Caracole Ambrée
Brasserie Caracole

Caracole AmbréeCaracole Ambrée
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From:
Brasserie Caracole
 
Belgium
Style:
Belgian Pale Strong Ale
Ranked #72
ABV:
8%
Score:
88
Ranked #14,565
Avg:
3.92 | pDev: 11.73%
Reviews:
150
Ratings:
230
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 07, 2024
Added:
Oct 06, 2002
Wants:
  8
Gots:
  16
No description / notes.
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Ratings by Morris729:
Photo of Morris729
Reviewed by Morris729 from Texas

4.42/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
This bottle of Caracole Amber has some interesting artwork as it shows a boy in a snail costume holding a giant blade of grass in one hand while standing, mesmerized, over a burning candle on the ground. Pours a hazy orange color with a bubbly white head that fades into a sticky lace. Nose is sweet malts with some underlying aromas of fruit and spice. Moderate in body with a slightly buttery texture. Taste begins sweet with notes of apricot and honey followed by some spicy flavors of vanilla and cinnamon. The sweetness is balanced by acidic hop resins towards the end of the taste. The 8% ABV is fairly well hidden. A pretty nice beer and definitely worth a try if you can find it.
Oct 26, 2003
More User Ratings:
Photo of Brutaltruth
Reviewed by Brutaltruth from Ohio

3.93/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
From the shorty bottle in a snifter. This classic ale that is so darn hard to find
pours a dark amber with light floaters and a moderate head of white foam that
settles to a thick ring, thin dusty layer, and displays some light lacing. Nose of
orange zest, subtle Belgian spice of coriander and clove, and light yeasty
bread dashed with honey. Flavors hit the mark with light yeasty bread,
honey, light candy sugars, light clove and coriander, subtle cracker, and
peach jam notes. Mouth feel is medium light, light carbonation, smooth,
and finishing moderately sweet and lightly dry.

Overall, picked up this dusty 4 pack at Jungle Jim's Eastgate for the
Little Lady's Birthday.....it did not disappoint, but really wish it was
fresher. Miss Saxo and Nostradamus as well. Excellent brewery.

Cheers
Mar 07, 2024
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

2.47/5  rDev -37%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.25
October 2014: Shared 330 ml bottle at local tasting, ABV is 7.5%. Cloudy orange colour (i had the yeast poured in), white head. Aroma of over-ripe berries, also some cheesy notes. Bland and unfresh flavour, hints of over-ripe berries. Not good.
Dec 13, 2023
 
Rated: 3.91 by Antyk from Belgium

May 07, 2020
Photo of JonnoWillsteed
Reviewed by JonnoWillsteed from England

3.37/5  rDev -14%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
L-Deep amber, clear, pours with 1Cm off-white head. ps. Holds well, right through.
S- Mild, but I get a touch of sourness which doesn't bode too well for me.
T- It does have a hint of sourness but within the broad context of it's taste it's fine. That comes first with a twist of hoppy tang, followed by a well roasted toasty and relatively light body. That said as it warms a touch I'm registering the body on this better. I wish I could better describe the sour note, sour apple? Not sure, but it tastes 'organic'/natural than anything artificial.
F- Something striking with this one and x-ref ^'relatively light body' is how low the Feel of the 7.9% shows itself. I might be expecting a bit of alcohol-zing on the palate coming in by then, but to me I get no zing and blind-tasted would hv guessed this at about 6.5-6.7%.
O- Interesting to try and I'm mostly enjoying it, though I'm not sure I'm getting the sour-thing going on here. Hence not one I'd repeat buy. From BeersOfEurope (UK) 330ml bottle BB: 08/03/2021. ps Lable has been seriously modernised/simplified vs the one shown above.
'Brewed in copper kettles - heated over a wood fire'.
Mar 29, 2020
 
Rated: 3.75 by shigg85 from Japan

Mar 19, 2020
 
Rated: 3.75 by gwydno from Spain

Aug 19, 2019
Photo of REVZEB
Reviewed by REVZEB from Illinois

3.96/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
The smell is very inviting with warm toffee, juicy orange, and bright spices. Taste is more jammy with a rush of sweet fruit with the caramel malts, and a yeast complexion that gives the beer a yogurt aftertaste. Nice feel through out, but especially the foretaste.
Sep 21, 2018
 
Rated: 3.99 by mltobin from Connecticut

Dec 16, 2017
 
Rated: 4.11 by Giangio from Italy

Jan 03, 2017
 
Rated: 4.17 by Dzu from Russian Federation

May 18, 2016
Photo of Beginner2
Reviewed by Beginner2 from Illinois

4.14/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Reviewed in "Michael Jackson's Great Beers of Belgium", and called it "lean, elegant and long, with lingering Styrian hop and orange-zest flavors."

This brasserie (me talking) does yeast well. (I've Had their four brews that have American distribution. Very atypical of me, I've bought 4 packs of all ... my highest recommendation.) Their Ambree gives me a mouth-watering complexity to unwrap.

Looks start with lots of foam rising quickly out of the bottle, but settles down.
Smells are mostly malty, dried winter fruits and a nice yeast working on them both.
Taste's complexity would suffer a disservice if I were to describe it. Because complexity is so subject to personal interpretation, it is best to enjoy this ale instead of writing at length about it ... But the short of it... Taste Balance is achieved with subtle hops; entering just before this fruity ale gets syrupy. Feel is moderate and soft, which it should be for the malty, yeasty richness that is enjoyed here.
OA: yeasty richness will bring me back to this ... if I find it again.

7/17/17 Getting harder to find, I found a bottle bottled 30 months ago... and it has started to deteriorate. But the richness is still there; the age seems to make flavors seem less distinct. No change in rating. I'll just need to find it fresher.

4/18/18 Hurray ! Found another 4 pack. Slightly edited the review above. Enjoyed before, with and after dinner.
1/9/19 Found and finished another 4-pack. These four seemed less fresh. (They even may have been from the same April shipment... hard to tell as the BB dates are not evident to me.) At any rate, it seems that either shelf-life or consistency could be an issue even for the great Belgian houses. Regardless of freshness, I still think this house has a great yeast.

6/11/22 Found yet another 4-pack @ 40% off. (I should have been suspicious!) I finally determined the bottling date was 2015. This tastes like a 7 year old ale whose prime is before two years. But amazingly, the foam was still slowly billowing out the top once popped and Ambree' was still alive. But for those copies I don't give away (with warnings of old age), I'm keeping count over @ UnTappd. But, I certainly hope that I find fresh Ambree' again.
May 07, 2016
 
Rated: 3.59 by pajfuwen from England

Mar 20, 2016
 
Rated: 4.46 by lenny87 from Italy

Mar 18, 2016
Photo of detgfrsh
Reviewed by detgfrsh from Texas

4.43/5  rDev +13%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Picked this up on clearance at my local bottle shop. Marked best before 09/2011, but this is a style that cellars well so I'm not too concerned. Copper color, cloudy, with large foamy head. Smell is sour with some light and fruity notes. Smooth feel, maybe a little light. Complex taste with notes of spices, malt, and plums. Some alcohol warmth to finish. This is great, a little hard to describe because there's a lot going on.
Mar 15, 2016
 
Rated: 3.68 by lhwjanssen from Netherlands

Mar 06, 2016
 
Rated: 3.83 by 6thstreetbrewpub from District of Columbia

Oct 22, 2015
Photo of papat444
Rated by papat444 from Canada (QC)

3.75/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Flashback #235
Aug 19, 2015
 
Rated: 3.6 by shelby415 from Oregon

Aug 15, 2015
Photo of stevoj
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho

3.22/5  rDev -17.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Bottle from Tres Bonne Cuisine. Lively bottle, had to get it in the glass right away, initial high airy, foamy head. Murky brown pour with lots of particulates. Sugary sweet, yeasty aroma. Lots of sweetness in the taste, plums and molasses. Slick body, but kind of thin. Lingering sweetness.
Jul 26, 2015
Caracole Ambrée from Brasserie Caracole
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 230 ratings