2.9 AROMA 5/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 11/20
330ml bottle. Pours gold with a large head. Aroma is yeast and banana. Taste is yeasty to start. Lemon and yeast on the finish. Crisp.
3.4 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 13/20
33cl bottle. Pours golden to orange with steady bubbles and a good head. The nose has pale malt and oranges. The taste has more oranges, then lemon sorbet at the end, going into yeast. The palate is medium to rich in structure and texture with a nice zesty finish. Overall, this is a good example of a Belgian Blonde.
3.4 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 14/20
Pours a clear golden hue, little to no head. Light aroma. Tastes very smooth, good Belgian.
3.7 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
<br clear="left">I poured a 330ml can into a tumbler.
Appearance: Lager-like gold, mostly clear. Forms a frothy, white head which mostly dissipates, but leaves great lacing down the glass.
Aroma: Definite Belgian yeast aroma with strong notes of banana and lemon peel, although I distinctly notice a lager-like grain smell as well.
Taste: I loathe cheap European pale lagers, but I’m a big fan of Belgian strong ales and Grimbergen actually seems to have qualities of both. Thankfully, it leans more towards the latter than the former. It has a mostly clean, slightly hoppy palate with slight citrus flavor. Banana, a touch of clove, coriander, lemon zest and the other associated spices are definitely noticeable and quite tasty. But then it finishes very similar to a lager with bitter, dry graininess and a slightly powdery aftertaste. The good taste more than makes up for the weak finish, though.
Mouthfeel: Crisp and thin for a pale ale. Feels more like a pilsner in the mouth.
Drinkability: Not as intense as most Belgian pales, whatever is accounting for the lager-like qualities is also making for a good drinkability. Goes down smooth with a mostly clean aftertaste. The 6.7% ABV seems a bit high, or at least higher than it probably needs to be.
Overall, a decent Belgian pale ale I could find myself drinking several of before I got bored. A little more Belgian and a little less lager would make it a great beer.
2.8 AROMA 5/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 11/20
Bottle from Tesco. Quite a sour, strong blonde beer. Similar to Leffe but not as good.
3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 12/20
Very much a standard Belgian blond beer. Hazy yellow color, not too much smell and not too much taste. Safe beer, but not much to say about it.
3.4 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottle from Bierzwerg. Poured golden color with a white head. Aroma is belgian yeast, malt and spicy, fruity notes. Flavor is yeast, citrus notes, peaches and malt. Dry finish. Refreshing beer.
3.3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 13/20
330 ml bottle from The Royale. Pours a cloudy gold color with a huge, rocky eggshell white head that leaves heavy lace in the glass. Aroma of Belgian yeast, candi sugar, pale malts, grains, straw, and bubblegum. Flavor of sweet malts, candi sugar, booze, bubblegum, apricot and minerals. Medium-bodied, with medium carbonation and a sweet, sticky mouthfeel. Dry finish. So-so Belgian ale that comes across as a Belgian strong ale despite being under 7% ABV.
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