Jan 26, 2015

Gulden Draak Brewmaster’s Reserve

Gulden Draak is a beer that I have had a love/hate relationship with throughout the years — I love the way it tastes, but hate how I feel the next morning. So it was with equal measure of excitement and trepidation that I opened this promotional sample of Gulden Draak Brewmaster’s Reserve last week.

Originally released late 2013 as part of a limited holiday package, this 10.5% ABV Belgian Strong Ale was brewed in honor of 7th generation brewmaster Jef Versele’s grandfather as well as the company’s 230th birthday — that sort of puts some of the recent double digit celebrations of U.S. breweries in perspective, don’t it?

Anyway, this bottle came by way of a PR firm and I’m not entirely sure how long they had it or if this bottle was intentionally held for a year prior to it’s release, but the label states that it was brewed back in February of 2014. Based on my experience with aged beers (as well as Gulden Draak in general) and the taste of this particular bottle, I’d say that it hasn’t been adversely affected over the last year. If anything, it’s probably mellowed for the better in that time.

Appearance

The beer pours a hazy, orangish amber in color with a resilient cap of beige foam.

Gulden Draak Brewmaster’s Reserve photo

Aroma

Yeast, soft fruits, burnt caramel, distant wood and just a hint of whiskey waft gently from the surface.

Taste

The whiskey that was mostly absent from the aroma makes more of an appearance here. It’s smooth and pretty mellow, not at all up-front. Yeast, a solid sweetness, stone fruits, grain and caramel all join in before making their way to the slightly drying and softly warming finish. It’s a pretty mellow beer overall — not as in-your-face as a fresh bottle of Gulden Draak often comes across.

Overall

It’s hard to speak to a fresh bottle of this brew as this one has had a good bit of time to mature in the bottle. The beer doesn’t taste old by any means, just a bit mellow and subdued, which, if you’ve had a relatively young bottle of the base Gulden Draak, is a welcome departure. It’s not as aggressively boozy as I would have though. Instead, it’s got a fairly refined, if tame, presence on the palate.

I’d love to see if that’s the true nature of the beer with a more recent bottling, or if it’s the aging that has softened the beer. Regardless, it’s still an enjoyable brew with plenty to offer.

Rating: 3.75/5

This is a review of a promotional sample.

More: ,