alcohol is noticeable but superbly smooth for the potency that this one is.....would pair well with strong nutty cheeses or with a chocolate dessert. Recommended!

 

 

330ml bottle, into the branded stemmed goblet.

pours very dark brown, almost black. thick cream colored head. aroma and taste have typical dark malt flavors, but also some roasty, almost stout-like characteristics. medium bodied, smooth. overall a nice mild twist on the style.

 

 

 

Black colour, red notes to the light, medium head with good retention, good lace. Aroma of chocolate, licorice, dried fruits, spices. it eeminds me of a Christmas. Medium body, creamy palate, good carbonation. Boozy finish. Taste reminds me of a Christmas too: chocolate spices, licorice, dried fruits. Really good.

 

Vintage 2010.

The colour is very dark brown, the liquid is clear. The low off-white head disappears quickly.

The smell is intensive sweet with roasted notes. Some Coca Cola, caramel, raisins, chocolate candy, spices, chloride and warming alcohol.

The taste is surprisingly bitter. Passing light sweetness. Growing butterscotch, raisins and alcohol. Low to medium body. The aftertaste got hot unclean alcohol, sharp sweetness, roasted nuts and chocolate toffee. The finish is harsh with notes of cocoa and chemical alcohol.

The carbonation is medium to strong, the small sharp bubbles are long-lived. The liquid is light.

This bottle got BBE 2015 stamped on it. I’ll guess they were right about that.

 

2010, probably a little past its prime right now, i will have to revisit this freshed some time, but its still doing pretty well for its age. looks almost more of a brown ale than a black beer, i can see some light coming in around the edges and it looks thinner than anticipated, although the head is rising high and belgian looking. a little mucky, but alive at least. the aroma is a little astringent, a farmhouse sort of yeast that seems a little tired, and slight tannic properties creeping in. i get some cocoa and dried fruit from the malt, but not the darker roast i was expecting from this, it stops well short of that. its also wildly hoppy for a belgian beer, almost a belgian black ipa of sorts, as bitterness is extremely high as this finishes, and for a moment its in front of both the yeast and the malts. chestnuts, raisins, oxidation, licorice, and this estery belgian yeast thats got some saison characteristics too. a little astringent to taste too, not quite sharp, but an old beer weirdness for sure. toffee and blackberry notes in here too. this is tasty stuff still, intriguing and different, oddly hoppy, over the hill just a bit, but a rustic and enjoyable brew. i will look to find a bottle of this that is considerably newer to compare...