Fish Tale Monkfish Triple (Barrel Aged)

Formerly brewed at Fish Brewing Company/Leavenworth Beers
Style: Abbey Tripel
Olympia, Washington USA

Hazy golden amber color, nicely carbonated with an off-white head and light lacing. The aroma is nicely citrusy with some belgian qualities breaking through. The flavor has a good balance of yeast, quality import malts, noble hops & alcohol. All blending together with the oaky wood finish. This is a great triple, I'm glad I could try this. I fell asleep half way through drinking it and in the morning 10 hours later it was still just as good. Still no alcohol burn even at room temperature.

2003: Dark amber and cloudy with a firm tan head. Aroma of over-ripe apples and some syrupy hops, along with a mixture of spices. Flavor is composed of a big ripe fruit flavor, apples, pears and some honey, along with a slightly stinging alcohol flavor and a light hop finish. A good tripel, a little different than most. Thick, syrupy and feels very "aged". Big time wine flavor coats the mouth and lasts an incredibly long time.

This one has a beautiful appearance. A dark amber coloring that resembles applesauce. It has a big frothy egg white head in the pour, and leaves some beautiful lacing after the fact. The aroma is wonderful, full of light fruits and mellow cinnamon spiciness. The flavor has some really nice complexities, the first tastes are of coconuts and carob, with some nice lingering flavors on the tongue. The first words out of my mouth are this is really really good. This is without a doubt my favorite trippel, and the best of this style that I have ever had.

Don't know about this one, orange very hazy. Aroma and flavor is very sweet, too sweet, lots of malt almost like carbonated honey. Barrel-Aging does come through with a winish bite. Not that crazy about this brew!

2003: Deeply obscured apricot. Big healthy off-white head. Sharp sherbety aroma supported by an extremely rich aromatic malt underbelly. Touches of phenols, dried mango, toasted plantain, pale malt, clover honey, lightly toasted wood, and earthy hops. Watery mouthfeel. Slightly velvety and chewy. Leathery malt onslaught upon first sip, quickly countered by earthy hops and dried tropical fruits. Finishes rich and malty like an English barleywine, only with a slightly lactic/spoiled hop twang and a vinous tingle next to a bundle of persistently earthy hops, long pale malts, and phenolic undertones. Sadly, the esters and dryness are not a factor, and neither are the hops, thanks to the meaty malts. More like a barleywine that’s gone sour. The huge aromatic malts completely disfigure the noble hops and clash with the oak wine character. Overall, this was an interesting concept, and I applaud the effort, but the Triple base is far from even a decent Triple and the barrel-aging was a complete letdown. Not sure how cellaring will benefit my other bottle, but we'll see...

Unique aroma for an abbey tripel. Smells more like barley wine to me. There is sweet maltiness and a faint aroma of hops. Where are the yeast and spices? Anyway it smell good. Appearance is also barley winish. Light to medium browm with big fluffy white head that appears to be staying for the duration. Flavor is interesting. Nice fruit flavors in the beginning. Flavor is full and relatively complex though not massively so. Good beer, but does not conform to my conception of an Abbey Tripel.

Whoa Nelly, this beer is HEAVY! Lotsa something that makes this a meal ... nothin' fancy -- almost ok. I felt like pouring it out but the bottle was too big and I paid too much. Too thick, too sweet and too flat. Kinda like walking into a closet that's been closed for years. Makes you wonder if they REALLY thought they could challenge the Belgian Monks. Pay the extra bucks (or euros) for the real thing --- go Bel-jeek or to Ft Collins.

Fish Tale does it again - man this beer rocks - cloudy, burnt orange with thick white lacing, looks like fresh apple cider - yeasty, musty, earthy notes in the aroma, along with citrus, pears and apples - the flavor is outstandingly complex - first a mild sweetness, bananas and pears - grainy, bready flavors, earthiness - thick mouthfeel from the heavy dose of malts - darker fruits make appearances late, with even a hint of chocolate - hops come in last, giving a nice bite before the finish gives you a resurgence of the initial sweetness - this is really amazing stuff - I wish mail-order wasn't the only way I could get it.