Goose Island Matilda

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company
Style: Belgian Ale
Chicago, Illinois USA

Amver color with a thin white head. Aroma is fruity, spicy, definitely "Belgian." Flavor carries through some of that nice fruitiness, but there’s a little bit of an alcohol burn on the back. The bottle says this will age for up to 5 years. Might have to pick up another at let it sit for a bit. Good complex Belgian beer though.

355ml bottle from Beers of Europe. A strong pale ale that is attenuated enough to pass for a lager, and demonstrates quite well the absurdity of the belief that there is a major split in beer production along the lines of "ale" and "lager". There is evidence of unfermented sugar - returning the sweetness that has been brewed out, and giving condition to the brewed out beer. There is a flowery, mildly fragrant quality from the yeast - some honeyed fruit from the pale malt, and a tropical fruit from the hops. It’s a fairly predictable beer, a little hot from the fully brewed alcohol, and not very attractive. It tastes like a curious blend of super strength lager, APA , sugar alcohol, and a Belgian blonde. The blend, obviously, doesn’t work. This comes across as quite crude and nasty. Yugh.

2007 bottle thanks to thirdeye11. cloudy amber/orange with an off white head. nose is fruit, clove and very light citrus. quite nice on the palate with a bold fruity flavor that finishes with a touch of spices.

Tasting at DØE, Aarhus Syd, DK. Bottled, 170609. Amber with white head. Aroma of malt and dried fruit. Flavor is caramel, alcohol, spices and red fruit

From a 12 oz bottle (2008) Nice rosy copper color with a solid head and good lace, this has an inviting grapevine aroma. It drinks richly -- like a sexy Rubenesque woman in a glass, this seduces me with its ample curves and character, drawing me to the details within the complexity. This is a nicely put together Belgian-style ale, but it’s also quietly drinkable with a predominately grapey character, esthery, yeasty. (#3560, 6/20/2009)

12 oz bottle: Aroma is flowery, fruity, somewhat of a dry aroma, and nice spice notes that linger for a while. Appearance is amber with hints of golden and a soapy off white head that lingers at the top of the glass. Taste is spice comes to the forefront the a mixture of caramel malt, plum, sugar, somewhat of a fruity hop texture in the background. Palate has a quite carbonated mouth feel, somewhat heavy on the tongue, and aftertaste lingers only for a short bit before dissipating. Overall, It’s nice stuff for a Belgian from Chicago. I would drink it again. Cheers!

So I’m reading the label for this beer while browsing in John’s Grocery, and I get interested: this is clearly a beer inspired by Orval! The fish-recovers-ring legend, the princess starts a monastery, and so, we decided to buy this beer. Right. I’m excited. But at home, right from the pour I’m suspicious. "Inspired" by the ultra-pale Orval, we brewed an amber beer? Hmm. Well, amber it is, with modest off-white head. The first prominent aroma is...butter. Butter so thick that’s all I smell for the first three or four sniffs. (No butter in Orval!) Further in, with effort, there is some grape jelly, cloves, cinnamon, and a hint of earthy hops. Flavor is pleasantly sweet caramel spice, green apples, soft lingering grapeskin finish. What I have here is far more dubbel than anything remotely related to Orval, but even more English strong ale than dubbel. (That would at least make sense of the butter and the distinctively sweet flavor.) Perhaps I read the label wrong, and wishful thinking got me into this state of confusion? I go back and check. Nope, it’s definitely inspired by Orval. Well. I kind of like this, and I suppose I will rate it based on that, rather than my disappointment on the false billing. But really people, if this is "inspired" by Orval, then Wall-E could just as well claim to be "inspired" by The Godfather. None of the things that make Orval such a joy are present in this beer.

Bottle. Fruity, yeasty, doughy, and (overall) quite pleasant. Dangerous at 7%. Not outstanding but highly drinkable and flawless.