Advent Beer Calendar 2014: Day 4: Delirium Noël

Delirium Noël
The English version of this year’s label.

Ten years of the Beer Advent Calendar continues, and I’m wondering if the holidays are a time for seeing pink elephants? If we’re speaking euphemistically, then perhaps, or perhaps not—but with today’s beer pick you definitely will be: Delirium Noël. This is the Christmas version of Delirium Tremens from Belgium’s Brouwerij Huyghe, which is celebrating its 25th year this year (the beer, not the brewery—having launched on December 26, 1989).

Delirium Noël is a hefty 10% abv, a Belgian strong dark ale known not only for being fantastic and delicious but also for its signature pink elephant label which changes from year to year. Their own tasting notes on the beer itself read:

Colour and sight: chestnut amber. A fine, white, creamy and lacing foam.
Scent: A complex entity of caramel malt, fruit, spices and the sweetness of the alcohol.
Flavour: A strong presence of alcohol, very spicy, slightly bitter. The aftertaste is sweet, spicy and slightly bitter.

Take care when you drink this beer—I’d recommend sipping and enjoying slowly while sitting next to the fire, otherwise you may very well see pink elephants—and not the ones on the bottle!

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