Allagash Curieux

Sample, at the Mondial de la bière 2007, savoured June 1 2007; eye: golden, hazy, tiny almond head, no effervescence; nose: gueuze but will less acidity, fruity; mouth: creamy texture, gueuze, full body, nice carbonation, pepper, alcohol, light presence of acidity; overall: nice surprise FRANÇAIS Échantillon, bue au Mondial de la bière 2007, savourée le 1er juin 2007; oeil : dorée, voilée, petite mousse amande, pas d’effervescence; nez : gueuze mais avec moins d’acidité, fruitée; bouche : texture crémeuse, gueuze, corsée, belle carbonatation, poivre, alcool, légère pointe d’acidité; en résumé : belle surprise

2005 on tap at Brickskeller. Clear gold body with a small white head. The nose was fairly sweet with apples, pears, peaches and honey. The flavor is moderately sweet with honey, cotton candy, pears, apples, bourbon and pepper. Full body is a bit rough with light carbonation and a bit of heat in the finish.

Opaque orange with enduring white head. Aroma is apples and spices with a bit of oak. Taste is buttery, and richly oaked with serious JB presence. The tripel elements of this beer take a backseat to the bourbony goodness with its almost fatiguing intensity. $7.5/12oz

The 11 percent alcohol and oak-laced flavors make this trippel unique. It pours a pale golden, but still slightly ruddy, color, with a thick white head. The aroma is all oak. Classic Belgiany trippel flavor up front, with notes of honey, whiskey, and oak throughout,and an alcohol-warmed aftertaste. The mouthfeel is very thin, and that’s not normally a plus for me, but the experience is bolstered by that intense alcohol presence and the oak, so I’d call it "delicate but earthy." Nothing else quite like this out there, and along with another entry in this Allagash line (the Musette) these ales could obsolete wine as far as I’m concerned.

I had this at the Lunar Brewery. Golden in color. Light fruity aroma with a hint of wood. Bourbon/whiskey in flavor with a sugary taste as well. Alcohol is not overpowering.

Tap at the Brickskeller, vintage 2005. Advertised falsely as "quadruple style." Fairly still, thick and simultaneously glassy pour of pure gold color, with no head. Apples and pears with honey are foremost on the nose, followed in degenerative succession by dry grass, sawdust, and vinegar. Tastes primarily of honey and oak, white pepper, with subtle yet forceful barrel heat. Stinking of bathroom floor sanitizer with alcohol rotundity. Abhorrently young, still. Apple brandy is more prominent than bourbon. Feels slick; wet, hot, and yet underaged. Finishes on a sour, hot pulse of Jameson. Yes, a few years away yet; possibly unrounded in any case.

Bottle from BevMo. Nov. ’06 bottle. Color is orange with hint of yellow. Strong woody aroma. Good whiskey character. A little yeast in the nose as well. Strong wood flavor right up front with a little bourbon. Subtle dry character of a tripel underneath the woodiness. Only a slight hint of alcohol. Good stuff.

Pours out in a hazy golden colour with brown edges. Rich white foam. Big barrel charcter in the nose of wood, coconut, burnt sugar and vanilla with undertones of belgian fruity esters. Flavour of wood and bourbon with notes of burnt sugar. Hints of banana and yeast. Long warming finish of wood, yeast and alcohol. Quite good but the barrel character was just a bit too much.