De Proefbrouwerij Signature Ale

Brewed by De Proefbrouwerij
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Lochristi - Hijfte, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

Hoppy, grassy, sweet and spicy in the aroma. Pours golden blonde. Piney, with hints of citrus, sweetness, hints of brett like flavors. I wonder if this will sour up in some time? Nicely carbonated and easy to drink for 8.5%.

25 oz bottle, via fordest. Poured a mostly clear dark gold to light copper body under a small off-white foamy head. The nose was pretty nice, a mix of fruitiness and a subtle funkiness, some notes of bready malt, and moderate hoppiness. Just the beginnings of what this beer might have become, the brett is there, but probably would have become much stronger with time. The flavor is a blend of slightly sweet maltiness, moderate leafy hops, and the soft brettiness on the finish. Light to medium bodied with soft fizzy pleasant carbonation. Overall, I think this was a really nice complex beer, I wish I could have had a larger sample in a more private setting to really get into it, but then again, sharing is it’s own reward.

It’s hard to ignore a beer that’s a joint effort between two renowned brewers. In the Signature Ale it’s De Proef and Lost Abbey joining forces to make what I can only assume will be an incredibly high quality beer. The pour slowly explodes wuth a large, dull white foam head, which then listlessly floats on a pumpkin orange brew. The Signature is a beautiful beer, with all the clarity and visible carbonation of a champagne. At to that the circular crown of bubble columns and spires and you get a beer you can admire as if it were on display in an art gallery. The dominant fragrance of the Signature Ale is a rareified apple, almost imperceptible, couched in a soft, gentle and caressing aroma. The bottle describes a hop quality, but aside from a metallic touch I don’t smell anything resembling hops. Rather, this is a soft, almost mead like beer with the gentle caress of apples and a sweet and refined quality - even the aroma of a fresh grape vine from the orchard. That self-sketched hops presence does appear in the flavor, but it’s not the American hop profile I’ve become accustomed to. The Signature begins with a shining, crystal clear taste, textured by an initial paroxysm of fizzle, and then transitions into a brief window of naked hops taste. It is then quickly clothed again in sweet and yeasty garb - a wrapping of flavors. The aftertaste is declaratively hoppy too, and also holds the clearest cut sample of the distinctive brettanomyces that brewers and beer drinkers get so excited about. While this isn’t a beer that I’d fall to my knees in awe for, it’s a grand effort, and shows that whatever the dynamics were that brought about this unique collaborative effort, the teamwork paid off handsomely.

Wow. I split this beer with my sister, but it was great. Pours a cloudy brown with a medium off white head. Has a nice belgian yeast smell and some fruit. The hops are actually present and add a bit of bitterness. Has some nice orange peel flavor in there as well. Very smooth and a good example of the style.

Bottle at RBSG tasting. Pours orange gold with a white head. Aroma of citrus, honey, and some alcohol. I like the attenuation on this one. Flavors of orange and lemon with subtle accents of dry leafy herbs. Finish is dry and slightly bretty. Nice.

UPDATED: AUG 19, 2008 Bottle. Papsoes MadsBerg homecoming blindtasting, bottle #28. Pours hazy orange with a lacing white head. Mild hoppy orange fruity. Light butterish note too. Fruity caramel malt base. Light hoppy orange fruity flavour towards the finish. Has a medium dry bitterness and a mild fruity finish.7-3-7-3-13=3.3

75 cL bottle, batch 2 tasted at Lost Abbey. Pours clear and golden orange with a lacing white head. Yeasty, caramel and mild brett dry aroma. Flavour is dry and with a light brett accent to a classic belgian caramel an yeasty base beer. Complimenting the beer quite well and breaking the otherwise slight cloying mix with a nice dry crispness. Mild dry and yeasty finish. Smooth and delicious. 8-3-8-4-16=3.9

Hazy orange in color with a medium well retaining off white head. Aroma: a good amount of american hops, mostly orange: amarillo? As well as some funky brett and light lemon rind. Taste is a bit mellower than the aroma, but still prietty nice with citrus/orange, a light malty sweetness, with light touches of tart brett and mild funk. Pretty good, and I am sure this will get better.

Malty and Hoppy with some burnt sugars and burning alcohols. Great tasting but i felt the carbonation like a soda pop, artificial like. Its also got a funky finish to it.