Unibroue Maudite
By Dad on April 27, 2007 @ 5 PM (3 Comments)
I see John proposed some fine legislation. We could call it the “Hefe In Every House Law”. I realize that not everyone drinks, (these are people who when they get up in the morning feel as good as they will feel all day) so if I can get their addresses I will try to keep their stock from getting old as hefe does not age well like a Belgian Ale does. It is apparent that John was raised with proper values.
This one is listed on the bottle as “Maudite (The Damned)”. Beer temp. 48.9F, 9.4C (found another use for my probe thermometer) 8% ABV. Pours medium to dark amber. Caramel aroma with not much head and a quick fade with no lacing. Have had this one for quite a while, at least a year. Others by Unibroue have had the best head of all the beers I’ve tried. Taste is caramel and fairly sweet but there is more depth in there that I’m trying to place. Alcohol comes through and mildly bitter hops give it a great balance. Carbonation is good and flavors cling to the mouth without being overpowering, a good mouth feel. I’m thinking the other flavors are lemon and a peppery spice. This is getting better as it warms. I was afraid the sweetness I tasted the first time I tried it would be too much but after some sweet stouts and marzens it isn’t. This is bottle fermented so the dregs in the second pour heightened the flavor. I used my bowl shaped glass and am glad I did as it compresses the aroma. Depth is great as is the complexity.
This reminds me favorably of Duvel or a weak Trappist Rochefort 10. I believe this is classified as a Belgian style strong ale. Definitely a keeper and @ $2.99 a bottle not to terribly pricey. Hit kind of hard so I wouldn’t say it has repeatability. My long hold time may have killed the head but I think it improved the flavor. Buy a 6 pack and try one every 4 months and see if you notice the change. Give this one a good solid 8.
Just knocked out a Maudite and have to agree on the 8 out of 10 rating. This is an upper tier beer for sure. And I also note the hard to place sweet edge that makes it mysterious. You want to say it’s like a good dunkelweizen, but then you say “No, that’s not quite it.”
There’s some good light fruits in there – pear, apple, banana even. But there’s also some dark fruits as well – dates and plums. A nice sugary edge, a nice alcohol kick and a tremendous mouthfeel. Also some pepper and clove to round it out. This is one of the best of the best from Unibroue and this is a definite go-to beer if you want to introduce someone to what Unibroue is all about.
I found this to be a little on the sweet side. Nicely dark and full. I drink one and thats enough like some of the chocolate stouts but that in itself is not a bad thing. They do have some of the best labels in the business.
Living in Montreal I have access to the full line of beers. Having tried almost all of the Unibroues I’d recommend Trois-Pistoles as among the best. However, I know a lot of people who would rate La Fin de Monde the highest. I’d give both a try.