La Chouffe

Brewed by Brasserie d’Achouffe (Moortgat)
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Achouffe, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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How in H E Double Hockey Sticks have I NOT rated this? For goodness sakes I have a La Chouffe tulip glass and I know I have drank this brew numerous times since joining Ratebeer...seems to have slipped through the cracks I guess. Last rant, that is NOT a La Chouffe glass on the site picture! Anyway, I will move along...

The beer pours a clean deep golden hue with a HUGE fluffy white head and most excellent lace left in the wake on the La Chouffe Tulip glassware.

The aroma has notes of aggressive noble grassy hops, sharp coriander and juniper berry, mild apple and melon esters, bready malt, and a classic earthy and moldy Belgium yeast vapor.
( Break for air guitar solo from LZ Stairway To Heaven, okay I am back)

The taste is oh so smooth combination of twangy fruit, soft grains, mild yeast dustiness, equally soft spices, and just a hint of boney dryness upon the finish. So simple yet so complex when you really give it a chance. I find this among the most drinkable big Belgian ales on the market. The finish has a bit o’ honey candy character before ending with a pinch of grassy goodness.
(Pause for a moment of reflection found within the haunting guitar of Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms)

The mouth feel is so smooth that you could discount it as being watery, but that is hardly the case. A richness is so sublime and carefree, it’s like "okay enjoy me if you want, I really don’t care" for the texture fits so well within the framework of this beer.
(Yet another moment of music, this time provided by one of my real favorites, "Reflections of My Life" by Marmalade. There is no Marmalade in this beer, geez people!)

So really why the long review, ’cause this beer is way underrated. Without a doubt among the easiest to drink beers of it’s genre. A long time favorite of this beer geek. Deal if you must, I know my taste buds more than you!

bottle, 33cl@home. pours hazy golden with a small white head. Yeasty, spicy aroma, some apricot. Flavor of belgian yeast, spices, apricot. Very nice, solid performer

Bottle. Beautiful and vivacious. Cloudy and gold. Nice 1cm head. Complex yeasty aroma with a slight earthiness and hint of clove. Fairly dry and a little resinous.

330 ml Bottle, pale golden colour, slight haze which increased, medium thin textured head, which was well retained. Aroma was fennel, yeast and clove. Tasted sour fruits, was fairly bitter, hint of booze at the end but it was generally well hidden. Decent carbonation, medium body, coarse. Overall good, but not complex enough to be anything more.

pour clear dark amber, almost no head, micro CO2. Minor malts on the nose. 7/10-level sweetness, alcoholic backdrop, sweet malts, honey, chamomile, creamy mouthfeel, tingly CO2, clean finish with only traces of bitterness. Medium complexity, medium depth, great transitions, good carry, great drinkability. Like the Houblon but without the long lingering bitter finish.

fles 33cl kleur: goudgeel, mooie witte schuimkraag geur: fris, hop, koriander smaak: zoet, fris, kruidig en bitter (vooral in de nasmaak). Prikkelend oa door de hoeveelheid koolzuur. Lekker!

750ml bottle. A murky yellow body with a good head, lots of carbonation (I remember how I spilled my first bottle). Yeasty aroma, spicy, orange peel, hops, apricot. Taste is refreshing, yeast, spices, orange, some herbal nuances, warming sensation, but almost no alcohol feeling. Solid.

Hazy, light brown colour with a nice white head. Decent aroma with bread and banana. Soft mouthfeel with light carbonation. Nice sweet taste with a little bit of bitterness in the end. Nice, drinkable beer.

I drunk this popular BSA hundred times but never rated it. This pours blond, lightly hazy with a massive foam head. Very smooth and soft, well balanced, easy to drink. Yeasty, spicy, cereals and coriander: like Karmeliet, a bit heavier and less complex, very light bitterness. Great beer for dwarfs !

Bottle 750ml pours hazy golden with nice resilient white head. Bready aromas with some light toffee sweetness and a touch of grass. medium light body, light sweetness with a nice malt backbone on the finish and a light lingering yeast character.

330 ml bottle. Pours hazy yellow to orange colour with a large white foamy head. Aroma of yeast, spices and sweet malt as undertone. Floral, fruity and spicy taste. Alcohol is not coming through very much in the taste. Complex flavour has at least banana, grain and honey. Nicely bitter. Lively carbonation, medium to thick bodied. Nice long, dry and fruity finish. An ecxelent and well balanced beer.