In all honesty, to some extent, I am affected by the presentation of a bottle of a beer as I walk through the beer aisle.  I don’t base my judgment of the flavor and quality of the contents on such superficialities, but a nicely dressed bottle is eye catching.  That being said, there is something about the outfit that Delirium Noel (and all the other Delirium brews that screams from the shelf, “Try me.”  Since the other two Delirium beers–Nocturnum and Tremens–from Brouwerij Huyghe fared well in under my scrutinizing sensory nerves, Noel stood a fair chance.

The Pour:

After pouring Delirium Noel into my tulip glass, I was astonished to see two Christmas bulbs, some green garland, and a donkey from the nativity scene in my glass!  Just kidding; but, the beer did pour a deep mahogany color with striking ruby red highlights that reminded me of the metallic red foil that had ensconced the rubber (surprised that real ‘cork’ material was not used) stopper.  The beer was crystal clear…not a hint of sediment or suspended protein.  A luscious white head left sticky lacing.

The Nose:

The aroma was moderately complex.  Typical for the style, notes of banana, clove, and nutmeg were present.  There was a sugary aroma that reminded me of dark spiced rum.  As far as fruit notes, strong un-fermented grape (as in grape juice, not wine)  aromas over shadowed all else.  All together, the aroma was candy like.

The Taste:

Delirium Noel pulled a fast one on me.  As it touched my lips, my mind was expecting a Belgian Strong ale, which it was…BUT there was a strong malty backbone that had the flavor of a Weizenbock, like Aventinus.  Perhaps it was the strong grape and Plum flavors that instantly took hold of my senses, or maybe it was the noticeable caramel flavor.  Either way, the beer was different.  At times, the beer was a bit too sweet.  In your face Belgian candy sugar flavors were, in my mind a bit out of balance.  The astringent flavor of alcohol was decently hidden, but at moments, in between sips, I did feel like I was swallowing down sips of rum.  As the beer finished, the bitter flavoring hops make their appearance, but at the same time don’t let you forget how sweet this brew is.

Overall Thoughts:

I enjoyed Delirium Noel and would buy it again, but it wasn’t as great as I was expecting, and was my least favorite when compared to Delirium Tremens, and my favorite of the the three, Delirium Nocturnum.  For the price ($9) I was hoping for more.  If you picked it up, what did you think?

Nate’s Rating:

Overall Satisfaction:  

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