Gouden Carolus Tripel

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

Pours hazy orangish-amber with a large rocky head that sticks around for a while. When it finally recedes it leaves a frothy mesa in the middle of the glass and near-solid lacing on the sides. Very spicy and citrusy aroma—oranges, fresh bread, and coriander dominate. And I swear there’s some brine in there somewhere. Flavor of bread and phenols. Mediciney, acidic, and lip-puckering. There’s a slight hop finish, but that’s somehow pre-overpowered by the first flavors. It had a wonderful appearance and aroma, but the flavor fell quite a bit short of my thusly formed expectations.

apricot, grapefruit aroma; golden fogginess, with little lace. Very smooth with perfect carbonation, sweet honey aftertaste. Very nice.

Pours into the chalice a hazy golden-orange color. Produces a beautiful thick, dense pillow-like head with superb retention. An intricate lacing pattern of foam adheres to the sides of the glass. The nose is a bit muted, but with pleasant fruity notes of pineapple, banana, vanilla wafer cookies and honey in the forefront. A faint touch of yeast, light malts, spice and perfume linger in the background. Mouthfeel is perfectly balanced between the velvety smooth and creamy texture of a big beer and the expected tingle of CO2 from a Belgian Ale. Flavor profile a bit more assertive than the aroma. Starts out with a fruity, malty sweetness; very much like the nose. Then gradually moves into a slight peppery, spicy alcohol presentation and finally finishes with a somewhat surprising, but slightly astringent moderately bitter hoppy finish. All in all a solid Triple save for the slightly distracting finish. I’d definitely go back for more.

0.75l - Gold color with epic head even in a wetted glass. Yeast on the nose, spicy palate with a mildly sour finish. Classic Belgium. What’s not to love?

Pours a cloudy, soupy brown with a large white head. Aroma has a lot of cream, yeast, very bready with some brown sugar. Flavor has a lot of honey, boozy and sweet. Some grasses/hay toward the end. Spritzy mouthfeel, medium viscosity. Not a very good triple, frankly. Overall, fair.

750ml Corked Slightly hazed golden with a thick head. Spicy aroma, peppery, citrus, fruity and lightly vinous notes. Medium body with a soft mouthfeel and crisply effervescent. Spicy fruity flavors. Nice by the book Tripel.

Poured a light yellow gold with a big frothy white head. Aroma is sweet, yeasty, and a hint of citrus. Falvor is orages, bannana, with a hint of clove and just enough hop balance to give it a clean finish. Body is a bit thin.

11,2 oz bottle. Served in a Delirium Tremens tulip glass. Aroma of pale malts and saaz hops. Bright golden beer with a thick creamy white head and sheets of lacing. Flavor is sweet pale malts and booze to start, fading to a hoppy presence with a mildly bitter finish. I love triples. Smooth, sweet, alcoholic and hoppy. Fruity and peppery, and a strong yeastiness. This one looks good and tastes good. A world class beer from a brewery that deserves its high reputation.