Beer Advocate Review #242

Why #242? Well, i have a been reviewing for awhile on BA but this is the first time that i'll re-transcribe it on my blog. Rather than starting from scratch (number-wise), i decided to continue the numbering sequence from BA. Here's a link to my previous reviews: http://beeradvocate.com/user/beer_reviews?ba=papat444

BEER: Solstice d'hiver
BREWERY: Dieu du Ciel!
STYLE: American Barleywine
ABV: 9,8%
SERVING: Bottle

***2009 Vintage***

Shared with my wife last night.

Poured from a 341ml. bottle, bottled Oct. 2009.

Appearance: A solid brown body with blood red hues and a 2 finger tan head. Nice enough.

Smell: Best feature IMO. Spices, dried fruit, brown sugar and plums. Very heady and boozy in a good way.

Taste: Quite sweet, maybe a tad too much? Plums are what i get first followed by assorted dried fruits. A slight metallic edge. Some strong spices near the finish. Good but not great.

Mouthfeel: Strong body but lacks a little especially conidering then style and ABV. Carbonation a bit too strong also.

Drinkability: A sipper for sure but i found it a bit of a chore even for two. Maybe better when fresh?

Overall: I was somewhat disappointed with this one especially considering it's DDC. While you still get a decent barleywine here, i expected more and have had better.