Keegan Ales Four Philosophers Tripel

Brewed by Keegan Ales
Style: Abbey Tripel
Kingston, New York USA

22 oz bottle from Bierkraft. Pale golden coloured beer with a thick white head. Aroma is quite nice and spicy. Clove and apricot with a touch of light banana. There is a nice light sweetness as well as a big orangey sweetness. Some other light fruit here as well. A hint of strawberries as well as a bit of citrus. Flavour is quite nice as well. Light sweet Belgian malts and a fairly interesting yeasty fruitiness. There is a touch of pear, apricots and berries as well as a touch of light banana and clove. Very soft, fruity, and well-integrated. It’s not as dry as I might like, but it’s pretty tasty all the same.

1 Litre swing top courtesy of coldbrewky. Pours fairly flat, unfortunately. Small white head that fades quickly. Lightly hazy gold color. Nose is lightly spicey, peppery, mellow sweet malts, yeast and breadyness. Body is medium, lightly oily on the palate and lacking carbonation. Medium sweet malt flavors are bready, faint caramel and citrus with distant raisin notes too boot, peppery tang er something in there. Mildly sweet finish, fruity and spicey with some cinnamony notes. Would of been better with some carbonation. Decent though. Thanks Steve!

On tap @ 4th Avenue Pub. Golden with lasting white head and lace. Nice honey citrus lemon pastry aroma. Sweet mildly citrusy spicy a touch soapy with nice spicy dry finish. Medium body. {retty good mouthfeel. Very nice for an American triple. Fairly subtle and spicy.

Tap at Barcade’s Upstate Beer Night: Golden pour with a wispy white head. Sweet aroma with lots of honey, light Belgian yeast & phenolic notes of bubblegum. Flavor is very sweet as well- honey, pale candi-sugar and light bubblegum phenols. A bit difficult to drink, as the sweetness masks any of the yeast nuance.

On tap today gratis since they were not open for serving at that time. I must state that I was looking forward to a lunch here since I just got out of a second interview and thought to reward myself. The barkeeep took some pity on me since they had no empty growlers for fill, and since I didn’t toss one in the truck prior to interview I hadn’t a growler with me. A fair ammnt of foam that gave me an impression of bannanas and allspice. body was surprisingly light. To continue a statement from j12601 both of the brewwers worked at OMMegang and separated due to the fact that they would always be junior guys there. This brew is highly drinkable and does pack a wallop since the wallop began half way home. A gentle spicy finish. Bertski...growler comin yer way.

On tap at Keegan. Pours a sticky looking amber with a thin to medium white head. Sweet malt, yeast, banana, and clove on the nose. Body is thin to medium, and sweet. Finishes light, clean, and yeasty. I liked it enough to have another. There’s a story floating about that one of the Keegan brewers used to work for Ommegang, had a falling out with them, and either cloned or flatout ripped off the Three Philosophers recipe. The tap handle and logo for the Four Philosophers is certainly an homage to the logo for the Three… As to the truth of story, I’m not sure. But whether it’s on homage to Ommegangs brew, or is an attempt to get back at former employers, either way I think the comparison tends to lessen an otherwise good beer.

Draft at brewpub. Some light spices. Seme belgian spices but light. Sweet and almost fruity. Nice body and flavor is pretty good. Some alcohol present but balanced with the cotton candy smoothness and sugary sweetness.

Draught at Bar Great Harry. Fairly clear amber color with a frothy off-white head leaving webby lacing. Fruity and floral aromas of banana, pear and light honey with mild spice notes. Sweet bubblegummy flavor mostly. White pepper spiciness cuts through somewhat on the finish. Fine carbonation. OK, but no real magic or fireworks here.