New Belgium Trippel

Brewed by New Belgium Brewing Company
Style: Abbey Tripel
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

12 oz, bb Jan 30 2008. NB Hub, Denver Airport. Clear, golden with a small head that tries to last. Bubblegum and white wine aroma. Flavor is the same. Light body is tingly, dry, and too frothy.

The beer pours a slightly hazy gold yellow with a creamy off white head. The light nose is laced with hints of hops, citrus, malts, yeast and spice. The flavor was under whelming; tasting of yeast and spice with a touch of citrus. The beer doesn’t live up to its name.

Moderate aromas of skunky yeast, coriander and lavender. Strong fruits (Peach, banana, apple), fresh cut hay, a sweet herbal undertone. Wow!! From the first sip I was captivated by this ethereal elixir. Perfectly balanced light, sweet + yeasty malts and fruity citrus hops. Very slight taste of anise in finish, which seems to be common to the style. I like how restrained this beer is in the spice, (coriander, anise, clove) yeast, and citrus. Whisper of musky malts in the finish. Slightly metallic astringent mouthfeel. Plenty of bubbly, melts away nicely into a clean creamy finish, a hair on the dry side.

A light golden thing. Scent of sweet breakfast cereal with apricots. So glad they clouded her up again, though the change in the Dubbel was more pronounced (thank you New Belgium for bringing back my beer). Rich and medium-boddied with light fruits and a medium-dry finish. Very nice drinkier. Would like more fruity sweetness perhaps, but i’m glad they didn’t go ’La Fin Du Monde’ on me.

Ok, wow. The guys at New Belgium Brewery have gotten this one nailed. Very nice Triple (or Trippel as they spell it), Poured this into my favorite flute and just sat back and watched. It poured a golden amber. formed a 2 finger head that was very persistent. The carbonation sprung from the bottom like good champaigne. The nose is full. Is it anise? Is it corriander? Is it flowers or flour? Complex nose, with hints of alcohol. But the taste is what gives this a 4+ rating. Wow. It is sweet on the front of the tongue, and rich oaky, roasty malts in the throat. The finish is a sweet anise and makes me want another swig. The alcohol is not present in the mouth, but you can feel it warm the stomach. Tip-o-the-hat to you boys at New Belgium Brewery.

Rich golden pour with a small white froth, looks kind of syrupy. Fruity aroma, with some caramel apples. Kind of funky for a tripel, tastes mass produced. No doubt the ratings from 03/04 are much higher. Body is pretty viscous for the style, a bit sticky. Nothing wrong with this as a beer, just not delicate like a tripel should be.

Light clear gold. Yeast, sweet malty, fruity, with slight spice, wood and hop finish.

Best By Date January 2009; Sampled May 2008
A vigorous pour into my large Tripel Karmeliet tulip glass produces a three finger thick, light tan colored head that leaves some light, wispy lacing patterns on the sides of my glass as the head slowly subsides. The beer is brilliantly clear and well carbonated as lots of streaming bubbles quickly rise through the orangish golden body of this brew. When held up to the light the beer shows a bright gold hue. Aromas of fresh cut pears, aromatic apples, a touch of banana and under-ripe melon join with spicy notes of lemon zest, white pepper, candied ginger, fresh cut hay, floral wild-flowers, orange zest, clove, a hint of cardamom, light bubble-gum and an earthy-herbal spice component. Sweet malt induced aromas of herbal honey are joined by cracker-like grain and a characteristic scent of vibrant, freshly crushed pale malt. An incredibly aromatic brew, this just has a fantastic aroma to it; it perhaps smells a bit on the sweet side, and it certainly is quite clean (as opposed to rustic), but the mix of aromatic components is quite compelling and I easily spend my first five minutes with this brew just enjoying the aroma.

Sweet and clean tasting up front with a strong banana flavor that becomes noticeable in the middle and lingers on for quite some time in the finish. Only lightly hopped with bittering hops as this has only a slight bitterness in the finish. After the first couples sips my palate becomes a bit deadened to the banana note, other flavors of bubble-gum, honeydew melon, ripe pear and orange blossoms . This has quite a soft, creamy mouthfeel to it; slightly viscous, yet still quite drinkable. This is certainly not on the heavy side, even for a Tripel. Lightly sharp with spice notes of ginger, clove, a touch of white pepper, a hint of earthy sage. Ample, sweet, honeyed malt notes really boosts the fruit flavors here and there is also a touch of cracker like grain here as well.

A very nice example of a Tripel. At times it can seem a bit too clean & it would certainly be a bit more balanced with some sharper edges to it; a funkiness, more hops or even more spiciness could serve this purpose, as it does seem to be a little too sweet at times. Despite this, the beer remains pretty complex throughout. A beer I used to drink a fair amount of, but haven’t for a long time and I am quite glad that I have revisited this.

Sampled June 2006
7/4/8/3/15 / 3.7
Pours a brilliantly clear gold color, the beer supports an off white head. I get a lightly spicy aroma with notes of lemon, apple, and a hint of ginger. The aroma is subtly complex, and is quite nice and enjoyable. The beer is soft and lightly sweet up front, but ends with a contrasting drying finish. The taste is evocative of pears, vanilla, ginger, and perhaps some pepper and coriander as well. The palate of this beer has a certain full-bodied creaminess to it. This is pretty good, it is well rounded and just works for me. It is perhaps missing a balancing sharpness that can be found in some Trippels, but this is quite tasty, and is readily available to boot.

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