Chimay Rouge (Red) / Première

Brewed by Chimay
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Baileux, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass

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Originally reviewed 5/16/2009... Let this one (750) warm while trying something else. Corked & caged with a fairly hefty pop of the cork. Into an Ommegang chalice it goes. Pours what can be described as a murky bourbon color. With a little less red it would resemble a dunkel. Almost a full-finger of bleached ginger-colored head, but it goes quickly, leaving slight yeasty wisps in its wake. Sparse, moderate-speed carbonation. A slight Belgian sourness is in the forefront at first, but peelin’ the onion back, but there’s plenty of dried and ripe dark fruits backing this deal up. The usual suspects...dates, plums...even a few prunes in there. A little cinnamon and clove with even a touch of praline sweetness behind it all and some dark muscat notes. This is what a Dubbel should be. Still, light-bodied enough not to scare anyone away. Grain profile is rather hearty, but the taste and body are a little lean...at first. Sure, everything’s in there from the nose but it’s more aromatic and may not deliver the impact as it rolls down the gullet. Grains and light stewy roast (is there Special B in here? New to the whole brewing deal but it seems like that’s the ticket) are full-bodied as mentioned but overall weight class may be a bit lean. Good, but lean. The carbonation drives the spice home nicely with only a slight saltiness. Mental note: Let this one warm quite a bit. Would like just a little more sweetness - it actually seems a bit peppery...but it’s still quite good. Yeast electricity still shines. This one plays lighter than expected - we have the carbonation to thank for that. Deep dark stewiness is countered by spritely carbonation and pepperiness and other spice along with yeast electricity to dance on the palate and enjoy the ride down. Finish is clean for a normally hefty style. I have been meaning to review this for a few days but have had to go back to get more at the store. Y’know why? ’Cause I enjoy drinking it immensely and writing about it gets in the way of its enjoyment. Whaddya think about that? It’s damn good.

Bottle shared with (and courtasy of) Inbreak and ClubGonzo. Vintage 2009. Pours a very cloudy brown colour with a medium light beige head. A lovely sweet aroma of dried fruit, leather, chocolate and brown sugar. Really a round and nice smell on this. The dried fruit is also well pronounced in the flavour along wih dades, wort and sweet leather. Light bitterness in the end. Soft and slick, and a bit watery mouthfeel. The aroma is fantastic but the flavour is not following.

Dark red-ruby color with creamy tan white head which lasts. Caramel, malts and some dark sweet fruits, probably some kind of berries. You smell and taste all the above. Live carbonation and a very smooth body. Mild bitter finish with a little alcohol. A great beer.... Truly great....

Pours dark brown with stewed fruits on the nose. gentle carbonation, rich fruit and sweet malts.

330ml bottle. Hazy dark amber with huge stable frothy off-white head. Intense fruity aroma, predominantly red berries, minor dark berries, some yeast. Fine fizzy carbonation, yeasty and slightly fruity taste, some sweetness and a sourish counterweight.

Supergod, rund smak, fyllig. Behöver lagras något år för att få rätta balansen.

Murky brown colour and smooth, white head. Aroma has some malts but it’s not very strong. Soft and smooth on the palate, lively carbonation. Taste is not too strong either, but it stays in your mouth for a while. I can’t quite identify the flavours but it has very beer-ish feel to it. It’s a decent beer but nothing spectacular.

pours a nice dark red/ ruby color, with a fissy head. The aroma is malty, fruity, grassy. The flavor is malt with caramel up front followed buy fruit to the rear tasting some of raisins, and other fruit i cant depict with the astringent taste to the rear contributing to some of the bitterness. The palate is very smooth, while feeling like a heavier body. Overall this is a very well balances beer, and would recommend

Nice red coloted with a decent home. Aroma has a sweet hint of cookie dough. The taste is very sweet and kind of cherry like. A good trappistes

Aroma is that characteristic of all Chimay beers. Sweet bread, cookie dough, and candy sugar. Appearance is dark brown to dark orange with a quick fading head and a great deal of particulate. Taste is sweet and resembles that of cookie dough. Very soft on the palate with minimal carbonation. Overall, I would classify this as a "dessert beer". It drinks decent on alone, but I would really like to try it with tiramisu or creme brulee. (just like the "blue" variety of Chimay) This is a good brew and I can’t wait to try it with dessert, but it is one of the most overrated beers of all time.

0,75 cl bottle. Fruity belgish trppist beer. Dark browm color, small white head, fruity, berries. In the finish is quite bitter but not too much alcohol.