This strong ale is darker than I thought it would be. I expected something pale, golden, and clear. What I got was something the colour of an average IPA - deep, orange/amber with some brown. There was lots of tall, creamy head, requiring me to pour it in stages. The head had great retention. It was there for the whole glass, and left some large patches of lacing.
The smell, initially, is of yeast, alcohol, and fruits like apple and peach. As it warms up, it releases smells of dates, liqueurs, and must. It started reminding me of Rochefort 10.
The taste is of yeast and the aforementioned fruits, as well as raisin. There's also a bit of something like... wet dog? At least the dog wasn't a very distasteful one. The aftertaste is slight.
Carbonation is crisp and a bit interesting... the tingle of it is at the leading edge of each sip. You can feel it move like a wave through the whole motion / action, from tongue tip to throat. The finish is slightly dry.
It was a pretty nice beer, with the smell being better than the taste. I may get another someday, but it didn't make a really memorable connection with me... other than the glass and how good it looked in it!