No, this isn’t a recap of today’s Latin Mass, although drinking this beer–Delerium Nocturnum, brewed by Brouwerij Huyghe–could prove to be a spiritual experience for many.  My mood was right for the imbibement of this brew.  After a tiring day, evening gardening, and a later than normal bedtime for our quiver full of young ones, I was quite tired and in need of pleasing beer.

I was aptly excited to try this, as I have read and heard a good deal about it, and it only recently made the distributors list in my neck of the woods.  While it is the contents of a bottle of beer that makes one’s heart warm, I was quite attracted to the presentation.  The taupe paint covering the champagne style bottle and psychedelic image of a pink elephant drew me in and led me to believe that the brewer took pride in the presentation of their beer.

The Noise:

POP! The cork came off like a bottle of bright champagne or the old cork gun I coveted every time I went over to play at my friends house when I was a boy.

The Pour:

Nocturnum pours a sparkling light amber/brown color.  Plenty of carbonation is visible.  A thick head forms at the top that is about two fingers thick and hangs around longer than other beers while it is fed by streaming bubble of CO2 from secret pockets hidden in the liquid.

The Nose:

Before I poured it into my glass, I smelled the bottle.  This is an annoying habit I am trying to shake off.  It smelled musky and intense (of course).  Pouring it into the glass and giving the beer area to breathe revealed absolutely beautiful aromas.  There is a very flowery smell:  not flowery as in hops, but flowery as in you are walking past a lilac bush in the springtime.  Fruit smells are abundant.  Namely apple and cherry.  A nice aroma of sweet chocolate malts and candy sugar balanced an overall sour aroma.

The Taste:

First of all, this beer is light and airy in your mouth.  It slides across your tongue with ease.  The high amount of carbonation is delightful.  The flavor is, in my opinion, complex.  It took contemplative sip after contemplative sip for me to pinpoint the flavors, as they were all jumping out at once.  The sweetness was very subtle.  The thin sweet malt flavor boasted hints of raisins and chocolate covered toffee.  There was also the fruit I picked up in the aroma.  It was similar to a crab/sour apple and bright red sour cherries.  The a perfumey taste mingles as well, which sound like it would be unpleasant but is really fantastic.   The beer goes down with a sour bite and a warm alcohol tingle.

This is one of the most unique and flavorful beers I’ve had in a while.  It provided a fantastic drinking experience and left me thankful for yet another opportunity to enjoy anothers’ labor of love.  I will buy this again and suggest you log off and go buy some right now!

Nate’s Rating:

Overall Satisfaction: ★★★★¾ 

Among other Belgian Strong Ales: ★★★★¾