Achilles Serafijn Donker
This dark brown Serafijn has a spicey herbal character and a soft bitterness. The Achilles brewery has
a unique way of achieving an even heating of the wort: using no direct flame or steam, the wort is
pumped through a spiral that sits in a tub of hot water!
a unique way of achieving an even heating of the wort: using no direct flame or steam, the wort is
pumped through a spiral that sits in a tub of hot water!
3.4
173 reviews
Heist-op-den-Berg, Belgium
Community reviews
Artisanal ’massieve ale’ with off-white, sticky, decreasing but stable head and deep bronze colour with a haze of yeast just below the head. Sweet fruity and yeasty aroma with impressions of apple sauce, overripe pears, pineapple, bread, cake, vanilla, rhubarb, buttermilk, candi sugar, walnuts, dried leaves, soap and peppery hops. Fruity and malty taste, sweet but not sticky, a bit mineral-like with stronger than average carbonation for the style, more nutty and dry in the end with medium hop bitter finish. Quite enjoyable indeed.
Between amber and brown color, quite clear. Aroma of caramel, milk chocolate, orange, anise, strawberry. Taste is sweet but less than expected, some bitterness in the finish with notes of coffee, roasted malt, peer, strawberry flavor. Overall a good brown beer.
-- rated with beerbasher/winphone
Een lekker donker biertje met een zachte maar toch goede smaak. Een aanrader.
Heldere rode kleur met een goede kraag. Ruikt fruit, caramel, honing, mout. Smaakt zoet, kers, honing.
Thx! 33 cl. bottle sampled @ Gollem. Dark brown with a huger creamy brown head. Smells very sweet with cocoa, sugar and mocha. Tastes like coca-cola, very sweet with molasses, brown sugar, caramel, sweet spices, dark fruits. Sweet & sticky body. Another sweet Belgian and this one is quite soda-like but enjoyable at least, agreeable, I can live with this, substantial.
Tasty dark Belgian beer. Malty body, with lots of added spices and dominant yeast.
Bij openen spoot de halve fles leeg.........is het bier nog goed? Ruikt zoetig naar port ofzo en smaakt ook wat port/ likeurachtig. Niet veel body, wat zoetige waterige afdronk.
33cl bottle
Appearance: deep red ruby colour, with two fingers of off white head on top. Nice retention.very light lacing.
Aroma is sweet, caramel, black grapes.and a light bit of dust.
Taste: Red fruits,alcohol, sweet, little caramel.. Going into a dilluted barley wine teritory.
Medium but prickly carbonation, thin-medium body.
Bottle @home. Pours dark brown with an off-white head. Aroma is sweet, caramel. Taste is alcohol, sweet, little caramel. Quite a strong alcoholic taste for a beer only 8%.
Chestnut brown coloured beer with modest head. Aroma of dark fruit and yeast. Taste of roasted malt. Light sweet and spicy.
Commençons par dire que la classification de la bière sur le site est erronée.
Cette bière n’est pas une « belgian strong ale » mais une double, en fermentation haute
et refermentation en bouteille. Point. Elle doit être dégustée en tant que telle.
Si elle fait 8 % abv, ce n’en est que mieux, et on le verra lors de la critique, mais ceci
n’en fait aucunement une strong...
Couleur brun roux très jolie.
Clarté nette. Bulles moyennes partout et assez vives.
Mousse beige épaisse mais à gros flocons...
Arômes jolis de pain complet, feuilles mortes, prunes bleues jeunes, avec une légère touche
d’anis étoilé.
1ère bouche à la texture souple, mais à la saveur assez carrée, sur le malt café avec un houblon
assez rigide. Arrière-bouche plus agréable et fondue.
2ème belle bouche plus nuancée, avec du malt torréfié, du houblon en fleur et des fruits noirs.
3ème de plus en plus agréable, ce qui est un gage de qualité.
Arrière-bouche fondue et bel équilibre entre force et saveur.
La longueur s’ouvre sur de superbes accents, entre le malt, la levure et un ensemble de houblons
assez complexes qui harmonisent vraiment l’ensemble. On ne peut qu’admirer une telle entrée
dans la longueur. On poursuit tranquillement sa route ensuite en découvrant d’autres nuances....,
que le nez développe aussi par quelques touches d’épices dures.
La levure est structurée et tout à fait adaptée à une double.
L’alcool est bien dosé, aide clairement dès la 3ème bouche. Très très bien.
La finale développe encore le sujet, en vient à traiter des questions philosophiques ayant trait
à la saveur. Nous sommes dans le très haut de gamme surtout pour une double.
Conclusion : cette double est une très grande bière, qui témoigne d’un grand savoir, et qui
encourage vraiment à découvrir les microbrasseries.
Cette bière fait preuve d’un grand caractère et elle va très nettement a mas, ce qui est pour moi un
vrai gage de valeur.
Nous avons devant nous un bel avenir dans la bière. Merci Achiel (van de Moer).
Bottle, 330 ml. Poured into a tulip. ABV 8%
Very nice looking, deep red ruby colour, with two fingers of off white head on top, with thick densoity and very good retention. Medium lacing left on the glass.
Aroma of caramel, red fruits, alcohol, malts, black grapes.
Taste is fruity with a touch of alcohol. Little bit of grains, black grapes, port wine, nicely sweet. Finishes with stewed red fruits.
Medium thin body, high carbonation. Sticky palate.
Truth be told the first one I had from this brewery didn’t excite me but this one, although simple, is more than good.
Aroma: Tabacco, caramel, ash, tar. Appearance: Brown, amber, clear, beige head, medium lace Taste: Tabacco, caramel, currant,
Bottle: Served in a Chouffe glass:
Amber pour. Clear ruby red coloered beer with a creamy off white fomay hea on top.
Aromas of marzepin, soap, marshmellows, malts, prunes, perfume, flowers, sweet wood, cream, toast, some apricot, raisin and caramel.
Flavours of toast, bitters, sweet wood, prunes, raisin, peach, apricot, malts, bread, leaves, yeast, hay, some grains and some hoppy soap.
Aftertaste is bitter with creamy fruit, bread and caramelised grains.
Low carbo, creamy mouthfeel, medium to fuller bodied and a creamy texture.
This is a nice beer.
33cl bottle. Hazy and brown with small and grey head. Nose : tart , cooked fruits. Dried raisins. Sip : creamy texture, medium thick with good carbonation. Sweet tart with flavor of cooked cherries, banana and some other red fruits. Spicy, dominated by clove and nuts. Alcohol is well present. It's mostly sweet with lightly sour ending. The aftertaste reveals spices. Overall it's far from being a beer I might come back to.
Deep burgundy with beige head; cloudy once the yeast bottom is added, some floaters as well but in spite of that, good looking (the dark color helps in hiding them).
The nose is a mix of candi sugar and caramel, roasted malts, something fresher and more bitter in there as well
The taste is roasted, a bit of caramel but definitely not sugary, enough bitterness to be well balanced; somehow it manages to also make a refreshing impression, maybe it lacks a bit of body underneath the roast. In any case it’s a very nice taste, less sweet than the nose but solid and caramel-like. The alcohol is very well hidden. There isn’t much carbonation which is good as too much of it would interfere with the primary taste.
In the aftertaste, still the roast and caramel remain; definitely not lacking or too weak.
Bottle (33 cl) from beerplanet.be. Clear chestnut with medium beige head. Nutty malt aroma with some chocolate, red berries, earthy and herbal hops, and some bubble gum phenols. Medium bodied, moussy and rich carbonation. Semi dry, medium bitterness.
Bottle. Nice head with good duration. Color is amber. Aroma and taste are caramel, yeast, fruits, malt and hops. Sweet finish.
light spicey and hoppy aroma,golden, clear, off white foam, light sweetness, lightly bitter, medium body, creamy, lively, long finish,
Bottle. Frothy white good mostly lasting head. Red-amber colour. Moderate malty and hoppy and yeasty aroma. Moderate bitter flavor. Long moderate bitter finish. Creamy palate.
13/02/2012 Bir&Fud Bottega (330ml bottle). Bruna, scura, impenetrabile, schiuma poco abbondante color bianco sporco. Aroma di malto, lieviti, molto speziata, cioccolata, frutti rossi. In bocca è dolce, caramello, ancora un accenno di cioccolato, lieviti, finale appena amarognolo. Non è bilanciatissima, risulta un po’ appiccicaticcia in bocca e stucchevole. Corpo medio, carbonazione corretta. Senza infamia e senza lode.
Bottle. Clear dark amber with big tan head. Aroma is malt, caramel and yeast. Flavour is malt, caramel, dried fruits, little liquorice, spices, hops and a little bitter. Very high carbonation.
light spicey and hoppy aroma,golden, clear, off white foam, light sweetness, lightly bitter, medium body, creamy, lively, long finish,
Brown coloured and almost clear. Hs a white head, medium duration. Aroma is malty-sweet, light bread, faint caramel, toffee. Flavor starts moderate to heavy sweet, finish light bitter. Creamy texture.
Hazy amber with an off-white head. Aroma is quite sweet, malty, caramel, dried fruit and yeasty. Flavor is medium sweet and moderate bitter. Dry and moderate bitter finish. 141211
33cl bottle.
Thin creamy white head. Clear deep amber pour. Lovely aftertaste. Very nice beer
Dark brown color with a fine off-white head. Fruity caramel aroma. Good balanced, smooth belgian strong ale.
Don’t like spicy and herbal, but it is indeed present in this beer, though not as much as I feared. The smell is still average and the taste fair, so not that bad.
(bottle, 33cl) Hazy, amber coloured and effervescent hue with a beige and tall foamy head. Slightly sugary sweet cara-malty aroma with hints of dried fruits. Sweet flavour, medium bodied with a moderate carbonation. Caramel-malty and slightly fruity taste with notes of candy; sweet and slightly fruity finish with notes of caramel, a very restrained bitterness and a well-masked alcoholic notes. 24.V.11
Pours a thin, short lived, light beige head, over a clear coppery amber (SRM 12) body.....nose is light dried fruits (cheery, raisin), light molasses, bit of caramel/toffee.....taste is light cherry, raisin, bit of yeast, mildly sweet throughout......mouth feel is light, carbonation high. This is a light Belgian Strong Ale. The aromas and flavors are not as complex as the best, and they do not have the "punch" either. It is a pleasant beer,and meets the style, but it is just too light overall. BJCP 7/3/12/4/6