I see pink elephants! No, I haven’t had too much to drink, they’re on my glass you see. That’s right, on my glass. My Delirium Tremens glass from the Huyghe brewery of Belgium, of course. Tonight it’s full of Delirium Nocturnum, the dark version of the classic Delirium Tremens ale. They make a Delirium Noel at Christmas time too.
Huyghe puts out a number of interesting beers, but the most familiar to American brew connoisseurs is probably this, the “Delirium” line of three beers, and the most famous among those is Delirium Tremens. If you aren’t familiar with the term, the “DT’s” is a condition brought on by withdrawal from long term and habitual alcohol consumption. It’s not something you can get from recovering from a one night bender, mind you, but usually only occurs in genuine cases of alcoholism. One of the many symptoms is hallucination, hence the reference to the pink elephants. On my glass.
Delirium Nocturnum has an alcohol content of 8.5% by volume, which is the same as Delirium Tremens. It’s sold in 330 ML and 750 ML bottles as well as on draft. I’ve seen it in bottles commanding $6 for a single of the smaller and $15 for the larger. I got a 32-ounce growler fill at Stout’s Growlers for $21.25, which is about 10 cents more per ounce than in bottles. Ah, but this is draft my friends.
Delirium Nocturnum pours to a dark brownish color with a thick and full creamy tan head and a delightful nose of dark malts and funky Belgian yeast notes. Taking a sip, the beer is a bit lighter in body than might be expected given the strength, but it’s not light on flavor. Dark malts and brown sugar, burnt candy sugar, raisin, chocolate, funky Belgian yeast, tart cherries, cotton candy, coriander, hints of licorice and then more funk. The beer finishes dry with alcohol warmth and a notable sourness.
This is indeed a wonderful and very, very complex beer, and between this and the Delirium Tremens, I prefer the Nocturnum. They’re both world class beers mind you, but the dark malts add more complexity into the mix and I just love this beer. I like it best of the three Delirium beers in fact. It is absolutely not to be missed, and it’s worth every penny charged for this tasty Belgian treat. I’ll add I drink it less than I might otherwise at its price point, but that price does not stop me from enjoying it from time to time.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
(G)=Growler