Ommegang Three Philosophers

Brewed by Brewery Ommegang (Moortgat)
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Cooperstown, New York USA

2005 vintage 750mL bottle, shared with Matt7215 and his brother, his bottle (thanks Matt). Pours a very nice ruby-brown, mostly clear, with a small tan head. Aroma is actually a lot like the Koff Porter we had earlier, very weird for a Belgian ale of any sort, but I guess that could be viewed as a good omen. Sweet, slightly boozy, inky Baltic Porterness, and some cherry. Very interesting smelling. Flavour doesn’t disappoint either. Great complexity with the cherry lambic aspects really shine through. Tart, a touch sour, with decent malty fruity aspects showing up. I guess you could almost call this a Quad of sorts, but I think it might be better classified under the umbrella term of Belgian Strong Ale. Pretty smooth for the abv, though the bottle is 3 years old. Surprisingly good, although I don’t know why my expectations were slightly low to begin with. Flavours blend together decently enough, but the cherry and lambic components really steal the show very quickly into the performance.

12 oz bottle, 2008 Vintage, liberated from BCTC VIP dinner, enjoyed at home. Pours a clear reddish amber body with a fizzy off-white head that settles to a thin film. Big syrupy malt nose with a sweet cherry syrup and chocolate accent. Very noticable alcohol when you get your nose deep down in the glass. The flavor is a bit of a mess, heavy syrupy fruity malt with a cough syrup like cherry flavor that’s only re-enforced by the prominent alcohol. Figs, a little murky yeast and earthiness on the hot finish. Mouthfeel is sticky and cloying with slightly overactive fizzy carbonation. Overall, this was just pretty bad. My least favorite Ommegang beer by far.

Pours brown with a reddish tinge around the glass. Foamy, eggshell colored head. Aroma is sweet, caramel, toffee malts, with sour cherries and a bit of alcohol. Caramel taste with a great sour, cherry finish. Not quite a dream beer, but great nonetheless.

Bold maroon in color with an assault of malts. It drinks cool and replenishes warmth. Has a bite thats washed in cherries. Crisp and clean with foamy head, but not as dreamy as the aesthetic.

Bottle. Nice light fruity aroma. Reddish brown color with a small white head. Sweet light malty body with a nice light sour and cherry flavor. Nice and balanced sour palate.

This beer tastes very good. It reminds me of some sort of beer wine mixture. It is also very economical for a bottle brewed beer. If i could have a conversation with this beer i would say "Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down."

The bottle pours like a jewel; rich amber with bright red tones and billowy tan head settling into about a quarter inch. Take it into the light. The aroma is splendid; candied fruit, cherries, melding into a subtle chocolate roastyness (roastyness not a word, but hey...). The complexity is something to keep up with, but not overwhelming. Different flavors from lips to gullet. Slightly tart at start, with lush caramel, oak(?) and alcohol. It’s INCREDIBLY smooth as it warms just a bit. Full mouthfeel, for sure, but I think the yeast has had enough sugar to mellow a bit and actually allow the other characters to come through. How could I not love a beer named as it is, and created in strive to reach someone’s description of a perfect beer?? It’s awesome. Quite a shame I’ve got the big bottle to myself, really.

On tap at Flying Saucer in Nashville TN. Great looking and refreshing beer that exploded with many different flavors for the nose and tongue. Very easy drinking quad with hardly any aftertaste until about 8oz into it when it started to saturate my mouth. Not boozy whatsoever, and even at 10%, you could enjoy these on a porch in the dead heat of summer. Great!