Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7.5

Dubbel by a microbrewery in Houffalize in the Belgian Ardennes, apparently already active since 2019, but completely unknown to me until last week. Quite a gusher, streaming out of the bottle neck, so be ware when opening this one. Thick and foamy ‘gusher head’, pale greyish beige, large-bubbled and coarse yet quite stable; very dark ‘dirty’ chestnut brown robe, almost blackish, with burgundy glow. Aroma initially dominated by sharply piercing carbon dioxide but when this fades, yielding impressions of old brown bread, dry earth, damp tree leaves, cloves, dried blackberries, nutmeg, old coffee grounds, bitter garden weeds, minerals, wild mushrooms and a touch of iron. Very spritzy onset, clearly overcarbonated and almost painfully stinging at first; sweetish dried fig and prune notes with a sourish undertone and a somewhat ‘dirty’ feel, which together with the gushing clearly hint at onsetting infection. Brown-bready malt core with notes of old roasted chicory and dry caramel, dryish with a bitter tail but also slightly metallic edges; pronounced retronasal clove- and nutmeg-like phenols, fortunately not becoming too meaty or – worse – medicinal. Very earthy finish, ‘muddy’ yeastiness, very leafy bittering hops accentuating the overall dryness of this beer, and lingering breadiness and toastiness. Typical Walloon ‘brune’, with a drier, more roasty, earthier and yeastier profile than the average Flemish or Dutch dubbel – the roasty element and hop bitterness both pronounced enough in this case that brown porter springs to mind; I can certainly appreciate this approach, but the gushing and overall ‘dirtiness’ clearly point at bacterial interference which should not be present and which is an issue that I think needs to be addressed.

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 4 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Brassigaume 2023. Hazy golden beer with a off white head. Aroma of sweet grainy malt, cereals, yeast. Taste of vegetables, belgian yeast, herbs, spicy bitter hops.

Sampled @ Brassigaume 2022. A clear golden beer with a white head. Aroma of mild sweet and fruity pale malt, yeast. Taste of mild sweet and herbal wheat malt, spicy bitter hops.

Sampled @ Brassigaume 2022. A hazy yellow golden beer with a white head. Aroma of mild sweet grainy malt some honey and yeast. Taste of herbal pale malt, straw, honey, ginger.

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

Heller Hefiger Beginn. Wenig würzig, moderat bitter, kräutrig, milde Herbe. Leicht würzig, mittellanger Abgang, gut trinkbar. 10/8/8/8/8/8

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

50cl bottle. A clear golden beer with a white head. Aroma of sweet pale malt, staw, honey, mild belgian yeast. Taste of typical belgian yeast, sweet pale malt, honey, some herbs.

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

50cl bottle. A clear deep amber beer with a beige head. Aroma of caramel, brown malt and mild hazelnuts. Taste of caramel, red malt, brown malt, some red fruits, high carbonation.

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 5.5 | Texture - 5 | Overall - 5.5

Erhöhte Karbonisierung. Karamellmalziger Beginn mit weicher Herbe. Trocken würzig, geringe Bitterkeit, die starke Karbonisierung stört. Langer malzig-herber Abgang. 10/9/8/9/8/8