Chouffe Houblon Dobbelen IPA Tripel

Brewed by Brasserie d’Achouffe (Moortgat)
Style: Abbey Tripel
Achouffe, Belgium

Poured in a Duvel glass and has a similar, but slightly darker hazy golden colour and giant head. Let sit, it forms wicked crazy head formations. How cute, it thinks it’s a cross between Duvel and Orval. The head even formed a fucking bridge, which is so unprecented I had no choice but to drop an F-bomb. The aroma is of dusty yeast, foresty-tangeriney hops, subtle coriander and bog myrtle (OK, this may just be Chouffe yeast but you can’t have one without the other, can you?). Bitter, rooty flavours crossing between grassy and citrusy (kumquat, lime, yuzu) hops. Malts are bready fresh and doughy warm. The yeast provides the strongest "tripel" element, a dusty almost leathery signature. The alcohol makes itself evident towards the finish, along with a sweet malty kiss before fading into an unrelenting bitterness. OK - cut back on the bitterness and you’ve got a better beer, but also one that’s been done a few times already. With the bitterness, it is unique and interesting but not quite as good. Hey, I still like it, and now I’ve got the rest of the bottle to enjoy. Where’d I put that stilton?

Hazy to cloudy golden liquid with an absolutely huge head. Warning even after setting about for a half hour or so do not attempt to pour straight into the glass, a new and overflowing head will reappear. Not lace, but rather a 1/2 inch of foam clinging to the side of the glass. Light pale malt and citrus course through the nose. Wild flowers and weed in springtime comes to mind. Light citrus and mild pine dominate the flavors. Underlying malt helps reassure the beer qualities. This is an amazing brew in that the 9% is not even close to being felt or tasted. Finish has some pepper and light floral components. This just gets better the longer it is in the glass. I will enjoy this one again.

Had this @ The Winking Lizard with my boys Tony & Sean after a hard week Friday night. Nose of banana, bubblegum, pears, apples & flowers. Pours a clear sparkling blonde. The mammoth stiff & tight white rocky head is fully lasting with insane lace. The brew is very unique. The start is bready with a light acidity. There is no alcohol bleed or warmth despite the 9% abv. The finish is lengthy and bitter. The medium body is creamy and soft. Hats off to Tony for a winning selection.

750ml Bottle: Aroma is yeasty and hoppy. Smells of fresh cut grass, yeast, fir, and pine. Poured golden in color with a huge, dense, creamy, white head. Very good head. Clear, but full of tons of chunky particles. Sparkling. Flavor is medium bitter. Very hoppy with notes of pine, resin, a little mint, and a tiny bit of citrus. Seems more bitter than some beers with more IBUs. Full body. Thick, viscous texture. Average carbonation. Bitter finish. Overall, the best Tripel I’ve had to date.

Had this on tap at the Maproom for my first 30th birthday beer. This had a major kick in the end. A big wallop of hops, alcohol, and sticky sweetness. Took sometime to sip through. Very thick mouthfeel, round, and long lasting. Well worth the price. Strong floral, perfume nose; similar in the taste. A nice beer to check out if you have the chance.

Bottle from Whole Foods in Alexandria - Cloudy gold, huge foamy white head. Intriguing nose of spicy florals, orange zest, and perfume, with softer notes of pepper and rock candy. Bread tones are faintly woven in. Flavor was very nice throughout with an even layer of spicy, floral, peppery hops throughout, touches of citrus, and a slight earthy tone bringing it together late. Medium bodied, moderate carbonation, dry, bittersweet finish. Don’t go in thinking Dreadnaught or 90 Min, just think La Chouffe (if you have tried it) with some extra hop kick. Very nice IPA experiment that works for me. A nice change of pace from the grapefruit league if you follow....

Got this one bottled at the Binny’s Oktoberfest in St. Charles, Illinois. Outstanding! Cloudy, strong nose of grapes and roses, vanilla and hops throughout. Smooth! Unusual and very good.

On tap at Biergarden, Portsmouth VA. As I’d expected, a very "Belgian" visual ... hazy yellow with a big airy, foam topping. This drank extremely smoothly with a definite alcohol-spice kick, a bit of a dirty orange peel aspect, wonderfully complex, yeasty, bready, grassy, barky, with a quite bitter finish. Excited to read the description of this as a cross with American Imperial IPAs, because it all makes sense now! (#2694, 2/10/2007)