Goose Island: Matilda 2009
Matilda. What a beautiful name. I doubt it's after the movie directed by Dani DeVito or the book by Ronald Dahl. It's actually an old German name that means "mighty in battle." Seems odd to have a German name on a Belgian beer. However, Germany did enjoy invading Belgium and the cross of Belgian yeast and German hops would make sense.
Well, let's see what the beer has in store.
Pours a very interesting rusty, copper-orange, with golden hues. A nice white head that thins to a light film on top within seconds. There is a light haze, making this quite eerie. I was expecting a little more head on this one.
The nose is very fragrant. It perfumes flowers in a summer garden, followed by gooseberries, light and tart. There are some funky over-tones that give it the soapy Belgian character. There is a sweetness similar to peaches and golden raisins, which I'll give hint to some sulfur. Though, I'll remain firm with gooseberries ripe on a bush to sum this up. Wait, brett! Oh beautiful brett, you are hiding in there somewhere with that sour horse blanket and leather. I almost missed you with all of those fruity aromas. Warming the beer brings out wonderful things.
This is a smack of Belgian fruitiness. It hits with the peaches and even raspberries, stewed in candied ginger. This slides over the tongue to reach the alcohol warmth that rises up the cheeks, while the bitter endings slide back and down the hatch, leaving a soft warmth, that when exhaled though the nose comes that fragrant soap of roses and noble hops. The tartness of this fools you into thinking it is of a higher percentage than what it is. It's ripe berry forms give it a light medicinal quality, often found in Ports or sherry, yet not as strong. It has that ever lasting earthy, brett tingle on the tongue. It's candied alcohol, with a semi-dry tart finish.
The mouthfeel has a moderate carbonation for the style, as light bubbles tingle the sinuses, but this can go down smooth. The sweetness that lingers helps the ease of drinking. The body is fairly rich as well. The residual sugars a that of a soda spritzer, but leave more of that real barley sugar residue right in the middle of the tongue.
This is a mouthful of rusted gold. The bottle says it can age up to 5 years, however, I'd stick to drinking this fresh. There is a very beautiful hop bitterness in this one at this age, but I could only imagine how that would have played out fresh. I'd assume they would dominate the tartness and bring more of that earthy garden into aromas. It's spicy now, but the sugars are dominating, and it is only 7% ABV. I like my Belgians a little crisper, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't give this another go when I see a 2011 bottle kicking around.
If you like really classic Belgian style beers with a little twist, this is for you... that or tart white fruit wines.
I'd pair this with bacon wrapped scallops. There is a complexity in the differences in texture between scallops and bacon that is crisp on the edges with a little chew in the centre that mix salt, fat, and butter and a touch tamari would do this wonders. I personally find a lot of funky Belgian beers that have tartness, or brett to be complimented and boosted by a little salt. So feel free to chow down on some salty pretzels, just leave the garlic hummus out. Garlic is a definite NO! For the vegetarian, try steaming some water-chestnuts or cooking them in a pan with a little salt, tamari / soy sauce, and wrap them in nori. I think sushi rice would actually hinder the barley sweetness of this beer. The Peach and apricots are so nice, why mess with that?
Or for anyone, this would actually pair well with an arugula salad with a thick raspberry vinegrette.
Enjoi
Matilda. What a beautiful name. I doubt it's after the movie directed by Dani DeVito or the book by Ronald Dahl. It's actually an old German name that means "mighty in battle." Seems odd to have a German name on a Belgian beer. However, Germany did enjoy invading Belgium and the cross of Belgian yeast and German hops would make sense.
Well, let's see what the beer has in store.
Pours a very interesting rusty, copper-orange, with golden hues. A nice white head that thins to a light film on top within seconds. There is a light haze, making this quite eerie. I was expecting a little more head on this one.
The nose is very fragrant. It perfumes flowers in a summer garden, followed by gooseberries, light and tart. There are some funky over-tones that give it the soapy Belgian character. There is a sweetness similar to peaches and golden raisins, which I'll give hint to some sulfur. Though, I'll remain firm with gooseberries ripe on a bush to sum this up. Wait, brett! Oh beautiful brett, you are hiding in there somewhere with that sour horse blanket and leather. I almost missed you with all of those fruity aromas. Warming the beer brings out wonderful things.
This is a smack of Belgian fruitiness. It hits with the peaches and even raspberries, stewed in candied ginger. This slides over the tongue to reach the alcohol warmth that rises up the cheeks, while the bitter endings slide back and down the hatch, leaving a soft warmth, that when exhaled though the nose comes that fragrant soap of roses and noble hops. The tartness of this fools you into thinking it is of a higher percentage than what it is. It's ripe berry forms give it a light medicinal quality, often found in Ports or sherry, yet not as strong. It has that ever lasting earthy, brett tingle on the tongue. It's candied alcohol, with a semi-dry tart finish.
The mouthfeel has a moderate carbonation for the style, as light bubbles tingle the sinuses, but this can go down smooth. The sweetness that lingers helps the ease of drinking. The body is fairly rich as well. The residual sugars a that of a soda spritzer, but leave more of that real barley sugar residue right in the middle of the tongue.
This is a mouthful of rusted gold. The bottle says it can age up to 5 years, however, I'd stick to drinking this fresh. There is a very beautiful hop bitterness in this one at this age, but I could only imagine how that would have played out fresh. I'd assume they would dominate the tartness and bring more of that earthy garden into aromas. It's spicy now, but the sugars are dominating, and it is only 7% ABV. I like my Belgians a little crisper, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't give this another go when I see a 2011 bottle kicking around.
If you like really classic Belgian style beers with a little twist, this is for you... that or tart white fruit wines.
I'd pair this with bacon wrapped scallops. There is a complexity in the differences in texture between scallops and bacon that is crisp on the edges with a little chew in the centre that mix salt, fat, and butter and a touch tamari would do this wonders. I personally find a lot of funky Belgian beers that have tartness, or brett to be complimented and boosted by a little salt. So feel free to chow down on some salty pretzels, just leave the garlic hummus out. Garlic is a definite NO! For the vegetarian, try steaming some water-chestnuts or cooking them in a pan with a little salt, tamari / soy sauce, and wrap them in nori. I think sushi rice would actually hinder the barley sweetness of this beer. The Peach and apricots are so nice, why mess with that?
Or for anyone, this would actually pair well with an arugula salad with a thick raspberry vinegrette.
Enjoi
"I was expecting a little more head on this one."
ReplyDeleteSounds like you were expecting Matilda to put out, no?
She's vintage. A classic lady, how could I expect such a thing?
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying I wasn't thinking the same thing...
who doesn't like big rocky head?
We all expect a little more head but never get it it.
ReplyDeleteTold you there was a great little spice afterbite. I enjoyed the hell out of this one. I've actually enjoyed all of their special Belgian ales.
Mike K