750 ml paper wrapped bottle from The Keg, in Clarksville, Indiana. Pours a mostly clear ruby body topped by an immense creamy ecru hued head even with a careful pour. Lavish sheets of lace drape the Duvel chalice. Aroma opens with fruity kiwi and strawberry, followed quickly by perfumey and floral hops. Spicy belgian yeastiness is also prominent, adding freshly cracked white peppercorns and dried coriander. Airy medium body seems lighter than it really is. Silky carbonation is almost utopian. Taste begins fruity with prominent melon and strawberry notes. Yeasty spiciness is unashamed, and grows bolder as this warms. White pepper and coriander... Floral hop bitterness is quite playful with the senses. Honey and caramel from the malt backbone add a pleasant balance. Finishes with a pastoral dry bitterness, much like a world class saison. Exceptional Belgian ale here, that seems to marry the better traits of several Belgian styles into an ideal whole. One of the better beverages I’ve enjoyed in recent memory.

750 ml. Opaque, darkish copper-brown with a creamy quarter inch of head that ices the glass. Aroma of toffee, raisin bread, musty dark fruit, and hints of tart cherry. Flavor is musty dark fruit, chocolate, toffee and toasted nut; all balanced well against a complex finish of more roast malt flavors, oak, some tart berry, funky leather and slight citrus. Medium-heavy body is mostly smooth and finishes surprisingly dry.

Bottle Date April 2007, Sampled November 2007
A careful pour still produces a six-finger thick head that quickly overflows the top of my glass. I only lose a couple tablespoons of beer to the billowing, frothy, tan colored foam though. The beer shows a dark plum color as it sits in my glass, but portrays a brilliantly clear cherry-syrup red color when held up to the light. Quite malty in the nose, with notes of brown sugar, browned bread notes, toasty malt and raisin flavors all quite noticeable as I inspect the head. A touch of tartness in the nose adds aromatic notes reminiscent of plums, aromatic apples and a certain vinous character. Spicy, high fermentation character is also noticeable with touches of black pepper, earthy spice-like coriander notes, touches of ginger, lightly-phenolic clove aromas and a certain musty, almost woody note that mixes in with malty notes of chocolate. A very complex, interesting nose; I am really digging the interplay of malt, hop and fermentation driven notes of fruit, spice and light funk.

Sweet tasting up front, yet fairly light on the tongue; the sweetness accentuates a nice fruit character, in fact the sweetness is even perceived as being derived from a mix of apples, plums and figs. The sweetness also is bit reminiscent of darker / unrefined sugar; perhaps a touch of a caramel, notes of brown sugar and even something a bit more exotic like palm sugar. Towards the end of a sip some dark malt notes add a touch of chocolate, some definitely toasted grain notes, a touch of chalky-browned grain husk flavors. The beer finishes with some spicy fermentation character as well as some warming, higher alcohol flavors. Despite being fairly light in body (at least for its strength), this really has a nice richness to it. The carbonation definitely helps to lighten things up too, though if drunk right after a pour it is really too carbonated and froths up as it hits the tongue. A touch of tannic woodiness is found in the finish, as is a very light bitterness.

While the beer definitely has a spiciness to it & some almost hot higher alcohol notes, it still remains very smooth, rounded and drinkable. It is a bit more funky in the nose than in the flavor, but it is so well integrated that I am not really needing any funky flavor notes. Another just awesome beer from this brewery. I have been really impressed by each of the beers I have had from these guys. Dubbels are actually a style I have trouble getting into at times, but this one just hits the spot and is probably the best I have ever had.

750, capped and paper-wrapped. Beautiful crystal clear ruddy dark amber. Thick creamy white head. Big toffee and green apple nose. Cocoa there as well. Fizzy, creamy body. Passionfruit, cocoa, and toffee on the mid-palate. Long cocoa finish. Subtle, complex, and amazing.

Draft at Beer Table. Deep dark brown in color with a little stable off white head. Dark fruity aroma. Plum, fig and raisin notes. Fruity malty caramel flavor. Chocolatety caramel sour notes. Medium bodied. Well balanced beer. Smooth tasting. Finish is dry. Nice beer.