Bosteels Pauwel Kwak

Origin: Belgium | Date: 2017 | ABV: 8.4% | On The Beer Nut: May 2007

We were transiting through Brussels airport, Dr John and I. At the emporium of boozy delights he acquired a Kwak giftpack for a friend who, he assured me, was only interested in the glass. So the beer was spare and he gave me two of them. One was cheekily necked in the departures area, but I saved the other for future use on my vintage beer blog. That was five years ago, which I deem long enough to find out if Kwak changes any over time. As a strong and dark Belgian ale, it feels like it should, though it doesn't get the vintage treatment in the same way the Trappists do.

It probably doesn't help things that I haven't had any Kwak since that evening in the airport but I have a reasonably strong impression of how it tastes: a big and heavy sweet-banana driven ale, especially high in esters, even for Belgium.

After five years, the first thing I notice is that the lees have settled in big lumps to the bottom of the bottle, suggesting it's been busy in there and should therefore be somewhat protected from oxidation. The aroma is muddy and bready, smelling like kvass, more than anything. Certainly not sweet. And the flavour has dried out considerably, dropping the banoffee in favour of raisins, nuts and dark sherry, with a backing of strong tea and a little toffee liqueur.

I think it's an improvement on fresh, and isn't a million miles from what happens to Orval over a similar timeframe. I never would have thought of ageing Kwak had I not acquired a spare bottle by sheer happenstance, but I'm glad I did.