Orval

Brewed by Brasserie dOrval
Style: Belgian Ale
Florenville - Villers-d.-Orval, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

UPDATED: MAR 12, 2005 A nice amber color with a white, fluffy, lasting head. Aroma is complex -- cidery, sour, musty, red wine, sweet dark fruits. A very dry taste, sour, fruity, and hops throughout. The flavor is pretty interesting. The hops and sourness are interesting to my tastebuds and there’s a goodly amount of dryness in the aftertaste. One of my favorite beers!

Poured a cloudy brownish orange, with an abundant light tan head. Wonderful malty, floral, spicy aroma with notes of citrus and alcohol. Flavor was sublime, with a dry spicyness from the hops up front and an ensuing sweet fruity maltiness, containing flavors of plum, raisins, cinnamon, and citrus, with a hint of alcohol in the finish. And what an excellent champagne-like dryness! I have to say that I love this one.

UPDATED: MAY 23, 2004 Re-Rate. Hazy orange to amber appearance, medium white creamy head, look great in the Orval glass. The aroma is sour, tart, barnyardy thing, almost geuze like, grape and citrus notes, wonderful aroma. Flavor is very refreshing and nice, grape, citrus, dryness and good hoppiness to back it up. Not the bitter hoppiness, but the tangy and funky hoppiness. And funky s really the expression to use about this beer, this is one of a kind! One of my favs i think, could drink this all night!!!

UPDATED: APR 3, 2008 Big thanks to Doug Shoemaker for hooking me up with tis one. Pours a cloudy dark amber body with a huge frothy beige head. Aroma is fruity, spicy and of candy malts. Brett and barnyard, cotton candy and peat. The taste is almost beyond description. it is sour grapes mixed with sweet fruity plum, add a funky, spicy, tartness. Wow this is really sour and sweet, and unique. Mouth feel is creamy, silky, leading to sour bitterness, with a sweet bretty finish. My appreciation for this beer grows every time I have it. Fucking fantastic.

UPDATED: NOV 28, 2004 Very spicy corriander and delicious hops in the brew this one has class and character and is better on re-rate!

UPDATED: OCT 8, 2007 I don’t think I can write enough words to describe this brew. Love this young and although I am not going to rate the Petit Orval it is equally as interesting. I could sit and smell this beer all day long. Was at the Abbey in September 2005 for a private tour. Page 348 of Michael Jackson’s Great Beer Guide and only 302 of his 500 Classic Brews to go.

UPDATED: DEC 10, 2011 330 ml bottle. For me this beer seems to taste different every time I drink it, depending on what I had before, food and general daily form. Therefore I decided there where no point in rating this, its just what it is………. Anyway this is my 2000 rating so I change my mind and will try to put down a few words in celibration. It’s a bit unclear orange body with lots of small bubbles and a thick lasting white head. Aroma is not strong, but very nice. It’s mainly citric fruity with a pleasant funky Bret stamp. Usually I manage to identify citric fruit, sometimes it seems to be more grapefruit and other times oranges. I can smell a delicate hint of spices, maybe coriander of maybe something else, there is yeast and also hints of older hops. Bret is always present, sometimes more acidic than other times, but never very strong acidity. Flavor has a lot in common with aroma, and always feels very refreshing and quaffable. Mild malt, sometimes hint of caramel, fruity like citrus, mild, dry bitterness, spices, refreshing acidity and a soft and balanced finish with bitterness, acid and sweetness in harmony. Pure magic!

UPDATED: JUL 15, 2008 pours and opaque darkish orange with nice large white head. I cant get enough of the aroma--grassy, a little barnyard, and fruit of which i cannot disecern a particular variety. taste and palate yummy, a bit sour at first with a nice fruity, yeasty, and complex aftertaste. i love this beer. i love all the trappists, but this one really stand out.