Abbey Brewing Brother Dans Double

Brewed by Florida Beer Company
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Melbourne, Florida USA

On tap at the brewpub. Pours murky brown with one inch head of tan foam. In the aroma I get blunted and nearly musty dark fruity esters of prunes, dates and sweet black grapes to go along with smooth yeasty spice and dark brown candi sugar. The taste begins with both rich and creamy dark fruitiness from sweet grapes, prunes, figs, pears and sugar ripe plums. It then picks up mild notes of some dark candi sugar as in the nose along with earthiness and spices. Very nice offering with plenty of interesting and smooth yumminess.

Has a nice reddish-brown glow. Thin head. Malty nose with plums, raisins and a hint of brown sugar. Firm alcohol grips the palate, leaving burnt fruits and traces of chocolate in its wake. Finishes with a mix of alcoholic dryness and sweet apricot, fig and raisin. Interesting the way this beer approaches you, but it retains a style and class that puts it ahead of its peers.

Dark copper, small bubbles as with all their other taps. Rich raisins, bitrter chocolate, some sour notes. Once warmed up the flavors come out, including some funky tropical fruit, rich malts but not too sweet.

Draft... Hazy amber ale with a small, fizzy, off-white head. The nose is an eddy of caramel, fuzzy and tropical fruits. Fruity, malty flavor delivers blasts of caramel, dates, fuzzy and tropical fruits. Full-bodied and syrupy with lively carbonation. Sweet, tangy finish.

Draught @ Abbey Brewing Company Miami. Small light beige fizzy head that mostly diminished. Spare display of lacework. Cloudy brownish amber color. Aroma was a nice mix of fruity and nutty malty notes. Raisins, toffee, apricot, fig, yeast with a mild feel of chocolate as well. Medium bodied with a soft carbonation and light dry alcoholic texture. Moderated sweet flavor with mild bitterness. Lingering sweet dried fruity and mild warming alcoholic finish. What an Abbey Dubbel BOMB.

Draft At ABC. chestnut/dark amber pour, very hazy, with a thin and slowly receding white head. Aromas of honey, chocolate, chestnut jam, caramel and candsy sugar all create an enicing and surprising nose. Alcohol is moderate. Nice balance in the flavor, a testament to a good and very unique recipe(or brewing process, as the equipment at Indian River Brewing is famously subpar). Citrus notes overwhelm the malt as the libation warms. Bitterness is moderate, acidity mild and sweetness medium to medium-high. A strong-willed, lightly hoppy and dry finish. Palate is somewhat spicy, medium bodied. Very good, definitely the best beer in the small lineup on South Beach.

1/2 inch white head on top of a hazy dark auburn beer. Chestnut and tree bark aromas. Also some blueberry and cherry. Smooth, quaffable palate that is a nice feature for a strong beer. Alcohol is only detectable when I drink the beer with food; otherwise barely noticeable. Soft mouthfeel. Thin with woody flavors. Better described by what it isn’t: not sweet, not fruity, not edgy, not chewy. Nice realm for a dubbel to sit in. Simple yet solid.

My Bottom Line:
Chocolate maltiness and bready yeast merge in a creamy, authentic Belgian mouthfeel which ably displays fruity undertones. A competent and flavorful Abbey Dubbel.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A thin slice of foam garnishes the hazy reddish-amber.
-Alcohol is nicely concealed.
-It finishes dry, with a little hop show.
-Is that a little DMS in the nose, or that quirky yeast again?
-This was their best beer the day I visited (and I imagine it’s a new name for the 12-degree...alias soon?).

On tap at the brewpub.