Orval

Pours light amber with a billowy white head. Aromas of resin, apples, mincemeat, and sourdough; no appreciable hop bouquet. Surprisingly dry with hints of straw in the mouth; definitely more hoppy than the typical Belgian as their bitterness dominates the flavor profile. Flavor rounds out as the beer passes the 50 F mark. Tingly texture that leaves the mouth feeling cleaner than before! Medium body and astringent finish.

Bottle. I cannot say the aroma was anything like I was expecting, olives, grapes, melon fruit, and some other kind of spice, very very interesting and unique though I’m not sure I’m completely turned on by it. The appearance on the other hand… wow! Absolutely beautiful pour, huge cream colored pillowy bubbly head, stays nicely, minor lacing, great cloudy burnt orange color, very little carbonation bubbles. This is definitely the most unique tasting beer I may have ever tried, for starters the palate is fantastic, super smooth, medium mouthfeel feels great on the tongue and palate, it has a spicy exotic fruit start initially, then I get similarly to the aroma olives/grape malt flavors, finishes with a very dry unique type of bitter. I absolutely love the uniqueness of this beer, but I can’t say that all its craziness truly comes together perfectly for me, though it was a great experience.

YEEESSSSSAAAA!! Hurrah for Orval!! A great belgian ale that pours cloudy yellow/orange. Looks great in its own glass poured by a Belgian Waiter in Central Brussels. Tastes like sunshine, a wee bit fruity. Merci!!

Botella. Comprada en supermercado. Color ambar-anaranjado. Espuma color crema claro. Gran aroma a malta y frutas. Muy seca con toques frutales y un amargor importante que no desentona. Mas acida de lo que esperaba. Buena, pero no me maravillo.

Finally got around to picking up this classic. Pours a nice hazy golden orange with huge off-whitish head. Aroma is of malt, spices, light fruits and hops. Flavor is dry with spices and hops with notes of light fruits and a touch of alcohol. Best belgain brew I have had and a pleasure to finally try.

(Bottle). [First rating 7/25/2008]. 7-4-6-3-13 (3.3). Overall, a disappointing experience, despite the lovely bottle and glowing reviews. Aroma light, fresh, and very fruity. Pours hazy orange-brown, with a huge creamy head. Flavor light and sweet with many subtle fruit notes. Very dry texture, and very light body. An easy beer to drink, but not one that impressed me with anything particularly special. [Re-rate 4/12/2009]. 7-4-6-3-14 (3.4). I enjoyed this a tiny bit more upon the second rating. But still I can’t say I’m overly impressed. There are SO many tastier and more interesting beers out there, Belgian and otherwise.

Great smelling beer. Didn’t quite have the depth of flavor I’ve come to expect in a Belgian Ale but that doesn’t change the fact that this beer is quite tasty and far more casually drinkable than any other Belgian ale I’ve had before.

V - thick voluminous head and a cloudy light orange body A - some spices and an under current of hops. A bit of lemon and lime. Somewhat muffled. T - also a bit muted with hints of dark fruits and spices, sour P - a little watery at the end

re-rate: aroma is very spicy, peppery, hoppy. Super carbonation with a huge sticky head. The body is a lightly cloudy true orange color. Lots of belgian wheat spices in this. Huge bubbly mouthfeel with a somewhat bitter, hot spicy taste.