Scaldis Noël

Scaldis is a brand known as Bush over in it's home continent. Like Czechvar, Bush was forced to rename themselves in order to export to North America. This beer is brewed at Brasserie Dubuisson, a brewery which has been run independantly by the Brasserie family in Belgium for 8 generations. So far most holiday beers I've seen have been available in the usual 12 oz bottles, or in the larger magnum-sized 750ml bottles. The Scaldis Noël however, comes in a smaller 25 cl bottles, or about 8.5 oz. This is probably partially because of it's higher than average ABV, weighing in at 12% and tying it with the Insanely Bad Elf for the strongest Christmas beer I've had yet.

The beer poured a medium colored brown that is slightly hazy. A vigorous pour yeilded a half-finger of off-white head that dissipated quickly leaving only a ring of bubbles around the edge. I was wondering if I should have used a different glass for this beer as it appeared to have relatively low carbonation, so a glass with less surface area on the bottom than a Chimay chalice may have been more effective. Still, it's the glass recommended by Beer Advocate, and the Bush glass is roughly the same shape. Once I tasted it, I realized it had a higher carbonation than it appeared to have.

The aroma was that of a darker fruit, perhaps a plumb or a fig. It definitely has some sort of rounder and smoother scent to it than the more usual smells of cherry or citrus that are often associated with beers. There's also a slightly earthy quality to it. I definitely noticed a bit of alcohol in the smell as well, but it's not as obvious as it was with the Insanely Bad Elf. There's a hint of grain in there as well, a bit of wheat or barley smell.

The taste was hard to describe at first. There was a little bitterness in the center of the tongue, and some warmth going down. The initial aftertaste had a light spicy kick to it just a second after it was swallowed. On the second sip I noticed more of a sweetness around the edge of my tongue, and it's got a fruity quality to it. I also tasted a little breadyness to it as well. The beer actually reminds me a bit of the homemade bread my mom used to make, only colder. There's a touch of alcohol in the taste as well, but not nearly as much as would be expected for the strength of it. This beer hides it well, and has a nice balance to it.

The beer has a medium body, and is a little on the thick side at first, but as I noted before it actually had a decent amount of carbonation. There was enough for a pleasant tingle on the tongue and the roof of my mouth. The beer left a thin coating on my mouth that lasted a while. The warmth from the alcohol stayed down in my throat, right about where it meets the chest. It wasn't a very good feeling.

The drinkability of the beer was good overall. It was very different in taste from the other beers I've had, and it hides it's strength well. The only place it really lost any points was with it's mouthfeel, specifically the way the alcohol burned. It actually felt pretty similar to heartburn. If I was judging by taste alone, this would have been one of my top beers of Christmas, maybe even the best so far. As it is, the mouthfeel made it just good. I don't know if what I experienced was a common occurance, so I'll try it again next year. I gave Dan a bottle as well, so I'm hoping it was just me. We'll see when he cracks it.

- Adam