Ommegang Abbey Ale

Brewed by Brewery Ommegang (Moortgat)
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Cooperstown, New York USA

Pours a deep mahogany with a thick, lasting off-white head. Smells sweet with a bit of honey. Taste is delicious with a hint of bananas and other fruit. Aftertaste is mild with a bit of bitterness. Palate is good, silky with only a little hint of carbonation. Overall a great beer.

I first had it during a tasting and many times since. Caramel, cherry, plum, other fruity esters, bread, and spicy tinge to balance it out. Amber with a two finger head.

Bottle, cork’d and caged. Lots of people have been to Europe, and have attempted to bring the quality and honesty, back to the states. Ommegang scores big with a photographic tongue! A true delight from New York. Enjoy reasonably kids!

My love for Belgian beers is no secret. If I can try a Belgian brew or a Belgian inspired craft American brew, I am ready and willing with glass in hand. Today I have yet another spectacular example of a traditional Belgian Abbey Ale from the brewery Ommegang. Based in Cooperstown, NY, one would imagine they had stepped into another country if they were to visit the brewery. The architecture, styling, and set-up are just as it would be if one were at a brewery in Belgium.
My Abbey Ale poured a deep burnt amber with some light brown hues. A thick fluffy head tops her off, then fades into a soft layer on top while brussels lace trails the sides. I lift my glass to my nose to partake of the amazing bouquet of flavors. Sweet, caramelized sugar. Rich dark fruits such as figs, cherries, and prunes. Tender notes of herbs and a bit of apples and spice. As I enjoy my first quaff I am struck by how full her mouthfeel is. While still pleasantly effervescent, overall a heavier body. Smooth and sweet at first, a citric bitterness of lemon and grapefruit refreshes in the finish and brings me back for more. Up front are the dark fruits I smelled in her nose with prunes, dried cherries, and raisins being the predominant flavors in my Abbey Ale’s palate. A light layer coats my mouth and lingers long after each quaff. Already well balanced, there isn’t too much change in her overall temperament as she warms. If anything, a bit more malty and rich with the citric hop twang fading a bit further into the finish.
As rich as my Ommegang Abbey Ale sounds, she is actually very well-balanced with just the prefect amount of delicate sweetness which relies on her natural fruit flavors. Not artificially cloying or overpowering. An excellent abbey ale from Ommegang and a good started Belgian ale for those who are curious, but not ready for some of the darker richer Belgians such as a dubbel or a quadrupel.

Aroma reminded me of apple vinegar, with some crazy fruits in the aroma. Appearance is nearly red but reveals a more rusty color near the creamy head. Plums, caramel, and sweet malts round out the flavor, delicious. Palate comes on lively, almost burning, but dissipates quickly. A real nice job on a Dubbel by an American brewer.

Pours a deep amber color with a foamy, tan head. Smell is of sweat malt with many fruit notes intermingled. The malt caramel-like malt is the first flavor to hit the tongue followed by a slight alcohol presence. The fruitiness comes through in the finish to truly bring all of the flavors together. The carbonation is crisp and body is full but not thick by any means. This is a great sipper that I would gladly sip from again. Definitely a great pick. Reviewed on: 12-14-2007

Very tasty! I picked this up with BeerBaron617 at Trader Joes the other night. Did a beer review of it today, and we both decided that it was great. Anyhoo... It poured a hazy brown color with a toffee colored head. There was certainly some sediment and bubbly action going on in my glass. The aroma is sweet, a bit fruity, bread, and maybe apples. Tasted like melon and bananas. I really like this a lot! I will be getting this again!

Bottle. Poured a deep red-brown with a tan head. Aroma was dark but fruity, as was taste. Complex but still drinkable and tasty.