Allagash Curieux

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Abbey Tripel
Portland, Maine USA

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip

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UPDATED: MAY 12, 2009 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.

Flaske. Pilsnergul øl med et udemærket hoved. Konen kunne med det samme lugte humle, men jeg fik nærmest kun bourbon noter. Disse overdøvede også komplet alle smagsnuancer. Heldigvis kan jeg godt lide bourbon, men synd at den ikke er mere diskret og balanceret.

January 2007 bottle. First impression was a bit surprising in this brew. Upon popping the cork and pouring, I got a huge whiff of ginger and pear, with Belgian yeast and spice. Transparent light gold color with a copious amount of carbonation; not much of a head, only some small white lace. Then after the first few sips, this beer gets more difficult to drink for me. Extremely strong alcohol is present in the flavor; so much, in fact, that it drowns out most of the elements present in the aroma that I would like to experience. Just a sweet and malty kick at start, then finishing in pungent mouthwash-like alcohol. Decent mouthfeel. I think either this brew seriously needs much more than 8 weeks in the barrels, or my bottle should have been set down for another year or two. Not very impressive for a barrel-aged concoction.

Highly phenolic aroma that smells like a freshly-unwrapped toy from China, which has been soaked in Beam. Glowing amber, thick white head. Bourbon, Belgian and boozy and that’s about it. Clinging whiskey bitterness. Medium body, high CO2. Well done, I’m sure, but not to my taste.

Bottle, Aug. ’07. Hazy honey color. Light sweet bourbon aroma. Very nice, smooth bourbon flavor really stands out. The Triple flavor manages to sneak out a bit, but not much. Nice and warming without an overbearing alcohol bite. Very nice.

Jan 2007 750 from mgumby10; nose of spices, yeast, and a hint of some vanilla oakiness; hazy yellow gold with a medium yellow-tinged head; flavor an odd combo of bourbon, pumpkiny fruitiness, breadiness, and nutmeg like a Jim Beam pumpkin pie, finish being bourbon and nutmeg!