New Glarus Unplugged Belgian Quadruple

Formerly brewed at New Glarus Brewing Company
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
New Glarus, Wisconsin USA

This Belgian Quad pours a medium amber color from a 12oz bottle. Small sized to no head. Aroma is fruity and sweet, some yeast and some oak. There is also some cherries and a touch of funk. A medium bodied quad. The malts are fruity and sweet. Candi sugar and a hint of brown sugar as well. There are hints of oak and bourbon and cherries and some funk. Wow there is a lot going on in this beer. There is some interesting spice interplay as well. Its nowhere near as full in the mouth as most quads, but it has a certain quality that make this a very nice beer to sit and sip and figure out and enjoy the interplay of flavors. Hides the alcohol well. Nice beer. Mouthfeel is full, but not thick. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly sweet with a slight hint of alcohol.

(Bottle) Pours an amber body with a small off-white head. Aroma of oak, vanilla, apple, caramel, and cherry. Flavor of cherry/brett, bourbon, caramel, and oak.

Poured a clear copper color with a medium sized off-white head. Nice mix of big bretty leather and fruitiness and sweetness of a quad. The flavor had a yeasty spice with sweet notes as well as brett. Medium to full bodied with a dry finish.

Bottled. Beer is clear, medium caramel-brown. Head is initially average-sized, off-white, frothy/creamy. Diminishes slowly and mostly lasts.<P>The aroma is surprising. Malty with moderate notes of drippy-sweet caramel biscuit, light toasted grain; Hoppy with bright, light notes of herb and wildflowers; Yeasty with a trace of dough; Moderate/heavy balsamic-evoking berry/cherry laden vinosity, whiskey, light vanilla and tart green apple.<P>The flavor is moderately/heavily sweet, lightly bitter, trace acidic with a long, warm, moderately sweet, lightly bitter finish. Slightly boozy in the aftertaste. Light note of yeasty basement shines through now, too.<P>The body is medium/full, the texture is syrupy and the carbonation is light.<P>Ern’s right: Not very quadish. More like an IFSA than anything.

Bottle. Head is initially small, frothy, off-white, mostly diminishing. Body is medium amber. Aroma is moderately malty (caramel, caramel, caramel), with notes of oak, whiskey, apple, cherry. Flavor is moderately to heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly to moderately bitter. Medium to full body, syrupy/watery texture, lively carbonation, moderately alcoholic. It’s not very quad-like (other than being sweet and strong, I suppose, but then so are barleywines *cough*) nor very Belgian. It’s decent enough for a whiskey-barrel-ish barleywine-ish brew, though. Some sour notes in the nose were a concern, but there’s very little tartness in the mouth. Not that special for me, but I can understand why it is well-liked.

Bottle: Amberish caramel in color, fairly clear, moderate to large foamy sand colored head, decent lacing.   Has somewhat of a tart nose, a little Tripel like, some hints of oak and Bourbon.   Somewhat sweet on the tongue, slightly fruity, has that American bready Tripel twang.   Alcohol becomes somewhat apparent as it warms.   Definitely warming.   The fruity aspect is of a pale nature, moreso a Tripel than the darker fruits of a Quad.   Moderate body and mouthfeel, albeit a bit syrupy.   Good, but not what I was expecting for a quad.   Thanks for the bottle Jason!

Date: April 22, 2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Trade
Appearance: clear redish orange, fine beige head, touch of lace
Aroma: sweet fruity aroma with a bret infused mustyness along with a tart cherry woody character
Body: creamy body
Flavor: wild blend of flavors with fruityness and cobwebs from a Belgian cave supported by wooden beams, mild tartness invokes a cherry essence, the bret dries it out a lot but some sweetness still manages to sneak in with the fruity character, incredable complexity
Overall: will be a lot different every six months

Date: May 16, 2007
Mode: bottle
Source: tasting
picking up more sweetness along with the fruity character, less bret in this sample,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 8/10; Overall: 16/20
Rating: 3.8/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4

Picked this one up at the New Glarus brewery. Pour was light mahoghany (and ’too clear’ for a quad) with a quickly dissolving tan head. Aroma is strong, yet very pleasant; fruity flavors such as cherry, apple and pear, with a whiff of bourbon as well. Highly carbonated, this goes down very quickly for an 11% brew, and is very good! Flavors include dark fruits, vanilla and spice, and have a nice warming on the aftertaste. New Glarus has yet to let me down!