One of the hoppy variations on the old Blondine, a tripel that has been made for the Hopduvel in Ghent for many, many years; stumbled upon this tick by coincidence at Warempel restaurant in Ghent, otherwise not really a very 'beery' place. Thick and frothy, eggshell-white, fluffy, somewhat irregularly edged, stable head on a misty golden blonde beer with peachy tinge. Aroma of orange zest, banana, white bread, dried lemon peel, cooked apples, grass, peach, bitter garden weeds, pineapple. Fruity, crisp onset, banana, peach and pineapple impressions, sweetish with lively carbonation, stinging and a bit minerally and souring at first (typical blonde Belgian ale, I reckon), soft and rounded mouthfeel, bready and bit honeyish-sweetish maltiness. Mildly citric accents from the Amarillo do show up towards the finish, orange-zesty and dried lemon peel-like, with some rooty bitterness all the way at the back; however, this 'citrusiness' and bitterness isn't as bright and powerful as it could (and should) have been, since malt sweetness, banana ester and some lingering bready yeastiness keep prevailing. Very 'careful' again, as if not to shock the average Belgian palate - this would have been so much better if the Amarillo really had gotten a chance to shine, but that said, this is a very pleasant and correctly made Belgian style strong blonde all the same.

On ne peut pas dire que cette Hopduvel mette réellement l’amarillo en valeur. Nous ne sommes pas loin du ratage tout de même avec une bière peu équilibrée. Blond orangé légèrement voilé en verre, grosse bulles et mousse blanc cassé de 5 mm, rien de sensationnel, mais rien de catastrophique. Le nez reste très clairement fermé sur le miel, les agrumes et de surprenants arômes de framboise. L’attaque commence sur une amertume légèrement agressive et des arômes moyennement intenses de pamplemousse, d’épices et un léger miel. Les arômes se développent quelque peu en seconde bouche qui est la plus intense et la plus dense sans réussir à trouver l’équilibre. L’amarillo n’y est pas bien utilisé. Les arômes y sont les mêmes qu’à l’attaque avec une amertume toujours agressive faisant davantage que ses 41 d’IBU, notamment avec un sucre peu présent. L’alcool s’y ressent également un peu trop, pour de plus ne même pas réussir à tenir la longueur avec un final qui s’écrase sur des arômes de pamplemousse et d’épices. L’arrière bouche ne vient pas sauver l’ensemble, peu ample, elle est de plus sur des arômes linéaires. Un gâchis d’amarillo.

F: huge, egg-white, not long lasting. C: deep gold, hazy. A: malty, bit citrus, coriander, floral, soapy, dough. T: malty, orange peels, bit alcohol, coriander, bit tangerine, medium body and carbonation, not very good balanced lack some more hoppy character, 33cl bottle BB: 01/2019, from Bierwinkel De Hopduvel in Gent.

Bottle @ weekly tasting shared with Thompson. Hazy orange color, medium sized white to off-white head. Smell and taste malts, slightly hops, a hint of citrus and light to average bitterness. OK body and medium carbonation. Hmm hate to say it, but just not very good.

330 ml. bottle @ home. Purchased @ De Hopduvel. BBF 08/2016. Hazy bright golden, very solid small lightly lacing white head. Nose is hugely soapy, overly so with bitter esters with milky yeast, doughy, maybe some of the hop underneath that with an odd strong coriander-like note. Taste is milky, yoghurt, ester-rich, hugely soapy beer with soapy dough, yohurty yeast, light booze & coriander-like note. Body is milky. Technically perfect but neither what I expect from an IPA nor what I enjoy drinking. Way too much soap & milky yoghurt + ester notes for me. Too much common dominator I suppose. Overly Belgian, way below the Chinook version for me.

330ml bottle from holidaying friend. Pours hazy golden amber, thick white head. Aromas of spicy yeast esters, overripe cirrus. Taste has a tripel quality, bread and spice and lightly boozy. Grapefruit and pineapple in the mix. Lacking a middle. Bitter finish.

Imported from my RateBeer account as Hopduvel Blondine Amarillo Single Hop IPA (by De Graal):
Aroma: 7/10, Appearance: 3/5, Taste: 6/10, Palate: 3/5, Overall: 13/20, MyTotalScore: 3.2/5

19/IX/14 - 33cl bottle from De Hopduvel (Gent) @ my parents in law's place - BB: VIII/2016 (2014-1017)

Little cloudy deep blond beer, big creamy yellowish head, pretty stable, bit adhesive. Aroma: very floral, bit fruity, soapy, little spicy. Not what one would expect from an ipa? MF: ok carbon, medium body. Taste: citrus, bit grassy, pretty bitter, soapy, bit unpleasant, lemony touch. Aftertaste: very bitter, soapy, bit piny, grassy hops, resinous touch. Weird, last version was very good, this one seems to lack a certain ipa character.