t Smisje + Dubbel IPA

Brewed by Brouwerij De Regenboog
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Assebroek-Brugge, Belgium

33 cl bottle from Le Vaudree II, Liege: poured cloudy yellow with a huge rocky off white head. Big yeast and herbaceous hop aroma. ome barnyard notes. Taste is very yeasty with light citrusy hops and massive bitterness. This is not an American DIPA if that’s what you’re looking for..

Bottled. Golden coluored. Unclear. Dense and frothy off white head. Yeast, elderberry, light banana, loads of sweetness and some stearin notes in the aroma. flavour of alcohol, sweetness, yeast, some light herbs and again some elder. Medium bodied. Dry. Light bitter end with a lot of sweetness. More of a belgian ale than a DIPA IMO. Still a quite decent brew though, with a high drinkability.

Botella. Vintage 2007. Cloudy deep golden colour withy a huge creamy and rocky white long lasting head leaving a very nice sticky and creamy lacing. The aroma has a pleasant sweetness with yeast and hops along with ripe fruits and spices. Good mouthfeel. The flavour is quite sweet with ripe fruits and yeast, some spice, alcohol, hops and a pleasant bitterness. Dry bitter sweet finish.

Bottle. Pours yellow with big white head. Citrus, hoppy nose. Fresh fruits in taste with spices from the belgian yeast and lots of hops and citrus. Very enjoyable.

(Bottle) Pours hazy orange amber with a small off-white head. The aroma is medium hoppy, yeasty and spicy/herbal with tones of orange (peel), mild lime, new cut grass, mild white pepper, mild nutmeg and parsley. The nose is quit green with notes of meadow and fresh vegetables. Undertones of, bananas, apples, creamy dough and toast. The flavour is of toasted malt, orangey, grassy and herbal hops, doughty/nutty yeast and some sticky, sugary notes. Bit spicy and “green” in the flavour as well. The bitterness and the alcohol melt together in a rather bad way, leaving a quite sharp and sterile afterbitterness. The mouthfeel is soft and round with a sticky touch but the unpleasant bitterness and alcohol kills it. Bitter aftertaste. Medium sweet and medium bitter. Medium to full bodied.

Draft at ’t Brugs Beertje: Cloudy copper orange with a very tall, very creamy, yellowed head. Surprising banana aroma with some citrus fruit and earthy and citrus hops. Also an oddly metallic hop note. Flavor is nicely hoppy with some yeast derived spice and citrus fruit. Mix of noble and American "C" hops? Quite spicy. Slighty resinous. Decent and definitely interesting.

330ml Bottle - Hazy golden in colour. The aroma is biscuity and hoppy with some peaches and grapefruit thrown in. The taste is bitter and fruity with some peach and grapefruit being noticed again. A nice hoppiness which is very noticeable yet not overwhelming. Not bad.

In short: A disturbing weird extra-yeasty beer of some kind. This ain’t a Double IPA.
How: Bottle, sample at Mondial de la Bière 2008
The look: A very ugly pale white-yellow body with a medium fluffly white head
In long: Nose is lactic and meringue, weird but not completely unpleasant. Taste if off, way off. I don’t know how to describe it. My notes say I had vegetables notes, extreme yeastiness, old milk, old floury banana cake, spicy hops and to top it all off some sea food!! Whatever. I don’t know what that crap is but it’s not Double IPA. Disgusting. Whoever at Regenboog decided to call it a Double IPA needs to get out more often... and not bring beer with him.