Green Flash Le Freak

Brewed by Green Flash Brewing Co.
Style: Abbey Tripel
Vista, California USA

Bottle courtesy of Ibrew2or3. Pours a hazy golden with a one finger white head that leaves good lacing. Aroma of sweet malt, fruit, yeast, and citrus hops. Taste is the same as aroma. Medium mouthfeel with a moderate amount of bitterness and smooth alcohol. Very good.

Bomber. Pours a clear medium gold with a 3 finger fluffy off white head and spotty lacing. Nose is floral hops and spice. Taste is Belgian spice and citrus hops with a light resin boozy finish. Medium, sticky mouth feel. Interesting brew. Not bad tasting, but a little bit strange.

This was an interesting beer. I love hops and I love IPA’s, but I’ve never been super excited about the hop profile in Green Flash beers. The hop balance is too far on the bitter side for me, I prefer more of a flavor and aroma hop balance. The Belgian flavor profile was not overbearing, it worked well with the beer. It was very strong, with an alchol taste present. It’s a worthwhile beer to buy because it is so complex.

Sampled on 11/23/2008. This IPA/Belgian Strong Ale pours a orange gold color from a 22oz bottle. Medium to large sized white foamy head, with good retention and nice long lasting lacing. The aroma is fruity and sweet, with bubble gum and candi sugar, but with a large dose of grapefruity and piney hops. A medium bodied IPA. The malts are fruity and sweet, with some bread and cookie. The hops are grapefruity and piney. Nice meld of a Belgian Ale and an IPA, it has that sweetness, fruity, yeast and pepper flavors of a Belgian Strong Ale and the big malts and aggressive hops of a California IPA. It really works well. Nice carbonation. Hides the 9.2 alcohol fairly well, there is a touch of bite in the middle. Nice beer, curious to see how this one will taste with some age. Mouthfeel is full. Finish is crisp and very dry. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.

Draft @ Green Flash. Pours a dense, slightly hazy orange color; creamy off-white head with fine-bubbled lacing. Basic citrus and stemmy bitterness and candy sugar in the aroma. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: chewy, dense fruitiness, basic Belgian esters, and earthy / mineral bitterness; decent hybrid rendition, but not nearly as good or as clearly expressed as the best examples. Lengthy finish: earthy / mineral bitterness and nicely toasty Belgian malts; decently dry.

This one is hard. I am trying to learn the many styles of beer in order to attempt the BJCP test and along come something conveniently in between. Darn you experimenters. 22 oz, bottle. Pours a thick creamy head, with loads of lacing, over a slightly cloudy honey colored body.....nose of floral hops, with yeast spices, cloves, ? cardamom....tastes initially of mild malts with heavy yeast caused spices, then boom, along comes initial light hops and then lingering, heavy, but balanced, bittering hops., nd is VERY, VERY West coast. Mouth feel is good. So is this a Triple Double?? I rate it to my palate, not to any style. Nice experiment!!

Bright orange with a nice fluffy head. Aromas of orange peel, zest and pulp. A bit of cardamon, coriander mixed with a boat load of citrusy west coast style hops. A real treat for those timid of traditional Belgian IPAs or Tripels. Didn’t have any pencil funk, but was definitely a west coast take on a otherwise classic style.

Color is golden with a slight haze, good carbonation and a tall thick head. Aroma is a nice Belgian yeast scent with hop tones and a touch of citrus. Taste is fruity, citrusy and bitter. Starting with a medium body it goes down crisp with a citrus feel coming on. Finish is fruity with good Belgian yeast flavors, some citrus that comes in the form of dried orange peel and a faint floral hop taste and a stout bitterness. After taste a little dry with the bitterness lingering on. This is another great brew from Green Flash, its nicely complex and is exactly what they describe it to be. I love when a brew comes out tasting the way its suppose to.