WESTMALLE TRIPEL

OK lets continue the Trappist tasting with another outstanding beer, this time from the Westmalle brewery.
Just 3 beers are produced, the dark 7% abv Dubbel, the golden 9.5% abv Tripel and also (like the orval below) a lower strength (5% abv) patersbier (monks beer) named Westmalle Extra. The abbey also produce their own milk and from this a semi-hard Trappist cheese.

First brewed in 1934 this was the first beer to be labelled as a Tripel, the current recipe dating back to 1956 - so folks here we have the Tripel Daddy.

Pours a hazy pale orange the glass is alive with streams of bubbles, topped with a creamy white head that slowly falls to leave behind a lasting thin covering.

Aroma is sweet, malty and fruity (bananas are prominent) with a hop bitterness on the finish. Beautiful creamy sweet flavour with a fruity / citrus (orange) edge, a dry hop bitter finish - and when I say finish I mean long finish, the carbonated mouthfeel lasts and lasts............the original Tripel and certainly amoungst the best.

Also note the same bottle (minus the label) is used at the other Trappist brewery Westvleteren.



http://www.trappistwestmalle.be/

ORVAL

Time I think for another Trappist beer and one that is instantly recognisable on any shelf, housed as it is in its "skittle" shaped 330ml bottle.

Brewed within the walls of the Abbay Notre-Dame d'Orval in the far south Gaume region of Belgium near the Luxembourg border, the brewery produces just two beers, Orval and Petite Orval.

Orval is the main brew and has been in production since 1931, where as the Petite Orval is a "patersbier" and at just 3.5% abv is brewed by the monks for their own comsumption, although not generally for sale it can be bought at the monastery itself or at the nearby cafe.

On with the taste, Orval pours a hazy bright amber with an impressive white creamy head that lasted and lasted, a beautiful looking beer.
Aroma is simply amazing, the glass explodes with pine, citrus, floral crisp hops, green apple but there's also a nice rounded sweetness to the finish.
Taste for a beer with 6.2% abv is outstanding, instantly tart with a dry hop bitterness, malty, sweet caramel citrus and a dry, spicy, refreshingly carbonated finish.

All in all this is ONE HELL of a remarkable beer, the recipe is simple - do one thing and do it right.


http://www.orval.be/an/FS_an.html
 

BUSH DE NUITS

The first oak aged beer on my blog comes from Wallonia's oldest brewery Brasserie Dubuisson.

Bush de Nuits starts its life as the Christmas beer Bush de Noel that is then matured for 6 months in large (228 ltr) Bourgogne oak barrels that once housed Cotes de Nuits from the world famous "Nuits St. Georges" vineyard - this is the brainchild of Hughes Dubuisson as a result of a wine buying trip to Burgundy.                          
The result, a beer with a whopping 13% ABV, packaged in 75cl screen printed bottles.

Pours a cloudy chestnut with a thin white head that as is to be expected with the high ABV very quickly fades to leave behind a constant ring.

Intriguing aroma that starts sweet and toffee like but then is vinous with red skin grapes and oaky tannins and a slight alcoholic sour note to finish.

Taste is not as sweet as the base beer, the oak ageing imparting a slight sour edge (and changing its character completely) rich caramel malts, wood, liquorice and dark tart fruits fill (morello cherries)your taste buds - with that a slight carbonated mouth feel and a long finish.

This is a method (oak ageing) that I feel will divide many people's opions, the oaky/wine taste may seem a little alien and miss-placed in a beer - me....I absolutely loved it and cannot wait to try again, this really does lift an already great beer to new heights.



http://www.br-dubuisson.com/

    
  

ULTRABRUNE

Pours a deep, dark brick red with a large and bubbly beige head that very quickly falls to leave a thin band. Aroma is wonderful, instantly rich toffee combined with malty dried fruits and a syrupy, spicy finish.....yum.

Taste is not as sweet as the aroma suggested, initial taste is of rich dark fruits (figs and raisins) then sweet roasted malts take over and then a slight hint of spice in the finish.

For a beer packing a 10% punch it is very smooth drinking with just the right balance of carbonation also hardly any alcohol is noticeable - yes it is there but more of a warming glow rather than roaring burn.


http://www.brasserieecaussinnes.be/             

SMISJE WOSTYNTJE

Like my previous entry from Smisje (Catherine) this is also a beer that sadly is no longer brewed, so each time one is tasted it's one crossed off forever.

Originating in 1995, the brewery was set up by former printer and home brewer Johan Brandt, Smisje started life as De Regenboog (the rainbow) the name of his former printing business and was located in the West Flanders town of Assenbroek, a suburb of Bruges. His first commercial beer was simply called 't Smisje (little blacksmith) the name of a local landmark blacksmiths house near the breweries original location.

In 2008 the brewery relocated to the village of Mater in Oudenaarde, East Flanders and with that move came a new name Smisje. Despite its small size Smisje kept a handful of beers in regular production but also a large variety of seasonal and commissioned brews - many of which feature honey, flowers, berries and spices, largely due to the fact that Johan is also a keen bee keeper.

Smisje Blonde - brewed with linden blossom
Honingbeer - brewed with honey
Sleedoornbier - brewed with sloe berries
Vuuvre - brewed with coriander and orange peel
Wostyntje - brewed with Tourhout mustard seeds
Guido - brewed with honey and raisins
BBBourgondier - brewed with valerian root and lemon balm

In 2010 it was announced that Johan would be discontinuing all the current line up and focus on a new hoppy blonde called Smiske, the only beer that would be saved is the Christmas brew now called KerstSmiske.


So now I open one of my two remaining bottles of Wostyntje, when will I open my last remaining bottle...I don't know, will I see it again on our next visit to Bruges.....I hope so.

Pours a hazy bright amber topped off with a huge, creamy, long lasting white head (like the Catherine it took 3 pours to fill the glass)
Interesting aroma of malts, bread, fruits, spice (mustard?) with a slight sharp hoppy finish.
Taste starts with yeast and sweet candy sugar then you get the mustard spice filling the mouth, along with it the heat - but more in the background, not smack you in the face (no this isn't a beer with a dollop of Colemans stirred in) the mustard is perfectly balanced, any more would render the beer undrinkable.


http://www.smisje.be/    

AFFLIGEM TRIPEL

This abbey beer is brewed by Affligem in the Flemish village of Opwijk, abbey beers differ from Trappist beers in the fact that they are made by commercial breweries under licence from an existing abbey or they may take the name of an abbey ruin for their beer - until the First World War the Affligem beers were in fact brewed at the Affligem monastery.


Pours a hazy amber with a small bubbly white head that quickly fades to a lasting thin ring.
Beautiful Tripel aroma of clove and banana but also yeasty with a sweet buttery caramel edge and a faint citrus finish.
Taste is initially fruity (tart apples/pears) and straw like then sweet caramel is detected with a crisp light bitterness cutting through to provide the perfect balance, the finish is long and dry........a cracker.






http://www.affligembeer.be/ 

SMISJE CATHERINE

Where as my previous entry from Oudenaarde brewery Smisje (the Xmas release Kerst) is a beer I'm glad to say that brew master Johan is continuing to produce - sadly however this is one that is no longer, lost during the transition from Smisje to Smiske.
Many others from the Smisje line up also disappeared...but I'm happy to say a lot of which I have safely stored away waiting for that special moment when I open them.

Right on with the tasting and my was this a lively one, pours a hazy dark brown with a slight red hue topped with a ferocious tan coloured head - so lively that i could only pour a third of the bottle in the glass before the towering head was threatening to overspill, the remaining contents took another two slow pours to empty into the glass - even then the head took a full 5 minutes to settle.

Aroma is oaky roasted malts, brown sugar, dark fruits, hops and spices . Taste is caramel fruity raisin, roasted liquorice, molasses and a bitter coffee note in the finish.
Classed as an Imperial Stout I feel that it's not quite roasted enough and maybe a little too sweet to be labelled so, but then seeing as Stouts aren't really my thing lets class it as an Imperial Belgian Dark Ale - that way this beer makes sense.          

http://www.smisje.be/