La Grande Blanche

Brewed by De Proefbrouwerij
Style: Belgian White (Witbier)
Lochristi - Hijfte, Belgium

Serve in Tumbler, Weizen

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750 from HiTime. Fairly impressive pour, like a sturdy wit should be - big frothy head with good retention, cloudy orange body, and wafting aromas of coriander and citrus. Reasonably full-bodied, this one’s flavor is a tad compromised by a slightly medicinal aftertaste, almost like a dull sour blanket over what is otherwise a decent beer. Don’t know about "imperial," though.

Sampler at <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Place/illinois/frankf Liquors, Frankfort. Cloudy yellow color. Even in my tiny glass, the surface shows interesting ripples of foam, light a light breeze over desert sands. Smell of lemon and a bit of sweat, or do I need to re-wash my hands? Somewhat rough and unruly, but then I didn’t know when sampling this was billed as an "Imperial" strength wit. My rating may be admittedly lower than the crowd’s but I’m just going by first impression.

Purchased at Pizza Port’s bottle shop ($7.99). This Belgian white poured a crystal clear golden color with thick at first head which simmered down to a small patch of foam. A light, but moderate use of malt and perfume style hops are the nose. And, the flavor, is a mild dosage of grassy hops and very tamed down yeast with just the slightest hint of a spice or coriander behind the initial flavor. Standard and average by all means with no special note worthy characteristics.

09-Oct-07 (750-ml corked and caged bottle: Purchased 02-Oct-07 for $9.49 at BevMo in La Jolla, CA) This cloudy, golden beer pours a big, rocky, off-white head with fat bubbles, but as the head recedes to a thin layer, it leaves dense, lunar landscape lacing over much of the glass. Aromas of tropical fruit, peach and tangerine leap from glass, with light breadiness nipping at the edges, but there is very little in the way of coriander or yellow citrus. On the palate, the fruity attack features loads of tropical fruit, evolving into a lightly bready finish with mild bitterness. Breadiness increases as the beer gets warmer. Once again, coriander is at most a background flavor, so the balance is a little off. Continuing the non-traditional witbier theme, the body is medium-full, the carbonation is light, and the mouthfeel is heavy. Given the untraditionally big flavor, the relatively dense and chewy mouthfeel, and the label stating, "Belgian Imperial White Ale," you might think this beer was created with the American market in mind. By design, it clearly has little resemblance to an authentic Belgian Wit, but overall, this beer is pretty tasty and enjoyable and provides a pleasant evening of sipping.

tap. Nice and lemony flavor with definite wheat and wit notes. creamy and smooth. Very nice.

750, corked and caged. Pours a crystal clear, lightly bubbly gold. Thick, rocky egg-white-y platinum blonde head. Plenty of lacing. Nice lemony, grassy, apple-y, dusty, powdered sugary nose. Classic wit. Soft, slightly oily medium body with gentle carb. Sweet sugars roll off the glass on the attack. Slightly sticky mid-palate with mild fruity tang and sugary goodness on the mid-palate; slightly puckery finish with sugary cling. Good stuff.

Pours a hazy light straw body with a billowing head that does intricate Belgian lacing. The aroma has wheat, banana. coriander, clove, and a lemony tartness. Very creamy mouthfeel yet leaving a peppery feeling on the tongue. Tastes of wheat and banana and warm spices and has a developing citrus zest bitterness. Kind of a dry finish. With its un-Wit characteristics and its hefty ABV, I’m surprized that this isn’t listed as a Batch 8000 Belgian Strong Ale.

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Bottle from BevMo. Pours a very hazy yellow color with hints of orange. Spiced aroma of yeast and some kind of almost tropical fruit.Sweet up front. Flavor moves into a rich creamy yeasty flavor. Some grains follow it up, and it finishes with some spices and just a hint of bitterness. This is a really good effort at an "impy wit".

This has the aroma of a Bavarian hefeweizen. Brilliant sparkling gold color with a white head that did not last. Full bodied. Creamy carbonation. Clove. Light Banane. Maybe some pepper. Or not. Very smooth. It finishes less than dry. Think about this. The banana is very subdued. Try to find it. It finishes sweeter than a hefe. Still. Think about it. This could be one of the best beers. A Wit? Probably not. Maybe it is unique.

750 mL bottle. Hazy yellow with a big foamy white head. Strong clove aroma with citrus notes and yeast. Some what watery taste, very spicy: clove, corriander?, and pepper. The citrus tastes are too diluted overall, but faintly present.