Southampton Golden Valley Trappist Pale Ale

Formerly brewed at Southampton Publick House
Style: Belgian Ale
Southampton, New York USA

This beer rocks! Cloudy, golden ale with a large, rocky, off-white head. The nose is fruity and tart. Spicy and earthy. Very complex and Geueze-like. Citrus fruit, yeast, banana, green apple and oak. Just an awesome aroma! Nicely balanced and full of flavors. Very yeasty with citrus undertones. Medium-bodied with a creamy mouthfeel and soft carbonation. Short, desert-dry finish. Damn fine beer!

Pours a mild cloudy golden with a thick lacy white head. Aroma is loaded with dry Belgian malts. Dry, semi-sweet body has a powerful lingering floral hop quality, but could use more Belgian malty balance. An interesting style to say the least and fairly well done, but I’m not sure if it couldn’t use some tweaking.

Pale cloudy orange. Little head, not stable. Very fruity nose, citrus, passionfruit, obviously very fruity yeast - a tad too exotic for a Belgian trappist... Taste is meaty, fruity, yeasty. A bit phenolic. Mouthfeel - its strength. Very dry, giving a perfect counterbalance for the fruitiness of the flavour. I pick up very little Brett, if any at all. Yet it is used. If Orval is the target - long way to go still. Problem is Orval is a very mixed batch of yeaststrains. This beer is complex, but not yet in the Orval way.

Poured golden with a medium white head. Aromas of barnyard, leather, and sourness. Flavors are complex citrusy, sour, spicy, and bitter. Medium bodied, fizzy carbonation and a crisp finish.

It just so happens that the word "Orval" means "Golden Valley". Well, I didn't immediately bring that association to mind when drinking this beer, but one's appreciation for this beer may be enhanced by that. Luminescent orange-amber color with a good head. Light aroma and flavor, somewhat like a Belgian blonde. Banana, hoppy bitterness building and beginning to overwhelm some of the potentially more subtle things to find in a beer like this. Unfortunately it didn't reach the balance that was necessary. (on tap, d.b.a., Manhattan)

GABF 2003: Dark amber color with a good white head. Spicy malt aroma, gets less sweet as you swallow and ends dry with a touch of sweetness.

This beer pours a hazy yellow with a quickly disappating white head. The flavors start out slightly sour, but they smooth out. The mouthfeel is full. Once this beer go going, it was quite enjoyable.

Bottle conditioned: Hazy light copper. White, spongy foam. Airy, earthy aroma. Mint leaf, cilantro, fresh hopsack, leather, abundant Saaz, grainy, flowers, faint bready yeast traits, and lemon zest. Massively dry-hopped. Trace of perfume, chalk, phenol, and melon. Expansive carbonation. Less fluffy than Orval, and a tad thicker. Jam-packed with leathery, medicinal flavors. Lovely subtleties of white grape, toasted coconut, soil, and bitter leaf notes. Stunningly delicious blend of leather, medicine, and juicy hops. And the bready yeast notes impart incredible depth with a mild cotton candyish tendency. Elegant finish with a gentle clean, bready, yeasty, grainy malt backdrop paired with a round, juicy Styrianish profile. An absolute masterful recreation of the world-classic Orval.