La Bavaisienne Blonde

Brewed by Brasserie Theillier
Style: Bière de Garde
Bavay, France

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

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Bottled 750. A do-over will be required. Beer has protein chunks, murky, medium-gold colored with a huge, frothy, white, mostly lasting head.<P> The aroma is malty with moderate notes of toasted grain, cookie, light note of caramel; Hoppy with a moderate note of floral chamomile; Yeasty with a trace of dough, lemon zest; Miscellaneous notes of moderate skunk, honey, light note of cinnamon and cardamom.<P> The flavor is moderately-to-heavily bitter, moderately sweet with a long, warmish, lightly bittersweet finish.<P> The body is light, the texture is watery the carbonation is soft.

In the 750 mL bottle from Cyclone Liquors in Ames. Pours golden with a serious amount of carbonation. The head resembles an ice cream sundae. Thick and rich. The flocculent yeast particles float about like sea monkeys. Unfortunately, the wicked green bottle allowed photosensitizing of my bottle and the primary aroma was skunked. Once I got beyond that, the flavor was truly excellent. My best description is lemon verbena. Satisfyingly quick to drink. This would rate even higher by me if they put it in a brown bottle.

Very fruity aroma- apples, pears, melon musk, and citrus oil. Sweet malts, musky straw/grass, vanilla. Complex and addictive. Dull medium yellow clear with fine white lacing head. Heavy watery body with medium carbonation. Sweet start, fruity, with light acidity and no bitterness. Finish is more acidic, and light bitterness is present. Overall, a fruity taste with barnyard/yeasty muskiness. After is light sweet, bitter.

Body is a gold fading to a light amber with a thin off white head. Aroma is straw, bit of honey, some citrus, light hop content. Taste has a decent hop bite to it followed by a light content of caramel and is slightly mettalic with citrus. Good brew.

(75cl bottle) Rocky head the color of the foam atop muddy water, atop lightly hazed apple juice body. Nice lacing. Aroma is medium sweet, grassy/herbal, peach. Taste is medium sweet, grassy, bread, earthy, some herbal, peach. Soft, medium body, light acidity.

Copper, lots of floaties, solid white head. Aroma is skunky, funkiness. Fruit taste, solid earthy bitterness. Light yeast. Body a touch watery.

UPDATED: JAN 4, 2007 Bottle (non-skunked at last!!!). Head is initially large, frothy, white, fully lasting. Body is hazy dark yellow, unfiltered. Aroma is moderately malty (toasted grain, bread), moderately hoppy (honeysuckle flowers, herbs, grass), lightly to moderately yeasty (cobwebs, barnyard, cheese), with light notes candied tropical fruit (mango/pineapple) and lavender. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, lively carbonation, lightly alcoholic. Finally got ahold of a bottle (this being my third encounter) that was NOT skunked at all, and that has made quite a difference (if mainly to the aroma score). Beautiful juicy malt-and-hop balance that reminds one of the Ambrée from this brewery. Nifty Brie-like yeast notes. So yes, I have re-scored this as it "should" be, sans lightstruck retailer mishandling...though even when there was slight skunk in the nose, it still got a 3.5 outta me.

A very malty aroma, but still good. Lots of mouthfeel, some simple flavors, but some good hops at the end. A simple, but nice style.

Hazy auburn with loads of floating particles and a tight, tiny bubbled white head. This has a lovely nose full of sweet malt, light hoppy perfume, mild spice and a hint of warm alcohol. Toasted grains, orange juice, a malting room floor, light licorice, grains of paradise, orange and grapefruit zest, sticky pine and a hint of toffee. The body is silky smooth, but with plenty of heft and bright, lively carbonation. It’s fairly sweet up front, especially considering the other La Bavaisienne. The sweetness gives way to a flavorful hop flavor, full of citrus fruit and pine, more grains and a light bit of warm alcohol. It’s a pretty tasty beer, but not as enjoyable as the original. The malt is sweeter and not quite as dry as La Bavaisienne. The increased hop presence is a nice twist, but I think I’d rather have a drier version with a more robust and developed malt profile. Maybe it’s another example of wishful thinking, but I was hoping for something a little better. Either way, it’s still good.

2006 bottle consumed on 9/30/06
Staunchly sturdy white/off-white head sits atop a light-goldenrod body, with some slight beige and light-copper tinges. Tiny bubbles course upwards in the minimally hazy (leaving plenty sediment behind) liquid, supporting the fully lasting head. Lacing proceeds down the glass in sheets. Can’t ask for much more in appearance.
Snappy phenols bound upwards from the yeast, as honey-filled pils malt joins the game. A strong shot of grassy, herbal hops dries things out, with white and black pepper lingering on the finish. The yeast is delightfully unique and characterful, just what I remember from the amber version. It almost defines a biere de garde, giving it that soft, yet distinct mineral character, light almond nuttiness and acidity and an almost cellar-like/musty band-aid character (borderline band-aid). With the minty, lively, assertive hops, it’s quite a complete picture in the nose, sporting a high strength of aroma to-boot. Neither alcohol nor any pils malt brewing flaws (DMS, vanillin, corn-like notes) are present.
Succulent honey notes, dripped over fresh, gooey baguette are quickly matched by freshly picked herbal notes coming from the hops. Dill and mint, oregano and parsley, whatever you want to call it, it’s dripping with flavor (and a moderate amount of bitterness) and certainly amped up from many of its contemporaries. Belying the malt strength (in the realm of a double pils), is the tight, invigorating carbonation that breaks up any palate fatigue (certainly aided by the hops) and delivers an engaging experience to the last drop. The extraction is wonderfully done and the yeast shines strongly on the finish, with notes of almonds, buttercream, strong, slightly bland minerals and plasticy band-aids that I find in the amber Bavai. No alcohol in flavor, maybe a slight, slight hint of butter.
Taken as a blonde belgian ale, or a strong pils, it most certainly comes off too sweet, though taken as a unique creation, in the modern, hoppy, quasi-Biere de Garde sense, it delivers a refreshing charm and uniqueness, or so I think.