Orval

herbs, citrus, amber, hazy, tan foam, light sweetness, very bitter, medium sourness, full body, thick feel, lively, bitter,

I tasted an Orval recently, and visited the brewery in 2004. The brewery become industrial, clearly, they have built many cylindro-conic fermentation tanks, that replace old swimming-pool like ones. When I drinked it the last week, I found some banana flavors from yeasts, but not clear enough. The yeasts flavors aren’t complex, unlike the old Orval version that I tasted ten years ago. When we drink it we clearly feel hop extracts (hop perfume extracts and hop bitterness extracts). These extracts tastes are strong and ruin the overall taste... almost fortunately, because of the fermentation that isn’t able to make complex flavors. A good beer that I advice to learn someone what hop extracts are, but not a good beer to drink. We can say that it’s the end of great Orval beers.

Pours nice, keeps a decent head on the beer. Smells like a garden. Thin, crisp, sweet flavor. Strong abv. The aftertaste is amazing, even if the beer itself is a bit to sweet for my liking. Very carbonated. Remindes me of a pumpkin soda.

Pours cloudy orange-amber with a very generous beige head which lasts. Smells like sweet bread, very nice. Starts off strong, sourdough bread and dark fruit, and is very dry. Goes down smooth, has a bit more carbonation that the other trappist ales, warms as it reaches bottom. Very enjoyable, definitely a unique and complex brew.

Bottle, pours a cloudy orange with a fizzy, pillowy white head that lasts relatively well, and clings nicely to the glass. Strong flowery aroma with a hoppy bite and dry alcoholic finish.