Brouwerij de Halve Maan - 2018 "Straffe Hendrik Xmas Blend" quadrupel

After many hours toiling away at D'Vines this holiday season, it's time to kick back with an 11.00% ABV oak-aged quad from Brouwerij de Halve Maan. This brewery, which means "Half Moon Brewery" in Flemish, makes the famous Straffe Hendrik family of beers. You may recognize the green label and an old guy moon face on the traditional Belgian bottle. Well, today's beer is their seasonal variant - the 2018 Christmas Blend. Merry Christmas!

Pours a deep reddish brown in the glass and generates a minor Flemish aroma - a bit like lactobacillus nose (like vinegar). Sounds good to me!

OK, I like this a lot. To me, it seems like a blend of three separate styles of beer - an oak-aged strong ale, a caramel sugar-infused Belgian quad, and a sour Flemish ale. Each of these three styles contributes in some way to the beer:

1. There's a serious undertone of oak paired with a syrupy texture reminiscent of a barleywine or "old ale." The oak aging really comes through in flavor, and it likewise imparts a certain texture and heaviness...as you can see, it has low carbonation and practically no head. Just like an old ale might. 
2. The sugars in the beer taste like caramel and brown sugar, so definite Belgian there. Not a lot of Belgian spice, but a tad. The caramel flavor really does it here. 
3. Finally, there's hints of that lactobacillus sourness that will be familiar to fans of the Flemish sour style. But - unlike some Flemish sours which really lay on the vinegar-like sourness, this beer has just a hint of that. Mostly on the finish. 

What's most particular is how evident all three "components" are. The spice and sugar marry well with the heavy, oaky texture of the barleywine and the Flemish sour adds a nice touch. Combined, these three things make an excellent winter ale, one definitely worth the $14 for a 750mL. Pick this up while it lasts!