Abbaye des Rocs Triple Impériale

Brewed by Brasserie de l’Abbaye des Rocs
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Montignies-sur-Roc, Belgium

A dark tripel, huh? Sounds interesting. Bottle is probably about a year old. Poured a cloudy mahogany with a fizzy light tan head. Aroma is sweet brown sugar, grapes, a touch of raspberry acidity, some doughy yeastiness. Flavor is lightly sweet with brown sugar notes, some light cherry/raspberry acidity, some dryness, and some doughy yeastiness. Flavor is balanced and quite complex. Probably my favorite Abbaye des Rocs yet.

From 750mL Bottle. Upon opening the bottle, a massive eruption of foam spews from the top and flows all over my kitchen table. Since the bottle has been sitting undisturbed in my cellar for the past three months, I think its safe to assume some serious bottle conditioning has been going on. Pours the color of beaten leather with some orange-apricot highlights and a ruby plum tinge. Clear, even consistency. A medium layer of creamy beige foam rests on top. Intoxicating aroma of sherried figs, sweetened with honey, thickened with molasses, and garnished with plenty of raisins. Some lighter citrusy tangerine zest and herbal incense found only in a head shop. Medium bodied mouthfeel with a silky smooth texture. Flavors of smokey oak ash and bitter belgian chocolate, spiced with some freshly ground white pepper. At first, I couldn’t help but think this tasted a bit like clove cigarettes, but my impression slowly improved over time as I got used to the bitter, ashy spiciness. The finish was a bit more uplifting, as some sweeter dark fruit notes took over. Final smack of port soaked raisins.

Best before AP 26 2007

Bottle produces the same, pulpy snowglobe of yeasts as in other beers from this brewer, which may indicate they have a problem worth investigating. I’ve had many unfiltered beers that have not looked this godawful. Brasserie de lAbbaye des Rocs should suggest to serve their beers only in lidded steins. Otherwise, we find a reddish-mahogany body with a large khaki head that fades rather quickly to a thick film and halo. Aroma rings of a barleywine with thick, sweet malts alongside orangy citrus. Complex flavor profile with cherry, anise, lemon, cookie dough, Chloraseptic, stale caramel, etc. Mid-bodied with mild astringence finishing dry, but chunky yeasty bits put me off. A nice dessert beer filled with surprises.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Beverage Depot, Orland Park, IL 60462<font size=-1>

Aroma of banana, raisins. Lots of floaties coming out of the bottle. Head is light brown, mostly diminishing and some lacing. The appearance is a golden brown with many particles. The flavor is sweet and tastes like toasted caramel The finish is medium and a little metallic.

Has the typical belgian candi and yeast flavors, but not much complexity over and above what one would expect. Not a bad beer, but not a significant one either.

A serious dissapointment. I had a 750 of this stuff and was really looking forward to it. First aroma: Alcohol. Second aroma: Alcohol. First taste: Alcohol. Tasted like a nice imperial stout with a dash of Everclear in it. I didn’t feel the 10% ABV either, which was ironic. Lots of floaties in the bottle. I tried really hard to keep them in the bottle, but they were not flocculating out like yeast, so I don’t know (or want to know) what they were. It was a job to finish the bottle. Perhaps it would have been better in another 6-12 months. Based on the 99% rating, I might try it again but this bottle was not worth the try.

Very sweet, some candy and vanilla but I am not getting much else. Not very complex and somewhat of a disapointment.

Caramel, toffee, raisin, vanilla notes are abound. Sweet sugary taste. Very good! Dark red amber in color. Didn’t notice the floaties in this one as with the Brune and Grand Cru, so that may please those who don’t care for them in their brews. Not quite to the level as the Brune, but I enjoyed this more than the Grand Cru.