Het Kapittel Watou Blond

Brewed by Van Eecke
Style: Belgian Ale
Poperinge-Watou, Belgium

Best by date of 2006, Sampled March 2007
Produces a frothy, light tan colored head that starts out about three-fingers in height and leaves a nice lacing pattern on the sides of the glass. The beer is a reddish tinted, copper colored brew and is brilliantly clear. The aroma smells of sweet malt notes, butterscotch, sweet grapes, musty crackers and biscuit malt. Fruity notes of apple and light berry notes are also noticeable in the aroma.

The taste is quite sweet up front, with a pronounced fruitiness that reminds me of green raisins, apple cider and something like strawberries (though not quite). Quite light bodied, though it does have a certain heft to it. The finish is quite sweet as well, though there is an in- vain attempt for a dry biscuit-like character to add some dryness. This is a wierd beer, the fruit notes and sweetness combine to almost give this an artificial sweetener kind of flavor. This beer is not necessarily over sweet, it is just the combination of flavors that make me say it is (if that makes any sense). This is just not my cup of tea.

Bottle, 330 ml. Golden coloration, lightly muddy. Good cream. Metallic. Relatively weak taste. Not full-bodied. Imperceptible alcohol. Light notes of clove, honey and orange. Low carbonation. Dry and bitter final.

Bottle. Pale amber color with an off-white head. Light spice and malt aroma. Spicy, yeasty flavor with good fruity esters and backing sweet malt. Lingering fruity spice. Medium body. Very drinkable. Nothing great, but not bad by any means.

Draught. Sweet aroma, sour berries. Light orange, thick white head. Taste sour berries, bitter with a long finish. Thick and creamy. There was something disturbing with the taste, but I couldn’t quite place it. Something sweet/sour..

Bottle. Pretty bad. Detergent, metal, yeast. Overly fizzy. I was very dissapointed with this one. It felt very thin and rough.

(33 cl bottle at The Rover, Göteborg) Clear pale golden color, white head. Fresh fruity yeasty scent. Spicy yeasty fruity taste. Medium mouthfeel. Medium bitterness, spicy aftertaste.

Filitered, golden pils-like appearance with serious hops, grain and straw in the nose. Vanilla, spices and mild honey melt into bitter hoppy goodness, medium-lasting bitter finish. A bit thin in the mouth but nice and dry. Excellent blond with a hoppy twist.

Bottle. Poured hazy amber color with an average frothy white head that was mostly lasting with fair lacing. Moderate sweet balanced yeasty aroma. Light to medium body with soft carbonation. Medium sweet flavor with a medium sweet finish of moderate duration.