Two Brothers Oh Brother! Tripel Ale

Brewed by Two Brothers Brewing Company
Style: Abbey Tripel
Warrenville, Illinois USA

22 oz bottle from DiCarlos Armanetti in Mundelein, IL, (Dec 2005) drunk at cellar temperature from a La Chouffe glass at home. Pours with a smallish lasting snowy head atop a dark golden-amber translucent body....little lace or yeasty chunks apparent....middle-of-the-road sweet/sour aroma, with a bit of orangepeel and sourdough, little dusty-old yeast but really nothing to remember....mouthfeel fairly neutral with light yeastiness, medium body and a little syrupy/sticky character....flavor rather pedestrian, lightly orangey-peppery, bit of sourness and yeast....ehhh, hard to come up with anything to say, perhaps some sour apple as well towards the finish, yes that’s it, more tart than most at the end but really it doesn’t add up to anything significant, another attempt from these fine Illinois boys at something special that is just...adequate.

Not quite straw and too light for golden, a liquid that is quite yellow and orange in color. A slight haze. Head diminishes rather quickly leaving a ring and thin lid of tiny bubbles. Interesting aromas, with mild attic dust, light fruit and touch of marzipan. It does make your nose work. Does seem very light on the palate with a small bubble lift off the tongue. I must use the word interesting again. Quite dry for a tripel. Some more dust, along with with light citrus, and a honey dryness. Has some sparkling mead qualities. Light spice note mid quaff. Not a lot of malt flavors floating about in this one. more white vinous qualities. It does not fit the triple style that well, but it sure fits the belgian strong category.

Deep clear gold. Nose spicy, a bit musty, some orange and lemon. Very thick and syrupy, a bit off-putting. Flavor is tart and sour, sugars are a bit muted, quite a bit of spice. Very fruity. Between the odd flavor profile and the syrupy character, this pretty much bites as a tripel.

Hazy yellow gold out of the bottle, with a thin white head and a nose of stale white wine. This beer has a sour tang to it that I do not prefer. Flavor is of old lemon rinds, old apricots, and very old strawberries. The finish is of white grapes and yesterday’s white wine. This may have suffered because it followed so much Thanksgiving champagne, but it is still not a great triple.

Courtesy of Pialhead. Pours dark golden yellow with no head. Muted fruity aroma with slight alcohol. Very sweet le,om like flavor with some spice through the middle. Flavor is very one dimensional, but for some reason I’m o.k. with that.

Hazy burnt orange with a medium white head. Candy sugar, cirtrus and yeast in the nose. Flavour is apricots, malts and orange with some good spicyness. Good alcohol, orange and spice, quite a nice effort, very belgian, though I’m not sure it’s a trippel.

Hazy orange-yellow beer with fine creamy froth. Aroma is outspoken fruity, its like smelling the dough of a unbaked lemoncake. There are soft yeasty accents with touches of abricot, peaches, Clementines in syrup (canned version Del Monte) dried orange skin, soft spices and fat yoghurt with fresh pieces of pineapple. The taste is Cake like and very fruity. It has hints of malts, milkbread, confit d’orange, masis banda, apricot chutny, white candi sugar, sultanas, and some mascarpone cheese. The hops are allmost not detectable but gives this brew an extra touch. Huge thanks Denton (Jokes) for sending me this most original brew.

Light-orange beer, very sparkling hue, some hazyness; good white head, fine and with slightly orange taint. White candy sugar, as well as the inevitable citrus. Fruity and vinous nose, dried apricots, botrytis. Dry orange peel, touch of spiciness, tinned mandarine parts on juice, and I cannot exactly place the spice. Quite dry, whilst spritzy MF despite little visible carbonation. Very original taste - even when I would rather call it Belgian strong ale than a classic tripel. Fusel alcohols, real ethanol is very well hidden. Big thanks to Lachesis, who brought me what Jason and Jim didn’t - but it’s great, brothers!