Chouffe Houblon Dobbelen IPA Tripel

Brewed by Brasserie d’Achouffe (Moortgat)
Style: Abbey Tripel
Achouffe, Belgium

Off comes the crown, and out wafts sour citrus and pine, plus prickly spices. Haven’t even poured it, though. Thickly hazed, pale gold coloration, huge head, a fluffy slab of angelfood cake, leaving loads of lace. Poured just right, it features a beautiful cap emerging from the glass, like a dish of ice cream. In the nose: ah, this is a saison! I mean, a tripel! No, wait a Belgian double IPA, right?...what is it, now? It’s zesty, lemony, sour and spicy, yeasty, funky, deep, delectable. An enticing, entrancing blend of flavor, every bit Belgian. I’m still only smelling. The label refers to "the overwhelming aroma of Tomahawk, Amarillo, & Saaz hops..." Well put. Taste it: Bracingly bitter entry on the palate, then kindly backing away.Sip again, and a mix of fruit and spice blasts through the palate anew, then gently subsides on the tongue. Definitely drinkable, despite the uniqueness of the flavor, or the size of the strength. Full bodied, for a tripel, but rather easy in the mouth. This ale hangs tight on the palate, sticking it out, giving a kick every inch of the way, but downable and delicious. I’m liking it, and I think I’ll like it again and again. But then again, I’ve never met a Chouffe I didn’t like.

04.28.06 (and various other occasions), 750ml bottle at Paul’s Pre-TAPNY. Wow! Fantastic example of this up-and-coming and wonderful trend of merging US and Belgian styles into succulent, hoppy, and potent strong pale ales. This one has plenty to love with the distinctive Chouffe house character, mildly funkified and savory spiced, melded with monsterous, biting, pithy hops. Lightly estery (mixed fruit syrup) throughout lasting right through the dry finish. Yum.

750 ml bottle - Hazy golden topped by an extremely intricate and lovely white head. Glass lace is exceptional. I am really digging the aroma. Loads of floral hops, sweet citrus, satsuma comes to mind, and wild yeast underpinning. The flavor is equally as yummy. Sweet at first then a developing bitterness mixed with pepper and more sweetness. Some alcohol comes forth just before the swallow. The finsih is quite bitter. The palate is really nice, medium, with a hop crispness and not syrupiness. An excellent amalgamation of styles.

Oh man, what an interesting beer! I loved it, IPA/Tripel two completely different kind of beers, but oh man what a beautiful combiniation. I loved this mix. Smells of fruity sweetness which floats above a pillowy massive white head. Such soft flavors, but a whole lot of them, and quite nicely balanced.

Tasting is from a 750ml, but I’ve had it before on tap and it is definitely better on draught as most brews are. Slightly hazy intense straw in color with a fluffly white head and good lacing. Smells like fresh hops, orange peel, and cardamom. Assertive carbonation, maybe a bit too much, gives the 9% alcholo tripel great balance making it feel crisp and lighter than it should be for it’s alcohol content. Flavors are straw, orange, plum, all spice, coriander, cardamom, and white pepper with just a hint of sweetness. The hops kick hard on the finish. Superb balance and fairly dry througout. One of my absolute favorites.

[bottle] Wonderful hops and belgian yeast aroma- and I have to give it a 5 for it’s apppearance. A thick, meringue-like head eventually forms a large, floating island in the center. Not quite as bitter as I had expected, still it represents both styles very well. Strong Belgian yeast, with strong hop aroma and bitterness. This is a glorious beer. As I continue to drink it, its sweet, frutiness comes through. Finishes rather dry, which seems to let the hops really come through. Certainly not an amazing IIPA, or an outstanding tripel- but this is a fantastic combination of the two styles.

25-ounce bottle. Amazing. Absolutely amazing. The white King Kong of heads sits atop a cloudy golden pour. Yeast, hops, malt, and fruit adorn the aroma. The flavor is addictive. Yeast and hops dominate followed by fruit, malt, and peat. A near perfect balance of yeast and hops rolls through the mouth. Sweetness follows and the finish is crisp and dry.

Have had this one lying around for a few years, waiting for the right occasion to break it open. Easter lunch seemed like a good opotunity. Its was EXACTLY what i expected it to be, nothing more nothing less. Hazy yellow with a wonderfull, spooneatable, dense white head. Aroma was the expected mix between yeasty fruity esters suck as apricot and pear mixed with citrus/lemongrass hops. Perfect amount of alchohol that just goes oh so well with the beforementioned flavors. Both bitter and sweet, and a nice sugery sweetness on top of that. Really unique style. Why, I dont know...