We’ve been hoarding a few of these bottles for quite some time now, as you’ll see the beer was bottled back in January 2017!
It is a combination of De Molen’s Hel & Verdoemenis (flagship Imperial Stout) and their Hemel & Aarde (Imperial Stout with peaty malt). A blend of these beers was then added to several different barrels. And just to make things interesting, the barrels were spiked with a wild Brettanomyces yeast.
When you have two whole floors full of various beers aging in varied barrels, De Molen have a lot to play with. And it is a game they generally play really well.
The aroma is predominantly peaty, though as the beer warms some sweetness comes through more strongly. It is also there in the flavour, coming in fast behind the initial sweetness. Because we know to look for it, I reckon you can detect a little leathery note from the Brett, but I probably wouldn’t notice it if not looking for it. There is also some barrel character with some woody tannins.
For a rich beer, it finishes quite dry with a little prickly hop bitterness in the lingering aftertaste, which retains the charry, peaty roast malt character. We’ve waited a good while to see if the Brett. would kick in, but it doesn’t seem to be that strong. We’ll just enjoy it for what it is.
A big Imperial Stout, dark fruit, chocolate and a hint of sourness
A big and tasty imperial stout brewed with cacao, vanilla and orange peel
An imperial stout brewed with cacao, vanilla and orange zest, aged in Brazilian Amburana wood oak barrels
A luscious big imperial stout with cocao nibs and roasted peanuts
The name translates as 'lubricating oil', and that is a fair description for this rich and smooth imperial stout
Another 2019 Boreft Festival Beer, this is an imperial stout with chocolate nibs and fresh mint
This Borefts Festival beer from 2018 is an imperial stout with amarene cherries, finished on cedar wood
The flagship imperial stout from De Molen - 'Hell & Damnation'
De Molen's 'Hell & Damnation' Imperial Stout
De Molen's flagship imperial stout has been given a hazelnut twist
De Molen's 'Heaven & Earth' - s smoky, peaty Imperial Stout
De Molen's 'Malt & Mocha' is their winter seasonal coffee imperial stout
De Molen's 2018 Boreft Festival '9+1' beer is an imperial stout with added aloe vera
An Imperil Stout with 5 different barley malts, flaked oats and hand roasted coconut flakes
A slightly sour imperial stout with walnut extract, caramel and salt, aged in Bowmore Whiskey barrels
A delicious Imperial Stout with the addition of Rooibos, a little lighter and drier than a typical IS
by Brouwerij Emelisse/Slot-Oostende
It is Creme Brûlée - dessert in a glass
by Brouwerij Emelisse/Slot-Oostende
A rich and luxurious Imperial Stout infused with coffee beans from Italy
It's a big dark lager, in the form of an imperial stout. And it is delicious!
Really this is more a cross between a Belgian Quadrupel and an Imperial Stout
A massive Imperial Stout, with loads of roasted malt, chocolate and coffee
A delicious imperial stout with oat flakes in the malt bill, and coffee beans, vanilla and chipotle and mulato chilli peppers
A wintery imperial stout with roasted chicory root
An oatmeal stout with a rich, creamy and luxurious chocolatey flavour
A delicious dessert beer, this is like caramel fudge in a glass
An imperial pastry stout with vanilla, toffee and dry dates
A really interesting, slightly sour Imperial Stout that has been barrel aged for 12 months and spiked with wild Brettanomyces yeast
A delicious imperial milk stout with the addition of coffee beans, cocoa beans and lactose
An imperial stout aged with American oak from bourbon barrels
A big and tasty imperial stout that balances the sweetness with a good level of roasted malts and hop bitterness
Four malts, roasted barley and two hops create a beautiful Imperial Stout - with a Belgian twist.
This Bourbon barrel aged imperial stout is a three-way collaboration with Alvinne (BEL) and Velka Morava (RUS) brewed at Brouwerij Kees
Imperial pastry stout with vanilla, coconut and lactose
An oatmeal imperial stout with the addition of Jamaican coffee beans and orange peel
Imperial Pastry Stout with vanilla, coconut and lactose
An imperial milk stout with vanilla, cinnamon and lactose
A massive imperial stout with the addition of vanilla, marshmallows and lactose
A Belgian Imperial Stout, rich in chocolate, roasted malts and coffee
This smoked dopplebock is a collaboration between De Molen and Poch's Cervesa Artesana from Spain
21 grams of Cryo-hops per litre of beer for this wonderfully dank, resinous, fruity Imperial NEIPA
De Molen's 3,000th brew was this black barley wine with roasted wheat
A Berliner weisse with hibiscus flowers and fresh blueberries
A big, juicy American style double IPA, dry-hopped with Amarillo
An American-style Pale Ale-ish, featuring Columbus & Amarillo dry-hop
Another 2019 Boreft Festival Beer, this is an imperial stout with chocolate nibs and fresh mint
An American Strong Ale, a big malty body, lots of fruit flavours and a pleasant hop bitterness
A combination of English and German smoked malts combine in this rich, tasty dark treat
De Molen's annual spring time release is 'Day & Dew' - an IPA featuring a bevy of US hops and bergamot fruit
This Borefts Festival beer from 2018 is an imperial stout with amarene cherries, finished on cedar wood
A Boreft Festival beer from last year, this is a Belgian style quadruple with South American Tonka Beans
De Molen's first take on the currently trending north-east IPA
A Double IPA made for Boreft's, featuring hops from De Molen's own hop fields
De Molen's new core range Belgian Blond with Sorachi Ace hops
One of De Molen's Bereft Festival 2017 beers, this is a smoked Earl Grey IPA - heavy on the smoke and tea, light on the IPA!
A barley wine with smoked malt and three varieties of chillies. Different but delicious!
A simple, traditional style porter 'made they way porters used to be'
De Molen's take on a Belgian Tripel style - lots of sweet malt and generous hop bitterness
An English Strong Ale, like a smaller version of a Barley Wine
The flagship imperial stout from De Molen - 'Hell & Damnation'
De Molen's 'Hell & Damnation' Imperial Stout
De Molen's flagship imperial stout has been given a hazelnut twist
De Molen's 'Heaven & Earth' - s smoky, peaty Imperial Stout
This is a fun IPA from De Molen with extracts of vanilla, chocolate and orange
A DIPA with Sladek, Citra Cryo and Mosaic hops, plus the addition of hibiscus flowers
An imperial banana choco porter, this is one of the 2017 Borefts Festival beers from De Molen
Originally a one-off beer, this Imperial Hefeweizen has become an autumn seasonal regular
The spring seasonal offering from De Molen is technically an India Pale Lager
Essentially an American Pale Ale, with a decent caramel malt body
De Molen's 'Beautiful & Ruthless' is part quadruple part imperial stout
De Molen's 'Malt & Mocha' is their winter seasonal coffee imperial stout
De Molen's 2018 Boreft Festival '9+1' beer is an imperial stout with added aloe vera
An Imperil Stout with 5 different barley malts, flaked oats and hand roasted coconut flakes
This collaborative brew between De Molen and Omnipollo is an Imperial Pineapple IPA
A session bitter, nudging toward an IPA dry-hopped with Amarillo
A delicious bourbon barrel aged quadrupel, made for De Molens Boreft Festival
One of De Molen special 'Bereft Festival' beers from 2016, a Red Rye Ale
A slightly sour imperial stout with walnut extract, caramel and salt, aged in Bowmore Whiskey barrels
A beer sitting between a pale ale and an IPA, celebrating 50 years of Maris Otter malt
An old-school IPA, the gift of De Molen's brew team to John Brus for his recent marriage to partner Petra
A delicious smoked dopplebock is the result of a collaboration between De Molen and Sound Brewery of Washing State USA
A tasty little red ale from De Molen, it has a fruity aroma, a sweet malty body with a sustained level of hop bitterness
De Molen's farewell to their European summer is this hoppy wheat ale
A light and refreshing summer style Berliner Weisse, dry-hopped with Simcoe, Mosaic and Citra hops
De Molen's summer Berliner Weisse for 2019 is fruited with cranberries
'Explain in detail' is a cross between a pale ale and a farmhouse ale
De Molen's Imperial Porter - all the sweetness and complexity of an imperial stout, without the roasted bitterness
A NEIPA by De Molen with Cryo Citra, Lemondrop, Simcoe and Mosaic hops
A classic Belgian style saison, with a twist - dry-hopped with Cascade & Amarillo
A bottom fermented India Pale Lager, dry-hopped with Simcoe & Citra hops
A saison with winter-type spices added including timut and szechuan peppers, mustard seeds and juniper
A refreshing India Pale Lager, dry-hopped with Cascade for a fruity, bitter bite
This weizenbock with passionfruit and Tango hops is a perfect spring beer
A massive Imperial Stout, with loads of roasted malt, chocolate and coffee
A collaboration between De Molen and Reketye (HUN), this dopple bock features smoked malts and smoked paprika powder
A collaboration between De Molen and Beavertown (UK) sees a beery take on the traditional Gin & Tonic
