I’ve been wanting to put this beer in the packs since I first tasted it. Such a good beer but I never seemed to time it right to get some onto one of our shipment. But now….
This beer started life as part of the ‘Indulgence’ series; specialty beers that were released each year to much acclaim. But none more so than this beer which was voted ‘World’s Best Spirit Flavoured Beer’ as the World Beer Awards in 2015.
At its heart, this is Het Anker’s Cuvee Van De Keizer Imperial Dark Ale. A beer brewed once a year on the 24thFebruary – Emporer Charles V’s birthday. Hence the name meaning something like ‘best beer of the emporer’. I reckon this is consistently one of the best beers coming out of Belgium each year.
But Het Anker decided to pimp it by infusing it with their own whisky, which is distilled from batches of their Gouden Carolus Tripel.
The result is an amazing beer. All the characteristics of the best strong darks with deep aroma and flavours of dark stone fruits (raisins, figs, dates), caramel and roasted malts, dark chocolate and hints of vanilla. Then there is the whisky undertones hiding in the background, masterfully blending in with the beer so that the original beer remains the hero.
Just such a good beer that you’ll have to make sure to sip and savour, otherwise it will be gone before you know it!
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