Sigmund (14587) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 22 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 10 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9.5
(330 ml bottle). Cloudy deep golden with an enormous creamy head. Intense, overwhelming but lovely aroma of ensilage, horse stable, leather and spicy fruit cake. Spicy complex flavour, hops stand out, dry aftertaste. Clearly a world class beer.
Silphium (4308) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 22 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
I did not find this light copper-colored Belgian "intensely aromatic," as described, but there was a floral, fruity, almost vinous nose that became more apparent as the ale warmed. Flavor was likewise a bit vinous, with fruit and a hint of spice along with hops. Dry, but not overly so.
beastiefan2k (4724) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 22 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8
Nice brownish hue with a good looking foam and lots of carbonation upon pouring. I have had this beer twice and it does seem better the second time around but i really do not see why this belgian is any better than any other trappist.7/5/7/4/15.
5 year old bottle (best before 6/12/2006) graciously gifted by Willblake, thanks Jon. Labeled 6.9%. Pours with a large head into my small tulip glass but the foam quicly dissipates into a strong lacing. Color is deep amber, slight copper. Lots of clarity surprisingly. Aroma is nice sour brett with a slightly milky, earthier feel then I am used to. Taste is very original, kind of earthy, toasty but with a slight overall belgian feel. Mouthfeel has nice lively carbonation with s spikey mouthfeel and a medium body.9/4/7/4/16
Notes from about 5 months ago, bottled on 31/01/2006 so it was about 8 months old at the time. Poured into large rounded wine glass. Present brett out of the bottle, not overpowering, just tells you its there without being overarching. Some tart cherry aroma. Taste is very dry and slightly acidic. Just a bit of bitterness in the end.9/3/7/3/16
Almost an 8 year old bottle, best before 04/09/2005, label states 6.9%. the nose is so amazing, lots of brett but its not super strong or anything. Pineapple, light orange, light spoiled citric fruit, and some other funk. Still seems so fresh and the brett is not overbearing. There is kind of muskiness to it as well. Taste is best ever with a light sweet mandarin, a very light fruit citric syrup. It finishes very dry and has a light pity citric funk. Leaves an awesome feel on the cheeks, tickles a bit yet just comforting light sweetness. This is the best bottle I have ever had. I could guess it has some age just from the light spoiled fruit and syrup-like aspect flavor but it is still amazingly alive and funky. 10/4/8/4/17.
Overall: Funny early rating. I liked the fruitiness present in the fresher bottle but I also like the strong brett that developed in the aged bottles. Always a great aroma and everything seems to get better with age.
jgb9348 (11828) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 22 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 4 | Overall - 7
Bottle #3, Rated in Belgium:
Deep honey coloured body with a super dense tan head. Aroma of wheat, sour grapes, hay, grass and some light honey too. Medium-bodied; Strong malty flavour body with a good deep spice and hop freshness, covered by a deep roasted sugar sweetness. Aftertaste stays strong - good sweetness and malt all flavoured by a still pungent metallic hop twang. Overall, I must still not ’understand’ this beer - but this one is better than the bottles I’ve had stateside. I sampled this 33 cL bottle purchased from just a corner store in Bruxelles, Belgium on 01-January-2008.
Rating for this sample: 7,4,7,3,14
Bottle #2:
Hazy golden colour, a bit of orange highlighting. Smells of gum, sourness and a bit of spice. Light-bodied; Mellow taste, not too flavourful but a decent bottle. Aftertaste a bit mellow and subtle. Overall, decent but not great! Rating for this sample: 9,4,6,2,12.
Bottle #1:
Slightly hazy appearance with colours ranging from bright orange to darker amber. Very thick head which is slightly tan coloured, but a definately great looking beer. Very normal smelling beer, somewhat reminiscent of a sour fruit. The flavour is very weak and quick. The beer is very carbonated but the aftertaste is very drying. Perhaps this beer is old, as my local beer shop is known to keep very old beers. I’ll try this again, as I don’t think this is exactly how the beer is supposed to taste. Rating for this sample: 7,5,6,2,14.
Ungstrup (52110) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 22 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8
An unclear orange beer with a fantastic head. The aroma is sweet with notes of fruit, orange, and other spices. The flavor is sweet with notes of orange, fruit, yeast, cinnamon, and other spices. It ends on a nice bitterness combined with an acidic note. A great beer - but not the best of the trappists.
An early ’90’s bottle - best before 10/12/93 and at 5.2% ABV, sampled in 2010. An unclear dark golden with a fine off-white head. The aroma has notes of lemon, brettanomyces, and lacto acid. The flavor is very dry with notes of brettanomyces, some wood and lemon on a lightly malty back ground, leading to a dry and lightly tart finish. I prefer them fresher (hophead), but it sure holds up 7/3/7/3/14=3.4
fiulijn (28382) reviewed Orval Vert / Petit Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 23 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 8
Light amber color; generous creamy head, incredible lace.
The classic Orval aroma, hoppy, herbal, almost spicy.
Weak body strength; less bitter and dry than Chimay Dorée, but much better hop character, difficult to describe as it is unique, easy to define as it is Orval !!.
Absolutely drinkable; wonderful style, I love it. Thanks Jacob.
Sloefmans (15389) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 23 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 10
Very thick head, collapsing but stable; typical orangey colour. Nose is bitter as from vegetables, spices, flowers. Taste starts immediately very bitter, but as a combination of hop-, vegetable- and flowery bitter. There IS a balance by malt, with hints at sweetness, without ever becoming so. Aroma''s retronasal of mandarine-zest, hop shoots, and olives without the oil. Carbonation is perfect; milder form of ''Champenoise'' pearl)forming, as with naturally mild-carbonated springwater. Neither chewy, neither watery.No new aftertaste, bitterness lingers on. Drinkability is second bar none: the ultimate Belgian session beer. there''s richness, depth and easy drinking for whatever mood one''s in. Unparallelled.
TimE (11146) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 23 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 8
What the hell?? Before I was a beeer geek, this was a great beer I thought, now that I am a beer geek, this beer is revolting. Either A)Orval is not a good beer or B) all of the bottles of Orval in town are somewhat if not compeletely stunked. I had three in the past month. All had a citrusy orange (vitamin C like) nose with a tart sour palate followed by a disgusting off tasting finish. Even if this is a good beer, I would not give high marks just based on the fact I possibly had three stunked beer in a row, all from different stores. Thanks but no thanks. I may try again in Belgium and rerate, but for now, stick by this rating (rated 7). Update: This dark amber golden color brew exudes a nose of orange peel and something too mysterious for my senses. The body is champagne like light with orange zest zipping across your tongue with lots of carbonation. This baby is ALIVE! Some noticeable yeast in the mouth as well and a dry citric finish.
caesar (10848) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 23 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 10 | Flavor - 10 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 10
Spicy aroma, some bubblegum, caramel, malty, hoppy. Light brownish color. Not really ’strong’ ale. Sweet taste, dry. Very extraordinary beer. Balance reaching perfection.
notalush (7339) reviewed Orval from Brasserie d’Orval 23 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9
{I’ve been revisiting this beer a lot lately, and I find it to be deliciously dry and crisp, and probably one of my favorite belgian ales, if not beers in general] This beer has an excellent head that looks almost like whipped cream (which has already been pointed out), and an inviting, sweet, fruity aroma. This aroma, however, is misleading, because this taste is very dry, with a bitter, citrus flavor that I, at first, found unenjoyable. But, when I finally let the flavors settle into my palate, set aside my expectations, and tasted this beer for what it was, it was actually quite good. I will probably buy it again, but at 4.99 for an 11.2 oz. bottle, it probably won’t be very often.