Allagash Dubbel Reserve

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Portland, Maine USA

Jenn likes this one. It is reminiscent of the fall and winter seasonal brews, with a malty flavor and little aftertaste.

Batch 82 - 750mL bottle into an abbey glass. The beer pours deep brown and red with a khaki head that shrinks a bit with time. The aroma is noticeably sour at first which gives way to roasted malt and a dash of wood. The flavor is sour at the front of the mouth and rolls across into a dark and dry combination of malt, slightly smoked meats, and a hint of nutty wood and tobacco. Medium body and high carbonation typical of Belgian styles. Overall, the flavor was a bit too earthy and meaty for my full enjoyment.

Dark browns and faded blacks fill out the curves of my glass while a gentle head of khaki mousse fades into a shy ringlet. A thin blanket of khaki foam remains, and as I swirl my glass, a rush of mouth-watering aromas make a mad dash for my olfactory indulgence. Sweet, spiced, plump, and a touch fruity. Maple and toffee mingle with brown spices, wood, and vanilla root. Her nose exudes supple warmth, a worthy compliment to succulent cooked red apples, pears, and prunes sprinkled with a none-too-shy helping of cinnamon fresh from the stick. Toasted sugars crunch, blending into wood, spice, and warmth. Smitten, I raise my chalice of swirling dark delights to eager lips which are met by a softly effervescent mouthfeel which belies a full body of chewy dark breads, prunes, and dark raisins. Despite her dark appearance, her palate shines with crunchy sugars atop toasted raisin bread which leads into a symphony of wood. Her finish is long, her warmth slowly but surely invading my chest and the back of my throat. If humans could purr in soulful satisfaction, my chest would be rumbling right now. Medium weight and a full palate keep my senses busy. As we spend more time together, a subtle dryness refreshes just in time for the next juicy quaff. A perfect merry-go-round of crunchy sweet, cooked fruits, dark fruits, toast, spice, and wood. Seeing as my Allagash Dubbel came in a magnificently corked 750ml bottle, I have another full glass to sit back and savor. It’s a hard job, but somebody has to do it.

Allagash never lets me down, and their Dubbel is no exception. If you are looking for a fine craft example of the traditional Belgian dubbel style, then look no further.

Ruby red with a vanishing head at pour. Nutty at first taste. The body seems a little too thick, at times. Smooth, though. Dark malt character at the finish. Incredibly drinkable. A very solid beer.

750ml. bottle from City Market Vermont.The color is ruby with a nice beige head.The taste is of lots of malt and some yeast and an added sweetness of caramel. Also in the taste and aroma is the sensation of grapes, this is not overpowering but it gives it a nice finish.

Thick, murky rose-brown color: amazing color. Head disappears almost instantly; better head would have improved it. Cherry liqueur in the nose, crystalline candi sugars. Sweet with a dark, dried-date aroma. Flavor is darkly, sugary sweet (corn sugar), dark grape and wine and sour cherry notes. Dark malt, a little more darkly sour as it warms; saccharine toward the end. Creamy and not that fizzy on the tongue. Well-balanced and easy to drink considering it’s 7% abv.

Pours a cloudy brown, maybe reddish brown. with a half inch of dense tan foam. Aroma is a bit fruitier than I expected. Flavor is a bit biting, maybe even a bit tinny/piney, which overpowers the sugary maltiness I was expecting. Not bad, but I’ve come to expect better from Allagash.

Bottle from batch 71. Pours a large, fluffy, quivering, clingy, light tan head. Clear, ruby body with abundant, dancing carbonation bubbles. Looks great! Aroma is of fruity esters, light alcohol, caramel malt, some miscellaneous dark fruit and dark cherry. The flavor adds some spicy phenols, light raisin, some old dust, and a little rum. No discernible hop presence. Medium bodied, with prickly, lively carbonation. Palate is a bit sticky...perhaps the attenuation was a little low? Maybe a bit more candi sugar would be in order? Light, warming alcohol. Overall very good - would be great if the body were a little lighter/thinner.