Allagash Grand Cru

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Portland, Maine USA

The 750ml caged and corked bottle (Batch #10) pours a cloudy amber hued ale with a large white head that dissipated quickly and left some decent lacing. Aroma suggests ripe banana and raisin, light caramel malt and hops. Initial palate is a light malt sweetness followed by flavors suggesting banana, orange and grapefruit citrus and hint of sweet anise or licorice. There is a long, semi-dry finish, a bit of warming alcohol and a pleasant, enduring aftertaste. Carbonation is high, but appropriate for this style. Nice.

12oz twist-off to trappist and no batch # listed / the highlight of this beer is the very soft and velvety, slightly chewy, just-thick-enough palate. however, i didn’t care a lot for the mix of flavors. it’s peppery with banana, licorice... it’s citric, and hmm... i just don’t care much for it.

Batch 10: Pours amber with a thick lasting head. This beer has a bit less carbonation than other allagash brews. Aroma is very sweet and lightly acidic. Very interesting. Hay and citrus come to mind. Something interesting in the flavor- my old soccer cleats, not in a bad way though. Mouthfeel is surprisingly round and smooth. Finishes with slight alcohol, I’ve come to realize this is a characteristic of all Allagash brews- the alcohol comes out briefly in the finish, just to remind you that it is there, but never overwhelming. Plenty of lacework. Damn good. Try this one with fried chicken and bbq sauce and kfc will become one of your favorite places to eat.

Batch 10. Pours a reddish color with a small head and nice lacing. Smells fruity with a hint of banana. tastes of caramel and seasonal spices with a good amount of carbonation. I have new respect for this brewery.

750 mL Batch #4. Good, quick head on top of a cloudy, orange body. Good quick aroma of orange peel, corriander and grassy hops. Fizzy and full mouthfeel, good for a belgian style. Citrus, orange and lots of hops at first few sips. It mellows a bit as it warms, and caramel and the alcohol start to present themselves. The glass finishes with quite an alcohol bite and has a dry (but not bitter finish). It could be a good one if the alcohol content was knocked down a tad (or masked a bit better.)

12 oz bottle: Medium sized off white head on a hazy medium amber body. Laces well. Bready and and light caramel malt aromas with a perfumey floral hop and plum fruits. Light lemony citrus aroma, and seems a little grassy & metallic as well. Flavor is well balanced with toasty malt and plum fruits. Some resin hop flavors with lemony citrus. Balanced toward bitter in the finish & aftertaste. Very dry, astringent m/f pretty much ruins this beer for me. Higher carbonation, lighter medium body, well hidden alc. As I said, the harsh resiny m/f ruins this beer for me. I like the plum fruitiness and balance of the malts in the flavor, but I can’t get past the harsh astringency.

Bottle Batch #6: Pours a giant foamy white head that never disppears. Golden amber, a lot of visable carbonation. Aroma give me a dry impression, but the flavor doesn’t deliver much dryness. It’s fairly tasty, though it feels like an American imitation. The flavor is not as rich as I’d like it to be. But not a bad brew at all. Certainly worth drinking once.

750ml batch #10 Hazy amber pour with a huge fluffy creamy head, and lacing everywhere. Sweet malty aromas. The aroma is not quite as assertive or pleasant as the dubbel. The taste is not so dry, still not sweet. Malty, yeasty, spicy, and some fruit including banana. Starts out a little soapy but that diminishes quickly. Fairly full body and smooth. Light bitter finish. Gets better deeper in the bottle. Not the same league as the tripel but an excellent ale nonetheless.