t IJ Zatte

Brewed by Brouwerij ’t IJ
Style: Abbey Tripel
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Errr, ugh, what happened. I only got to try three of the ’t Ij brews and they started good but then plummeted with each succession. This I couldn’t stomach. I suspected yeast infection but the taste was distinct and not related to top fermenting yeast’s by-products. Yes, well, poured a cloudy, even muddy gold with, what was noticeable, very very fine streams of slow to release carbonation. Head rose, a rocky thick pad of beige foam that laced well. Nutty (peanut butter, Nutella™ maybe) aroma with some dank, stale white wine, dank wood, sweaty sock and a little ’too late to be picked’ fruit (I tasted this two months ago, my notes ramble the aroma and flavour, with much profanity, so I’ll keep it simple). Tart, puckering and astringent as the first mouthful enters and exits. A little sweetness dwells upfront. Dry in back, harsh, solventy. Heavily yeasty, soggy carpet here, dank, unclean, with a severe irreversible nutty edge. Higher alcohols play, as they will, this leaked raw alcohol especially at the swallow where it abetted notes of hazelnut praline, used band-aids and plasticine. What happened here. My notes were very long for this one yet I may be barred from using such comments on the site. Bad sample? my point of view? Or just a laxed Tripel? Not my thing!! (33cL, No.20, Int’l Beer Shop, W. Leederville)

Hazy golden color,nice off white head that had a good hang time then faded leaving a slight lace behind.The aroma was fruity with some good hints of citrus and light malt with maybe a slight sweet side voming through.The flavor was sweet and malty with a good citrusy side coming through to go along with a sort of heavy feeling on the pallate,i also detect a sort of metallic side in the finish but it’s not something that detracts from the over all flavor or experience of the brew.Very nice and well worth trying again.

Bottle. Medium white head upon a hazy golden/orange body. Fresh acidic fruit aromas; oranges, green apples and dried fruits. Flavor is sweet and fruity with yeast and spices. Nice long acidic/bitter finish. Alcohol is well hidden. Smooth mothfeel. Very nice.

Bottle sampled with Beerded_one. Pours hazy golden with a 2 finger thick white head with good retention. Aroma of fruit (almost lambic -like), citrus, belgian yeast and spices. The flavor is fruit, spices, yeast, some bitterness, and a small alcohol kick. Good body, good brew.

33 cl bottle. Slightly cloudy orange-yellow beer with a thick pillowy white head that lasts to the end of the bottle. Aroma is very spicy with notes of apricot, bread and honey. Flavour also shows a lovely bready complexity backing up peach, cinnamon and clove. A kiss of plummy flavour as well as the lighter fruity notes, apricot/peach, wheaty spice and a fairly full creamy body. Finishes slightly herbal with a lingering floral hop note over everything. Lovely brew.

Pours a slightly hazy deep gold into a tulip. Conglomerate head quickly recedes, but stays on the surface. Fruity apricot, green apple and bisquit aromas. Slick. Sharp fruit and caramel notes. Like a caramel apple. Lasting spicy apricot finish.

Hazy golden body with a large, tight beaded, white head. Aroma of some spice and also some fruit such as orange and maybe even passionfruit. Medium body, some cheese, some citrus notes and severeal other flavours, good carbonation and seems to have a long finish. Enjoyed this drop although my partner didn’t.

Following our relatively recent visit of Amsterdam, myself and my good friend McNick had three remaining bottles of ’t IJ’s offerings. What better than an afternoon triptych with some brilliantly crafted ales? Our first aspirant was the Zatte, exhibiting the consistently flawless beauty of ’t IJ’s brews in its slightly foggy acacia honey hue and fabulous flocculent foam. Sticky specks of lace cover the goblet as it engulfs my nose to reveal sweet melligenous scents flowing into fruity notes of apricot and orange peel. Nectarean yet spicy; were I more hirsute, one could have inadvertently confused me for a gargantuan bumblebee collecting its treasure. Coriander, nutmeg and white pepper in equal proportions lend to the complex fragrance. Also notable are corn flour and artichoke, the former characterizing the cereal tonality of tripels, the latter representing a vegetative aspect common throughout ’t IJ’s gamut. Spices dazzle the tongue with a dry blend of pepper, paprika and coriander to which the familial asparagus flavor confers a touch of the brewery’s unique character. Pineapple, perfume and Corn Flakes form an equally eclectic trio befitting the prickly palate and nearly absent alcohol. The sum can be gulped with no worry and plenty of punch - a top tripel, to be sure.