Affligem Dubbel

Brewed by Brouwerij Affligem / De Smedt (Heineken)
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Opwijk, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass

33 cL bottle at Den tatoverede Enke. Pours dark amber golden with a dense light tan head. Overripe fruit and yeast aroma, underlying malt note. Overripe fruit and yeast flavour with a light chemical/detergent touch. Light phenol flavour into the finish. Spiced yeasty as well. Mild malt flavour lingering into the finish.

Bottle. Has a nice dark amber color, very nice, with a good white head. Aroma is a bit fuity. Taste is a strong malty, with a bit of fruit. Very nice.

Appearance: A cloudy bronze-brown with a thin lacy antique-white head.

Nose: Not as overwhelming as it could be. Fruity esters, white pepper, brown sugar, raisins.

Taste: Raisins, caramel, cooked apples, pear.

Palate: Very spritzy, nice and dry.

Overall: I love this style of beer -- this is not my favorite exemplar of the style, but at $5/bottle it’s hard to argue! As a beer, it’s wonderful. As a dubbel, it’s average. I’d be tempted to try cellaring this one.

My favorite part, actually, is the bottom-of-the-bottle yeasty "dregs" -- brings out a nice nutty quality, and more pronounced cooked apples. Very good with sweet seafood-in-cream-sauce pasta.

Blah! Pours a reddish brown color with a nice medium sized creamy and fluffy head that is tope colored. Nose is cherries, malt, bit of spice and some apples and bread. Taste is way too mild. Bit of apples and some yeast but other than that just a short dry finish for a uncomplex taste. Very blah in that department.

22 oz. bottle. Aroma of cherries, malt and yeast. Reddish amber pour with nice tan head. Taste of apples, cherry, caramel and malt. Nice sweet finish.

1.75 ml bottle from Total Wine. Pours an inch of tannish head that reduces to a half-inch within a minute. Color is tan/brown/honey. Loose, spotty lacing. Aromas include bubble gum, honey, and cotton candy. Same flavors with molasses, notes of caramel, plum, and a crisp apple-like finish. Lively carbonation affects the mouthfeel a bit. All in all, this is typical for the style. Nothing special.

Ah, that abbey double nose - it’s been a while. Anyways, this one has all the usual stuff in droves - figs and raisins, molasses and spice. Pours a ruby copper with little in the way of lasting head. Flavour has a lot of coca cola in it, also some fruit, some spice, and an astrigent, alcohol finish. Doesn’t live up to its opening promise, but not bad.

A super dark red belgian ale with a big beige head, great creamy flavor and smooth finish. I’d go for another.