When I got this at Ramirez Liquor in Boyle Heights, the dude told me that they go this shipment on a wooden crate. He advised that something like this is pretty special so hopefully the ale was just as special as well. I was pretty much sold. Upon first opening the beer, there was a major amount of complexity even in the aromas of the beer. I could smell the wine and bourbon oak just screaming along with the sweet dulce de leche and pecan pie notes. I got this scent that reminded me of the way barrel aged Saison Du Buff or Escondidian 15th PA was from stone. Something really complex and fancy. Trying this and discovering bit by bit what this tasted like was not gonna be an easy task. So at first sip, it was right there. The wine grapes, bourbon vanilla, dulce de leche caramel biscuit bread , pecan pie, dark fruits like plum or a raisin, bitter sweet berries like currants, blackberries, strong wooden oak and earthy notes, apricots, apples, bananas, fancy wine cheese and coconut. Alcohol is a paradox to find. It gets you, but it gets you at the subconscious level. Drinking this is not for the meek of beer palates. It is something quite different that should only be tried if you are ready for it. The flavors are everywhere and it is a game of butterfly catch. Digging into the taste complexity of the experienced beer connoisseurist. Still, if you are a Belgian Beer lover and want to experience something quite unique, give this a go. 

I realized because it had been aging since 2011, this was gonna be something truly special. Many Barrel aged beers give off certain flavors of oak and vanilla that is almost like coconut. Some wine barrels give off wine and sour grape flavors. This beer seems to give off both. Just the mere fact that it was their Quadrupel II that was aged literally took the beer taste to another dimension. If there ever existed a St. Bernardus or Trois Pistoles oak barrel aged beers, it would jump what I would consider the best beer in the world in terms of complexity into something greater. The original quadrupel of theirs was close to a 5 in review. Now this actually exceeds it for me. May not be into the levels of sweetness that I enjoy, but the level of completely that drives it there. Highly recommend it if you can find this one. Ramirez Liquor has it in stock but only for a limited time and limited amount.