Westmalle Dubbel

Brewed by Brouwerij der Trappisten van Westmalle
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Malle, Belgium

Poured a dark brown; hints of red; murky. Not much head. Aroma of dark fruit, sweet, spice, sugar and yeast. Flavor was much of the same, but with noticable malt and caramel; bitter and spice finish. Mouthfeel was a little thin for my liking, but still good. Flavors blended well, but just didnt blow me away.

Was not what I expected, it was too light, perhaps I drank it a little warmer, but it was not as I have heard it is.

Nive heavy beer. A classic trappist. A little more easy to drink than eg. Westvleteren. I had this draught, which gives the beer a little more yeast-taste.

Rating #2 Bottle. A ruby brown color with a laced tan head. The aroma has roasted malts and banana. Alcohol, caramel and dry malt flavors. Rating #1 (7 3 7 4 16) Bottle @ Toronado. A ruby brown color. Ginger, brandy, dark malts, and wood. A smooth, rich full bodied beer.

Appearance: huge froth, to start, foamed everywhere, even over the keyboard, and ’scuse me while I mop up for a sec, will you, please? Okay, the beer’s calmed down a bit, and now we can judge it more suitably, perhaps...gorgeous garnet hue, nearly violet, deep ruby may be more like it, with a generous layer of foam atop, thick, plentiful, creamy, soupy, a dream to watch dwindle down... Aroma: like sticking one’s face deep down in a nest of ripe late-harvest fruits, and a bit from the vegetable side, too...a cornucopia in the nose, rich in cherries, and berries, grapes, and dates, and more that merely waits in the wings behind these major players...a deep, heady aroma, uplifting, otherwordly, luxurious! Damn, but it’s well past time to drink, isn’t it? Taste: smooth, mellow, but oh, so much flavor, too, too much going on, too, too delicious, and I don’t know where to start, actually, ...a rush of warmth, earthy fruitiness, plump and ripe and ever at home in the mouth. Mouthfeel? To capacity! Spices swim in, too, and envelope the senses, and dart about and add to the general sense of well-being felt everywhere that this brew touches. Another good gulp and I feel it again, this warm, spicy, earthy, deep, magical, tasty, fruity, magnificent....oh-my-goodness, sort of feeling...the malt is a wonderful buttress, and flavor-leader, too, but the hops, are a major contributor,as well, leading me to say, "screw it all, this is a perfectly integrated blend of all that’s great in beer-land, isn’t it?" I have more to drink from this bottle, too, and could more, possibly, be gleaned from the last remaining drops that may color my perceptions before this sampling is done? Did I leave out minor notes of nuts and cocoa and coffee, just a stitch? But the point’s made already, that this is among a rare subset of sublimity, and is so gorgeous that one is better off encountering it on rare occasions to make the meeting more special every time, I says.

This one went down a treat, deep ruby red body with a large tan coloured head, not a strong aroma attached to this at first but it gathers strength as it warms - malt, broth and rich fruit. The taste doesn’t jump out at you but it is very smooth and medium in body, alcohol is pleasant, texture is a little syrupy with all the characters in the aroma presenting themselves well in the taste. Cheers.

Brownish reddish, slightly murky, decent head. Aroma was a bit raisiny and yeasty. Flavor was sort of vaguely of dark fruits and some yeast. Seemed a bit thin overall. Carbonation was biting. While not a bad beer, it came up sadly short in a number of areas when it could have been so much more.

Robust vinous aroma with dried fruits, roasted malts, and hints of chocolate, and banana yeasts. Cloudy orange and amber colors with a delicate light tan head. Yeasty, slightly sour and astringent. Dry. Has milky flavors. Lots of milk? Some roasted notes. Improves as it warms.