Browse Tag

unibroue

Take three

Unibroue 2006 “Trois Pistoles” (Québec) – Overly-succulent, sweet, almost candied (in a licorice sort of fashion), and yet good. Worth aging? No. The froth is no longer integrated, and everything seems like it’s on the verge of collapse. (10/11)

Do you Monde?

Unibroue 2006 “La Fin du Monde” (Québec) – Dying. Flattening. There was no point in aging this beer this long, despite the suggestion that it would reward same. (5/11)

Uniform

Unibroue 2004 “La Fin du Monde” Ale (Québec) – Vintage (stamped on the back of the bottle) included because, obviously, this is not the current release. Cellared it myself, in fact. (Why? Curiosity.) A bottle tasted in 1999 showed little development but fair degradation, and that has continued. Acids have come to the fore, there’s a soapy detergent quality, and the dominant fruit quality is of slightly spoiled lemon. There’s still texture, spice (though less than there was), sweetness, and a long finish that’s the beer’s primary appeal at the moment. But if any of Unibroue’s brews are capable of aging – opinions differ – I’m more and more sure that this is not one of them. And just a warning: these things throw a dozen snow globes’ worth of swirly sediment, so they need a good long standup before pouring. (2/11)

Unibroue 2004 “Trois Pistoles” Ale (Québec) – Not the current release, and aged my me, myself, and I. Unlike the same year’s “La Fin du Monde”, this has seen some changes rather than just erosion, though I don’t know if the net effect is worth the time and energy expended. It’s darker and moodier than at release, though the flavor profile is more or less along the same molasses-meets-spice-barrel continuum. On the other hand, it’s both broader at the bottom and more angular up top, creating a palate impression more triangular than the roundness of its youth. Since I think that angularity is the first sign of degradation to come, I’m going to finish the rest (a might stash of two more bottles) over the next short while. (2/11)

Pistol, pistol, pistol

Unibroue 2004 “Trois Pistoles” (Québec) – Tastes denser than it did in its youth, with more of a chocolate liqueur, spice-laden character than it originally possessed. Still quite heavy. Did it benefit from age? Well, it changed a bit. But is it better? I don’t know. (1/09)

Unibroue 2004 “La Fin du Monde” (Québec) – Unlike the Trois Pistoles, this beer did not benefit from a few years’ aging. Lemony and completely swimming with lees, this has tarted up but has also lost the layered richness that defines it. (1/09)

25

Unibroue “Quartre-Centième” (Québec) – Are these beers getting more boring by the year, or am I suffering from malty overstimulation? Should I blame corporate brewing? Is this an actual tasting note? No, probably not. (10/08)

Seigneur moment

[label]Unibroue “Seigneuriale” (Québec) – Takes the heady, spicy, sweet-heavy Belgian style to 11, which isn’t a good thing in this case, as the necessary uptick in complexity and balance is not achieved. It’s just too much. (8/08)

One eyebrow

[tanks]Unibroue “16” Ale (Québec) – All the elements are in place for this Belgian-inspired ale, but it’s just…I don’t know, it’s like a copy of a copy. I can’t put my finger on what’s missing, but something definitely is. (1/08)