It’s been awhile since I last reviewed a beer, so I thought it was time to get things back on track. A few months ago, my boss tapped me to oversee the selection process for a new Beer of the World section in our store. Needless to say, I was stoked. The plan is to have a mix of 54 different beers (craft and import), and allow customers to buy singles, six packs or make their own six packs. Originally, I was only going to be responsible for choosing half the beers, but I ended up choosing all 54 (from a list of 600). So yesterday, all the beer arrived at the store. We’re still in the process of adding each beer to the P.O.S. system and pricing them, but I was able to purchase one that got into the system – Bommen & Granaten from Brouwerij de Molen in the Netherlands. This is a barley wine that has been cask-aged for 1 month prior to bottling and then continues to age in the bottle, thanks to containing champagne yeast. The bottle presentation is what first drew me to the De Molen line, as their bottles and labels resemble nineteenth century apothecary bottles. Also, the name is just cool – it translates to “Bombs & Grenades”. Once opened, the nose is very sweet, with hints of raisin, apple and citrus, and a slight sourness (most likely due to the fact that it is still fermenting and has a high alcohol content for a beer – 15.2%). The beer pours a dark brown, with caramel and amber hues and no head whatsoever. The taste is very sweet and malty, with no sign of hops or bitterness to be found, even though the beer has an EBU of 53.9. As I am typing this, I’ve been sipping on this beer for an hour and am still only halfway through! I’ve had some big beers in the past (Arrogant Bastard Ale and Skullsplitter come to mind), but this is one big, intense beer! And that’s a good thing. This is definitely not a session beer, but this would serve as a great dessert or after dinner drink, especially if paired with a good cigar or pipe. Bommen & Granaten would also make a good beer to perhaps change the perceptions of those who think beer is only fizzy yellow stuff that comes in suitcases.
