Brouwerij Dilewyns Vicaris Generaal
What the brewers say
“Pouring a rich mahogany color, the nose has sweet notes of roasted malt, fig, and coffee. Generaal is complex, with flavors of port, toffee, raisin, and a plum fruiti- ness. It ends with a warming finish.”
What our panel thought
Aroma: “Wonderfully tricky aroma, hard to pin down the various fruits (pear, plum, cherry, raisin, apricot) and rich malt notes (caramel, slight chocolate, and toast) that emerge from the glass. There’s even a touch of floral hops that works well.”
Flavor: “Rich, sweet maltiness in the front. Some slight caramel and chocolate-malt flavors with prune, raisin, plum, and apple fruit character. Some earthy pepper-like spice character. High carbonation. The esters and mild alcohol complement the malt. Finishes pretty dry and slightly tart (the high carbonation contributes).”
Overall: “A perfectly balanced Belgian beer that does everything well without being over the top—strong malt complexity and dark-fruit character. Very pleasant. Palate is well blended.”
