De Koninck Winterkoninck

This special ale has been developed in honour of the brewing in the late Middle Ages when the farmers could not work in the fields during the winter months and therefore had time to devote themselves to brewing ale. Winter Koninck is a deep amber-coloured top-fremented ale with 6.5% Alc. vol. and a full-bodied flavour.

3.2

347 reviews

Antwerpen, Belgium

Community reviews

3.1 25cl on tap @ Kafé België, Utrecht. Body is clear, brown, Head is small, creamy, cream-white, mostly lasting, excellent lacing. Aroma is light roasted, herbs, watery. Taste is medium sweet, light bitter, light sour. Finish is average lasting light roasty bitter, watery. Medium body, thin to oily texture, soft carbonation. Easy dessert beer.

3.4 Bottle from Dranken Verheijen in Poppel. The beer has a deep amber color and a nice large head, with a lot of bubbles. In the aroma clear tones of dark fruits, caramel, hops and malts. The taste is nicely balanced, with balance between a sweet taste, bitterness and a taste of roasted dark malts. The finish is fruity and light bitter.

3.3 Bottle@home. Small head. Copper clear. Prune estery fruity. Caramel. Some almond notes. Sweet medium mouthfeel. Served with fish dish by Isabella. Earlier Rating: 1/4/2014 Total Score: 3.5 Bottle@Isabellas farewell diner. Brown clear. Small head. Toffee biscuit notes. Sharp tart dry alcoholic taste. Dry medium wooden finish. Straight brew.

3.9 Draught at The Queen Hotel, Eindhoven, on December 12, 2014. Clear dark copper color, dense tan head. Semi-sweet, fruity, Belgian yeast character, some alcohol, toasty, light grainy taste. Alcohol, grainy, fruity aftertaste. To the smooth side mouthfeel, medium bitterness that lingers some. Sweet, fruity, alcohol scent.

3.3 On tap at restaurant Lieve. Dark brown pour with thin white head. Aroma is nutty, spicy, some dried fruit pretty typical belgium, nice toasty notes. Taste is sweet but pretty balanced, not too sweet or yeasty, light toasty notes to balance, not too boozy. Palate is med-full bodied with good carbonation. Decent.

3.2 Draft at Rootz Winterbeer festival. Pours clear Amber brown with an off white head. Aroma of malt, caramel, light dark fruits and a little yeast. Flavour is moderate to heavy sweet and moderate bitter. Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.

3.2 Van de tap bij café De Poort, Maastricht Alcoholpercentage van 6,5% Uitgeschonken in origineel De Koninck glas Uiterlijk: roodbruin met minimale witte schuimkraag Aroma en smaak: donker fruit, bittertje, caramel Conclusie: geen volle smaak, wel redelijk winterbiertje

3.4 Bottle from Sugaya. Sweet dark fruit, candi sugar, gentle spice. Light translucent brown, Some roast, moves to berries, caramel, and spice, with a moderate sweet finish. Very light body for a winter brew. Tasty. Doesn’t hit very hard at any point. Mild and pleasant.

3.3 Draft 0.25l at Christoffel Antwerp Belgium.Pour it clear dark amber color with small white head.Taste and aroma of apple, spices, caramel.Sweet on the end.Ok drinkable

3.0 De Koninck’s answer to Palm Dobbel in a sense, a darker (deep copper), fuller, creamier and sweeter version of the famous ’Bolleke’, with the unmistakable De Koninck yeast and hop bitterish finish. Nothing too impressive.

3.1 Clear copper, cappuccino Orange head Cereals, yeasts, rotten fruit (banana) Mature fruit, burned caramel, banana peel ending

3.0 Dark amber with a thin white head. Aromas of apples and yeast. Taste slightly sweet with trace of sourness. Mouthfeel fairly thin. Finish quite acerbic.

3.1 Donker bruin bier met weinig schuim. Smaak is kruidig en hoppig met chokolade, niet zoet. Blijft redelijk lang hangen.

3.2 Bottle. It pours a clear amber body under a small, dense, off-white head. Rather sugary aroma, brown sugar and a faint spiced touch. Some alcohol too actually. Caramel and yellow apples. Quite sugary on the palate, medium to full-bodied and with a soft carbonation. Bitterness too, at an appropriate level. Bitter, sweet, caramel finish. Well, sure decent, but sort of unbalanced, and far from a winner. 140426

3.1 Bottle.Pours amber with an off-white head. Aroma of red apples, malt, caramel, fruitiness and bread crust. Flavor is sweet and fruity with some caramel, toffee, red apples and brown sugar. Medium body, average carbonation.

2.8 Bottle 330ml @ Geokkjer Pours clear deep golden with a off-white head. Aroma has notes of malt, caramel, sugar and banana. Taste is medium sweet and light bitter. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonaiton is soft.

2.6 Dark copper pour with great head. Nose has some nice spice complexity but it’s a bit too dry and tannic on the palate. Finishes very clean with a bit of bitterness.

3.4 On tap in Gollem Antwerp. Copper coloured ale with a thick white head. The De Koninck beers are always a tricky one. You go to Belgium expecting all manner of strong flavours and then suddenly there’s these guys selling session beers (ok this one’s a bit strong for that) which are almost English in their maltiness. Like a Geordie brown ale with continental hopping and a hint of a funkier yeast. I actually quite like it.

3.1 Ins Glas ergießt sich ein bernsteinfarbenes Bier mit ordentlicher Schaumkrone. Geruch hefig, malzig süß, leicht würzig. Geschmack leicht hefig, fruchtig malzig, Gewürze, blumig.

3.0 Draft @ the hotel in Maastricht. Pours a clear amber beer with a soft, light beige head on top. Aroma is malty, light fruity, caramel and yeasty. Flavor is mostly the same, with a bit more caramel in the body and yeast in the end. Light prickly finish. Meh, not really interesting.

3.0 Bottle from Voldby. Clear brown with a beige head. Aroma is sweet, malty, caramel, yeasty and notes of dark fruit. Flavor is quite sweet and light bitter. Sweet and light bitter finish. 270114

3.3 Yeast, caramel malt, plum aroma. Cereal flavor, dark cherry, cake, sour finish. Quite creamy early on but slowly fades, lacks any strong character.

2.6 (Flasche) Es hat eine rotbraune Farbe, ist klar mit einer fast weißen Schaumkrone. Das Aroma ist süß, mit Diacetyl, Bret, und etwas Moos. Der Geschmack buttrig, etwas malzig, mit einem fast aschigen Abgang.

2.6 Clear copper with off-white lacing foam head. Aroma is light caramel with barley. Taste is barley, some hay, leather. Short aftertaste. (Velp 201401)

1.8 Une bière d’hiver ambrée où le malt caramel est doublé par rapport à la De Koninck de base, le tout pour 1,3 % abv en plus, soit ici 6,5 % abv... On se bagarre pour pas grand chose !! Et en fait comme on va le voir, cette bière est largement en-dessous de la classique, qui continue donc à bien porter son nom malgré cette version hiver plus riche (en théorie... ). Signalons aussi que l’étiquette n’a plus rien à voir avec celle qui est sur le site : elle est maintenant en fond couleur bleu roi, avec un lettrage en biais. Couleur ambre moyen (assez indéfini, et pour tout dire, moche...). Clarté avec un léger voile de levure. Bulles fines en fontaine au centre, mais pas vives. Mousse blanc cassé qui tombe très vite (exemplaire à date en septembre 2013). Arômes de caramel mou, sucre candi, avec une pointe de fumée, abricot confit, pelure de pomme de terre et miel lointain. 1ère bouche plutôt souple sur du malt, avec une pointe de candi très légère. Arrière-bouche maltée, et un peu d’épice mais pas de grand calibre !! 2ème bouche de pomme de terre, trèfle. On descend encore de niveau. 3ème avec une pointe de fumée et des fruits en salade. Arrière-bouche assez en retrait. La longueur est très faible, aucune envergure, et elle diminue sans cesse !!! La levure est très faible. L’alcool est banal. La finale, n’en parlons pas, c’est mieux... Conclusion : triste exemple que doubler le malt ne rime à rien, si on n’a pas penser le brassage en conséquence. Malheureux pour une brasserie pareille, mais voilà, chacun est susceptible des pires erreurs !!! O tempora, o mores ….

3.3 Draft at Beer Run, 12/13/13. Pours a clear dark amber color with a thin creamy tan head. Decent head retention. Aroma of stone fruits, caramel, citrus, mild spice. The taste is tart citrus, stone fruits, caramel. Medium bodied, low carbonation, slight lingering fruitiness.

3.4 From Voldby, DK. Bottled, 251213. Brown with beige head. Aroma of malt and spices. Flavor with spices, caramel and esters

2.4 bottle de koninck winter at home. poured a copper colour with a decent looking head. burned caramel, red fruits, malts. has nothing to do with a winter beer. it’s like drinking a regular de koninck but with more malts added.

3.2 Dark amber with a huge white lasting head. Fruity bitter aroma. Well balanced bitter sweet flavour: malts, caramel, rasins.

3.3 Bottle 0,33ltr: Clear brown coloured brew with an slightly sweet bitter taste. Hints of fruits and spices, drunk this one under its alias De Koninck Winter.