De Achelse Kluis Gallant Grand Cru Special

Gallant Grand Cru Special

 

De Achelse Kluis in Hamont-Achel, Limburg, Belgium 🇧🇪

  Belgian Style - Strong Ale Special
Score
7.55
ABV: 9.5% IBU: - Ticks: 15
Achel Gallant Grand Cru Special is een blond speciaalbier dat wordt gebrouwen met toewijding en met een blend van drie natuurlijke granen – gerst, tarwe en haver. Daarnaast is het verrijkt met een uniek ingrediënt: paarse heidebloemen, die overvloedig gedijen in het betoverende natuurgrenspark De Groote Heide, waar De Achelse Kluis de poortwachter van is.

Het resultaat is een gloednieuw, eigentijds brouwsel met een rijke en eigenzinnige smaak, afsluitend met een buitengewoon zachte afdronk.
 

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9
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 9 | Overall - 9.5

Proefglas tijdens het 23ste Bierpassieweekend in Antwerpen gedeeld. Zacht, fruitig, yeasty, banaan, citrus, sinaasappel, lichte honingtonen, licht kruidig, licht bloemig. (22-6-2924).

Tried from Bottle on 22 Jun 2024 at 06:11


7.5
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Three-grain tripel (barley, wheat and oats) flavoured with heather blossoms created as a tribute to Marc Gallant, the former abbot of the Achelse Kluis abbey who decided in 1998 to recreate the Achel trappist beer brand (which had been discontinued since the First World War); last year, after the departure of the last trappist monk, Achelse Kluis ‘de facto’ ceased to be a trappist abbey and the whole operation, including the brewery, became a secular one, run by entrepreneur Jan Tormans. It was his idea to pay tribute to Marc Gallant with this flavoured tripel, shared with Craftmember and Jo at home. Thick and foamy, egg-white, pillowy, plaster-like lacing head over an initially clear, pure ‘old golden’ beer with lively sparkling everywhere and pale orangey glow, turning misty further on. Aroma of drying white bread, ripe pear, young ‘graanjenever’, field flowers (or indeed dried heather blossoms), linseed, green apple, halfripe banana, wet white pepper, clove, honey. Sweetish, fruity onset, hints of pear, apple and banana again but not over the top, with some honeyish residual sweetness persisting over a smooth, fizzily carbonated middle, built from sweetish pale malts with a light wheaty slickness and indeed oaty velvetiness supporting it. Notable floral, herbaceous notes in the end – some natural clove-like phenol, but also the heather flowers, perhaps not easily recognisable as such but certainly recognisable as an added ‘florality’ in general, matching with a gentle floral hop bitterness. Warming ‘jenever’-like alcohol ensues, heating the throat a bit – and frankly becoming just a tad too astringent. Sparkly, spicy, warming tripel reminiscent of Tripel Karmeliet in more than one way; the heather flowers add a delicate but quite noticeable floweriness and herbalness to it all, but the alcohol could have been better hidden even at this ABV. Solid tripel for sure, but not quite a match for the former Achel Extra Blond or Achelse Zomer, (more or less) equally strong tripels created when Achelse Kluis was still a trappist brewery (even if the actual brewing was done by laymen).

Tried on 28 May 2024 at 18:25


7.6
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle. Color: Clear golden, white head. Aroma: Malty, floral. Taste: Malty, subtle floral and herbal / spicy notes of the heather. Hoppy backbone. Moderate sweet, light to moderate bitterness. Medium body, average carbonation. Nice.

Tried from Bottle on 28 Apr 2024 at 14:13


7.8
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

75cl bottle from the De Achelse Kluis bottle shop as my beer #3500 from Belgium. F: big, white, almost good retention. C: gold, light hazy. A: malty, peach, floral, violet, light herbal, banana, apples. T: full malty base, floral, violet, banana, red apples, light bready, light herbal, perfumed, nice balanced bitterness, medium carbonation, delicious, enjoyed.

Tried from Bottle on 27 Feb 2024 at 18:55


7.4
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

15/I/24 - 75cl bottle from Colruyt supermarket (Lochristi), shared @ Syntra Zytho class (Ghent), BB: 31/XII/25 (2024-34)

Clear orange blond beer, creamy white head, stable, non adhesive. Aroma: ripe to unripe banana, a bit malty, floral, honey, sweet impression, caramel. MF: ok carbon, medium body. Taste: alcohol, sweet start, yeasty, banana, some honey, sugary, more alcohol, ripe banana. Aftertaste: gentle bitterness, sweet, alcohol, banana, yeasty, a little soapy, floral, honey.

Tried from Bottle on 15 Jan 2024 at 19:00