Advent Calendar Window 6 - La Rulles Cuvee Meilleurs Voeux

I wanted La Rulles Cuvee Meilleurs Voeux 7.3% (2012) for last year's Advent calendar but never came round to purchasing it. Eleven months on, seeing that it was still in stock in Beers of Europe, I decided the time had come to add it to this year's, knowing that it had time to age and develop. The large, 75cl bottle, and delightful artwork intrigued me. I'll admit that this beer's brewery, the Artisanal Brasserie de Rulles from the Luxembourg province of Belgium's Walloon region, is a new one to me. Research shows that brewery only opened in 2000 and this beer has only been brewed since 2005. Too young, perhaps, to have reached these shores frequently and earned famous stature. Still, a Belgian Strong Ale brewed in the Christmas ale tradition should be right up my street.

"I'm sure you're hiding something hot

You want to give to me

And not another pair of socks

From underneath the tree"

A deep Byzantium purple pours delightfully with thick, frothy off-white head. It smells of surprisingly little; a hint of dried fruits, black forest gateau and quite a citrus hop undertone. The taste is that dry sherry mouthfeel and flavour I'm accustomed to in the Belgian Christmas classics, such as Gouden Carolus. As the beer sits and warms there's a lot more character and complexity developing with the sweet plums and warmed cherries becoming apparent over that sherry style sweetness. There's a good body to this beer that grabs you, but demands more tongue dancing the stage it presents deserves. The finish is a short finale, where you call for an Encore only to find the show is definitely over. I want to like this more than I do. I want it to pack in a bit more flavour. It really is a very good beer. It's just not excellent. Perhaps it would benefit from further age, although it has already had a year.

Purchased from Beers of Europe, October 2013

Drank alongside, a chocolate holly leaf and chocolate angel, two figures who signify the life in Winter and the incredulous belief in flying, gown-wearing secretaries.

Comments

The Pubs of Stalybridge Part One: The Stalybridge Seven.

And a touch more ... Rififi Nightclub - once the town's cinema - has stood empty and unused for four and a half years This is the continuation of my posts of regular pub crawls to try and get myself in more pubs and discover more. Whilst I grew up in an old hamlet that most were quick to distance themselves from, my address clearly stated that we belonged to Stalybridge. However distant the town centre felt I was a Stalybridger, a Stalybridgian, a Stalyian: you know I don’t think I’ve ever heard us given a name before. I’m going with Stalyian. After a few moves around the country and through various relationships, I didn’t expect to find myself still local to the town in 2017. Whilst my address hasn’t stated Stalybridge for 3 years, I still spend plenty of time in the town – not least as it houses my “local.” To many in the north-west, it is famous for its nickname of Staly Vegas , that came about (as far as I’m aware) through its late Nighties-through-to-N...

LIVERPOOL - the City that Craft Beer Forgot Part II (and found...)

After visiting Liverpool, one of my favourite cities, in February this year, and not impressing people with my rather hasty but honest verdict on the city’s lack of craft beer, I jumped at the chance to return last week and hoped to come out with a more attractive judgement. A couple of friends and I visited on a day out, with neither of them having been drinking in the city before. It was left to me – or rather, I volunteered – to plan the day’s itinerary and places to visit. I had a couple of new or unvisited places in mind myself, but knew it would be unfair to miss out on some of the city’s famous gems. With around 10-12 hours in which to fit in an entire city, I opted to concentrate on the famous Georgian Quarter and see if we had time for the Dale Street end later on. We planned to arrive in the city for around 11a.m. just in time to walk up Mount Pleasant to the new-on-me, though I believe it has been opened three years, Clove Hitch on Hope Street f...

WHEN CELEBRITIES DIE - THE INFINITY OF PUBS

Recently I was stood outside Huddersfield Railway Station waiting for my Replacement Bus Service. I was eating much needed food from a nearby fast food outlet and contemplating my next move. Other match-goers had gone home but I had over 50 minutes to wait for my bus. We’d already been to a few of our post-match regular spots and so I was contemplating somewhere new or different to pass the time now. I stood in St George’s Square, behind the statue of Harold Wilson, and pondered where I should waste my next hour. And pondered and pondered. After deliberation that ate into much of my allotted time, I walked down to the familiar setting of The Sportsman, realising that there wasn’t anywhere different to go at all. But whilst I deliberated, I cast my eye over the currently scaffold-covered George hotel opposite the station; a place I had been in once with my Dad. It’s downstairs public bar had stood as a firm and available option to match-goers fo...

Beer Compurgation

Search This Blog