Affligem Blonde

Brewed by Brouwerij Affligem / De Smedt (Heineken)
Style: Belgian Ale
Opwijk, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

33cl bottle. Dark gold-light orange color with a lasting fluffy white head. Nice fruity and yeasty aroma with pear, lemon, and bubble-gum augmented by faint hops and pale malt. The flavor is light and fruity with a nice hop bite and spicy flavor. Dry in the finish with a lighter body and ample carbonation. Definitely a nice Belgian blond ale, with malt, hops, and yeast working in harmony. Dry, light, and eminently drinkable.

pours a bountiful creamy head that is slow to dissipate and laces the glass quite well. a slight haze is present with residual yeasts floating round the glass. aroma is predominantly yeasty and a slight bubblegum aroma is there flavor is slightly fruity and finishes dry. overall quite pleasant will not turn many head but I enjoyed it in a sessionable experience.

11.2 ounce bottle from Whole Foods in Hillcrest ($1.89). Pours a murky yellow-gold-orange with lots of floaties. The great big white head sticks around for a while. Aroma of yeast, lightly sweet malts, banana, and light spice. Flavor is a little sweet and a little bitter with bready malts, yeast, fruity essence, and alcohol. The finish is dry and a little tangy and bitter on the palate. Nicely carbonated. Drinkable, but hard to get excited about this.

Julio’s Belgian Beer Festival. Sample. OK for a belgian blonde I guess. Get me to the dubbel and tripels though.

Pours a pillowed, white head with a pale amber, slightly hazy body. Smells of yeast and bubblegum. Flavor is dried apricot, zest, yeast, and vanilla. Nice carbonaiton and finish.

Bottle at the LCBO - Pours very, very nice orangey-golden with a big head that lasts (looks like a quality beer). The aroma has notes of sour wheat with spices, but a little bit too faint for a Belgian ale. The tase was the same but with strong notes of spices and alcohol. I didn’t find this very enjoyable, and personally, I find that this is overrated.

Bottled. This beer was bought (along with a bunch of others) for a slew of non-beer geek guests, which turned out to be a mistake. A rather heavy and alcoholic beer that really highlights the difficulty in brewing in the Belgian style while retaining a decent level of drinkability. Yeasty, bubblegum, cinnamon and peanut notes are present, with a thick, distilled alcohol finish. Not the best of the style, and not a very good beer for new drinkers it turns out.

Bottled. Clear golden coloured, small white head. Some spices and fruit in aroma. Malty flavour, little hops, some alcohol. Pretty boring industrial Belgian ale.