St. Feuillien Speciale

St. Feuillien Speciale. Brasserie St. Feuilien, Le Roeulx, Belgium. Belgian Strong Dark Ale. 9% aBV. "St-FEUILLIEN SPECIALE is brewed at the end of the year. It is a festive ale full of flavor with a warm, amber glow. Refermented in the bottle, ST-FEUILLIEN SPECIALE is matured for several months in our cellars, lending it a delicate aroma, remarkable body, and naturally rich head. It is full of sumptuous, exciting contrasts."

Apparently, this is the same beer as "Cuvee de Noel." (According to ratebeer.com.)
I haven't had that in a while, and here it is again. Good thing. I haven't checked off enough St. Feuillien beers here. No tripel yet, nor saison, and here we just had another St. Arnoldus Day celebration, with 3 St. F. beers: this one, the wittier, La Blance, and Biere de L'amitie, which I covered here when it first came out, a couple of years ago.

So, let's talk a look at it….reddish-brown body, large, softly drifting , creamy, off-white head, leaving lace. Looking good.

Aroma: dark fruits all over the place. Fig, date, raisin, a little sour cherry, plus undertone of leather and tobacco. Slightly sweet, slightly sour, with vast complexities, aided by yeast and malt. Nice.

Taste: soft, smooth, and utterly delectable. Dark fruit hangs long on the palate, mingled with dark malts, a bit of cocoa with a hit of anise. Nicely spicy. Alcohol stays quiet so far, with a marvelous texture, magnificent mouthfeel. Now the booze is rising up, just when I'm ending the glass. Some nice notes to end it on. Beautiful beer.

Hey, here's what I wrote about Cuvee de Noel on BeerAdvocate.com, when I had it for the first time back 10 years ago, May of 2003:
"Someone on this site put up the idea of Belgian Abbey Dubbel being ever-more appreciated after something like a PBR. Well, I'm coming off of a Corona, so this should rock my world!
Appearance: beautiful bright burgundy/ ruby red color, with a huge, flowering, earthy tan head, large with lace.
Aroma: deep and heady, rich with spice and fruit, some citrus, bread, loads of sour notes, too.
On the palate: big, tasty hops, rich, fruity taste. Medium-length finish, but sweet, tasty, rewarding in every way! Tangy, zippy, bright, full-bodied, with a generous texture, and memorably fruity flavor. Delicious and delicate balance.
Hops and malt are felt, but they merge for the most part and create a blessed union. Yeast in this brew, too, contributes considerably to the flavor and enjoyment.
A delicious Belgian ale that's hard to beat. Just as tasty as they get!
Perfect to warm the cockles in the winter (though I drink it in May!)."