Captain Lawrence Xtra Gold

Brewed by Captain Lawrence Brewing Company
Style: Abbey Tripel
Pleasantville, New York USA

Lightly hazed dark golden color with a taller, wispy off-white head that collapses in a relatively short period of time. Sweet grapefruit and pale malts dominate the aromas. Orange blossom honey and a bit of spice and pineapple-kiwi also in the nose. Quite enjoyable. Pale malt start, but a Emeril type BAM shortly after. Light fruit and flambé’ pierce the tongue like a ample pour of kirchwasser on a pan of seared bananas. Spice of the yeast, hops and alcohol all come together to make this a brew that demands some attention. Verses the American tripel descriptor, I’d consider it a Belgian tripel with an American attitude. Some licorice comes out as it warms. Linger is a bit too sharp and unforgiving. Not sure that there is a place for an imperial tripel, but this is a nice strong example of one.

750ml bottle. Bottle courtesy of NYbeer, thanks Steven. Poured, suprise, a medium gold color. Long lasting white head. Very nice aroma, slightly spicy with a little citrus, not overpowering. Nice sweetness in the front, with a peppery spiciness in the finish, very good.

Bottle, courtesy of Beerlando. Pours with a golden body topped with a fizzy white head. Nice lacing forming on the glass. Ecto Cooler on the nose! Grapes, a little boozy, a little spice in parts earthy hops and yeasty clove phenols round out the nose. In flavor: a touch of sweetness, very fruity, spicy with citrus hops coming through, bitter end. Very drying finish coming down from a sweet fruity middle. High carb lifts the body and keeps it light.

Bottle, at BA Throwdown #2. Hazy yellow golden straw, creamy lacing. Big cotton yeast nose, wheat, clove, some banana. Sweet apples, and yeast, sharp bitterness. Tasty, drinkable, much better than that gosh-darn Golden Delicious.

Thanks to my secret santa for this one. Poured a golden color into the glass with a nice white head. The aroma was apples, must and sweetness. Taste was apples again, touch of spice, herbal hops, must on the finish. Nice balance, hid the alcohol very well. Really refreshing and tasty.

Murky golden-orange in colour with a large and lingering whte coloured head, light patchy lacing. The aroma was sweet, some apples, honey, floral, light spice and yeast. The flavour is fruity and herbal, some honey sweetness and yeast, a bit hot. Quite warming in the mouthfeel, medium body, medium/high carbonation. Finishes spicy, floral and hot.

This was weird. Quite hot and lacking some balance, stange from start to finish.

750ml bottle shared by rudolf, thanks Rudy.
Opened on March 28, 2008.
No date.

Bottle received via Secret Santa July 2008. Pours hazy dark yellow with an average, frothy, white head, somewhat lasting with fair lacing. Aroma is average malt (hay, straw, meal), average hops (flowers, pine), average yeast (sweat, earth) with notes of heavy alcohol, apple, pear, and ginger. Full bodied, gritty texture, lively carbonation, and a bitter finish. Average duration, light sweetness, moderate acidity and bitterness.

750ml bottle procured from the NYC Whole Foods on Bowery, poured into a Stone OG tulip, my first ever CL beer! Appearance is a cloudy golden straw hue, nice big creamy head that gradually erodes to rockiness, light lacing. Smell is a range of citrus and sweet syrupy fruits, Belgian yeast and light pine hops, spices, sugary candy. Taste is met initially by flavorful hops, mostly grassy and floral with light citrus and pine, combined with light sweet fruits (pears and peaches), some candied sweetness and syrup in the middle are muddled by the prickly carbonation which is a bit much throughout, finishes dry and bitter with a touch of sweetness. Mouthfeel is medium-bodied, slick and prickly texture, high carbonation is somewhat detracting to the overall presence. Drinkability is moderate, this is a peculiar beer that seems to be a bit off-style with the high hop presence that is compounded by over-carbonation, overall a decent beer but a bit disappointing from what I’ve heard about CL, either way I definitely look forward to trying more styles from this brewery in the future.