Gouden Carolus Tripel

Brewed by Brouwerij Het Anker
Style: Abbey Tripel
Mechelen, Belgium

Bottle. A slightly hazy amber color with a rich foamy white head. The aroma has a nice candy and spice, and the flavor includes banana, orange and a little pepper. Quite a nice triple. Enjoyed with family and friends on Christmas Eve.

0.33 l bottle. Copper color with thick head. Sweetish and fruity aroma with orange, pineapple and some phenols. Sweetish and orangey flavor with herbal hops and honeyish malt. Alcohol is soft and warming, not at all sharp. Very balanced and well made!

Holy Guacamole! This corked little devil came out with NO effort--BOOM! And now my trousers are wet... Muddy golden hue...vast mass of fluffy foam, white as snow sits on top and elegantly collapses, leaving gentle lace...Aroma: yeast, citric, but light, airy, a little honeyish...Taste: mmm, just right! Elaborate? I shall. A garden of fruit is here, apricots, peaches, oranges, banana, mix it with cream, soften it with sugar, throw some honey in it, whipped cream on top now, gently sprinkle with spices...tastiness abounds! Lightly, judiciously hopped, ample malt, incessant flavor. Body is about medium, finish is nigh-unto-eternal, light, sugary, and just about damned delicious, balance is near perfect too, nothing is overly forward, everything meets just-so, and it’s drinkability gets a boost from that. My first try with this one, and now it’s a new favorite, that I’ll return to again and again...deeelicious!

Golden body with a touch of amber in it. Good size white head that left loads of lacing. Aroma of mandarins, spice and alcohol. Taste was soft and smooth, medium body, sweet but not overly so, and a light sweet alcoholic finish. This beer was easy to drink but at 9% you couldn’t quite have big session of them. A good pale ale ramped right up to the max?

Looks orange with a big fluffy head, hazy. Smells like an orange, with just a hint of mustiness. There is a definite bite on the palate. Flavor is fairly complex, oranges, grape must, barnyard, and a pinch of salt, with a hoppy, bone dry finish. Interesting, but not totally my thing in the end.

09.12.04 330ml bottle, 2005 dated. Dark, clouded gold; full of chunks of love. Fine sheet of foam that persists. Aromas of blackberry pie, biscuit, custard, orange, and honey. There’s a bit of medicinal or artificial tang to the aroma. Flavors seem to mimic the nose. Nice alcohol presence integrates, especially in finish. Cherry and berry prevalent in flavor, plum. Citrus not so much tasted, despite being flavor forward. Slight finishing acidity, sweet/tart overall.

750 ml bottle. Shiny gold body with abundant carbonation and a big, foamy white head. Aroma has sweet floral tones plus fresh bread and candy corn notes. Semi-sweet flavor with pleasant yeast characters, a nice rounded malt profile, and light bitterness. Very elegant and pleasing without any wrong notes.

From my fall 2006 notebook. Hazy yellow gold body with ample head. Spicy nose with plenty of hops. Dry hoppy body that pairs exceedingly well with buffalo.