Brasserie Dubuisson - Scaldis Prestige 2018

The 2018 Scaldis Prestige is one we’ve craved and finally got our hands on. It’s being offered for the first time to our Rare Beer Club members, though it’s the third style of Scaldis Prestige we’ve featured. In a previous Special Offer we’ve featured the Prestige de Charmes, which started with a base of Scaldis Tripel aged in Meursault-Charmes white burgundy barrels for 6 months, and the Prestige de Nuits, comprised of Scaldis Noel aged in Nuits-St-Georges red burgundy barrels for 6 to 9 months. We’re now featuring this one to help round out your cellar with the whole Prestige Collection. Like the Charmes and Nuits, the Scaldis Prestige starts with a base beer, this one being the brewery’s Scaldis Caractère, which then is aged for six months in oak barrels where it picks up additional aromas and flavors. A small quantity of sugar and yeast is added to the beer during bottling which produces refermentation providing natural CO2 saturation and elevates the alcohol-by-volume to 13%. The net result is an incredibly detailed Belgian amber vibe melded with soft oak and fruity yeast esters. The 2018 Prestige has a very limited presence in the U.S.

Scaldis Prestige pours a slightly hazy, amber-orange color, capped by a thin layer of off-white foam. It presents as a beer that’s spent plenty of time in oak. Generous aromatics of caramel, toffee, candied orange peel, and toasty-oaky vanilla take the lead, complimented by herbaceous and fruity hops, vibrant dried apricot, cherries, figs, and dates. As it warms slightly, impressions of clove and hints of banana come to mind, as well as crème brûlée and brown sugar.

Prestige is full bodied, smooth, and well-rounded on the palate. The aromas carry over as flavors and are full of caramel and brown sugar sweetness, with a lot of oak-influenced vanilla and clove. Light hop bitterness is accompanied by the bitterness of lightly toasted sugar, with underlying vanilla and toffee, which brings forth the crème brûlée aspect of the aroma as a flavor. Dense dried figs and sweet dates appear with a touch of cherry and lead back to candied orange peel. The yeast brings forth fruity and floral esters to mingle with the sweetness. However, the sweetness is fully attenuated leaving a finely bubbled mousse and dry finish. Lingering in the warm, sweater on the inside finish, are clove and the oaky woodiness of the barrel. A beautiful Rare Beer from Belgium—this one blew us away.

Suitable for some additional aging time, but it’s certainly drinking great now. For pairings: the brewery suggests the pronounced character of the beer goes very well with spicy and full-bodied dishes. An excellent pan fried fois gras, red meat or game dishes with reduced sauces, as well as hearty desserts and dark chocolates. By the way, we still have some of the 2018 Scaldis Prestige de Charmes tucked away in case you missed it the first time.