Tripel Karmeliet

Brewed by Brouwerij Bosteels
Style: Abbey Tripel
Buggenhout, Belgium

33cl, from De Hopduvel Gent, very complex brew, good balance, hazy, rocky head, very good brew, one of the best blonde Belgian ales, a topper!

Taste 7/8 bottle (07 I H) In my Tripel Karmeliet glass. Looks: Caramel, with a nice white foam. Aroma: Orange, wheat, florals. Very nice aroma. Taste: Spicy, orange, plum, nice little alcohol tinge. Creamy, good carbonation. Nice ratio of sour to malt body and hops finish. Oats add a nice silkiness and body to control the sweetness. Very good beer.

Here’s a beer of many flavors. This deep gold brew, with traces of pomegranate edges, speaks softly and carries a big punch. A thin soft head, butter, mandarin orange, wheat, peach, apricot, all-spice and graham cracker for a nose, this thing is everything but pungent at first. But the Tripel Karmeliet is a highly, highly carbonated brew. So much so that I have to wait for its temper to settle. Once I do, I get a heavy graininess with pinches of clove again and a bit of the orange dryness. A bit too furious for me. August 18th Update - The Tripel Karmeliet is a lesson in perfect balance and harmony. I don’t always comment on the balance of a beer, and when I do it’s usually in regard to an unfortunate imbalance. But the Triple Karmeliet is remarkable in that every sip was a proclamation to the art of hitting the sweet spot in a beer - the Tiger Woods shot in golf that sings. This beer sings, and sings beautifully. A thin, tan head swells from the beer, leaving behind trails of spaced lacing as it urgently recedes back into the glass. The richly orange and muddy beer underneath is a willing receptor for the retreating foam, giving off a wonderful perfume in exchange. The sweet and estery aromas that give the trippel style its signature scent reach the nose first, with a well-hopped body and a well weighted floral component and banana touch sanding this beer’s jagged edges into a perfectly smooth curve of balance. The oat taste and ester-sweet aromatics draw me quickly to the glass. The flavor seems watery, but paradoxically, not weak. The balance of sweet and dry really shines. In my notes I write, "Good, great, GREAT balance!" as the paramounce of what’s been accomplished in this beer take on its full weight. A white wine taste covers both ends of the spectrum, with the grains pairing against a deep honey sweetness. It’s not an intricate flavor, but it’s good, and again, balanced within microns of perfection. The Triple Karmeliet would put the Hubble telescope’s manufacture to shame. As the Triple Karmeliet warms, the alcohol becomes more prominent, bringing with it ever greater tastes if grain. A testament to proper yin and yang. BUMP IN SCORE

Bottle at Århus Ølfestival 2008. Pours a clear clear yellow with a small white head. Aroma is flowery and yeasty. Flavour is sweet, flowery, fruity and yeasty.

Golden pour with a full fluffy white head. Aroma of coriander, some orange peel. Flavors include sweet non-fermented malt, coriander, and a lot of other spices, maybe cinnamon? Also some notes of oats and wheat in the finish. Good carbonation. Alcohol is also well hidden. Good brew. Would buy again.

Bottle at Quinns, 26th April 2008 with Mes and reakt. Golden with a good white head. Grainy aroma and a standard sweet, soft citrus-tinged flavour, but enlivened by a great aniseed and fennel hit at the back of throat. Nice stuff.

12oz bottle. dark golden pour, huge white fluffy head, even after chilling for some time. carbonation is high, slight cloudiness is enjoyable for the eye- visible yeast floaters too. flavor is nicely balanced; fruity and also spicy with a nice hops presence. Overall, a great beer I wouldn’t mind enjoying again, even at 4.50 per bottle!

On draught at the Map Room in Chicago. Golden yellow color with big frothy white head. Nice aroma of sweet sugar and citrus and spices. Sweet taste with floral accents. Fizzy, sticky mouthfeel, very smooth. A great tripel!