7.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 9
Chewy, thick and sweet. A bit of a bubblegum aroma and flavor. Zingy, spicy yeastiness. Warm finish. Dark brown color with a light head.
Tried
on 15 Nov 2001
at 12:43
8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Slight haze, chestnut colour, fizzy carbo; deep nose - rich red malts, acid - very true to style. There is a good dose of acidity right off the bat, followed by a heavy tannic influence and light raisin; from there the reddish malt, acidity and wood all bounce around the palte. This is somewhere between the Rodenbach Red and Grand Cru, with a flavour so similar to the Red that you are forced to compare the two, but with a bigger body.
Tried
on 04 Nov 2001
at 23:14
6.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
The orange peel additions come across a bit lemony. Some spiciness is apparent. Otherwise clean malt flavors - soft. Light and refreshing. There's a slight bitterness in the finish. Lacking any yeast character - could use some more zestiness.
Tried
on 17 Sep 2001
at 08:53
6.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Great bronze color, with only a slight head and medium carbonation. Very slight aroma - hints at sour cherry. Vaguely sourish flavor, with a medium to light body. Very little cherry flavor; A bit of sweetness balances the sour, but neither trait is lambic like (not that it claims to be). Finishes mildly dry - cherries come through slightly the more you drink it, but are always restrained.
Tried
on 17 Sep 2001
at 08:35
8.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 9
Spicy banana and orange peel aroma. Yeasty, spicy finish with soft sweetness and a dry finish. A bit too much bitterness but overall very good. Orange-gold color. One of NB’s better beers.
Tried
on 10 Sep 2001
at 10:19
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Very nice and unique beer. A low gravity Belgian style single, with a definite funky Belgian yeast, mostly apparent in the nose: soft pear and bananish aroma with light acidity. Flavor though, is all PNW hops - which is what makes this beer unique. It has an excellent resiny hop flavor - though not as pronounced as an IPA - with light bitterness and a soft fruity flavor. Nice copper-gold color and lasting head.
Tried
on 16 Aug 2001
at 11:25
6.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
note of licorice and dried dark fruits in its spritzy body, finishing dry with some malty notes not unlike raisin toast.
Tried
on 14 Aug 2001
at 21:39
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Now I see why this brewery is so popular. This is an amazing and authentic abbey dubbel. Fruity and estery aroma and flavor: soft fruits, like pear and banana. Cloudy brown color with medium carbonation and head. Crisp, slightly acidic hints give it a slightly sharp mouthfeel. Slight rummy alcohol warmth in the finish.
Tried
on 13 Aug 2001
at 11:50
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Interesting and nearly unique beer. I say nearly because this is quite like a robust porter in many ways. Truly - drink it at 60 deg F or above to get the best depth of malt complexity. Not as spicy or funky as I expected from a Belgian style ale - I was expecting a porter with funky Belgian yeast - not so. Color is a very dark red, bordering on black but not opaque. I enjoyed the chocolatey overtones.
Tried
on 07 Aug 2001
at 11:41
2.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 1
Texture 2
Overall 2.5
My original text seems close, but the I cannot now understand my original 3.5 rating: This tastes like a very mediocre pale ale. Copper - amber color is nice. Light head. Bitterish hoppy aroma -lacking much malt. Flavor also lacks malt - there’s barely enough there to keep it balanced. Its more bitter than hoppy tasting. Good tasting and drinkable but not outstanding. A recent controlled bottle sampling confirms my impressions from various draft instances over the last couple of years. My palate hasn’t changed, and this drop in evaluation isn’t due to its pseudo-mass-market appeal, which I never allow to influence my subjective impression. However, this beer really sucks! The initial aroma is slightly orangey, which seems to come a little from the toasty malts and also from the small bite of aroma hops. The flavor however, is highly unbalanced. The malt is highly lacking, with a very thin mouthfeel. The hops are just awful as they stand out as the main flavor component. I’m guessing Northern Brewer (which I don’t care much for in the first place). The hop flavor and bitterness overwhelm with a woody, mushroomy wet-tennis shoe bite that makes this damn near undrinkable. How this beer, among so many others, has gained such wide appeal is utterly beyond me. Its not the light mouthfeel that gets me, its the horrendous hop related flavors.
Tried
from Can
on 07 Aug 2001
at 11:39