Sierra Nevada Stricklander

Brewed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Style: Abbey Tripel
Chico, California USA

Draft at Blind Tiger, NYC. Deep yellow to gold body. Frothy white head, mostly diminishing. Aroma of apple, orange, pear, honey with a hint of barnyard. Some notes of grain and spice. The flavor is moderately to heavily sweet, lightly bitter and lightly acidic. It finishes moderately sweet, lightly bitter and lightly acidic. Thin to medium body with moderate carbonation and a watery texture. Sierra Nevada’s marketing says, "This is a very limited draft production offering as we do not consider ourselves a Belgian Style Brewery." After having this beer, I can’t disagree. Way too sweet, not near dry enough, lacking aromas and flavors of spice, particularly clove.

(draft at Trinity in Colorado Springs). Clear, light amber color. Small white head. Light yeast aroma. Sweet candy-like flavor. Avg duration. Smooth finish. Thin texture. Moderate/fizzy carbonation. Fair lacing.

Growler filled at Bellport Cold Beer and Soda and consumed later the same day. Pours a crystal clear brilliant gold with a thin white head that disappeared after two sips and left scant lace. Pleasant aroma of Belgian yeast, lemon, and some mild spice. The flavor is very nice with fruity Belgian yeast, candi sugar, lemon and again some mild spice. Sweet, but not excessive. Mild bitterness at the finish. Enjoyable.

On tap at PP Carlsbad I believe. Poured an amber color; darker than expected. Aroma of sweet banana, yeast, wheat, fruit and spice. Flavor was very siilar; spice, banana, bubblegum, fruit, grapefruit and sugar. Unique grape like elements. Interesting beer. Quite tasty.

Slightly hazy light gold, good head. On tap at Taco Mac Metropolis in Atlanta. Aroma and flavors matched - honey accented malts with a bit of a cracker note, faintly floral hops showing through on the finish, but very faint. Belgian yeast spice notes. Enjoyable, a very good take on a style that American brewers tend to turn into sugar bombs.

On Tap at the GABF, Colorado Convention Center 24/09/2009 A little sweet malt aroma. White head. Clear golden coloured smooth on the palate strong in alcohol and malty with a crisp and slightly floral finish.

On tap at Taco Mac Metropolis! Transparent peach/gold color. Doesn’t have that haze appearance as some "triples" do. The head fades away quickly. Arima is rather weak. Kind of disappointed in the weak aroma. Yeast and fruit dominate. Flavor is better than the aroma. Big fruit yeast flavor. Seems a bit thin but actually has a decent palate. Just a weak interpretation of a tripel. Reminds me of a kids fruit juice drink except with alcohol. Not a very spicy flavor. Mostly impressed with the fruit and yeast. I think this is a weak attempt from Sierra Nevada. What the hell happened?

Name: Triple
Date: September 08, 2009
Mode: Draft
Source: Brouwer’s Cafe, Seattle
Appearance: clear gold, fine off white head, streaks of drippy lace
Aroma: sweet malt aroma, touch of candy sweetness, nice phenolic spicyness
Flavor: sweet malt flavor, lots of balancing spicyness, touch of candy sweetness, bitterness follows the spicyness
Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 14/20
Rating: 3.6/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: *** /4