’t IJ Columbus

Brewed by Brouwerij ’t IJ
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

Medium head a real good carbonated drink,nice orange/gold pour,aroma clove coriander yeast fruit,flavour fruity orange lemon clove very smooth mango cinnamon,nothing special about the ale,finish hop flavours bitter strange a little sour.

33cl bottle at home: Lightly hazy pale amber beer with a massive yellowed head. Foam starts out quite creamy but breaks up with bigger bubbles. Big tropical fruit aroma full of pineapple juice, over-ripe mango and something more earthy and green. Almost a mango skin rather than mango. Mixed herbs come in as some of the fruits blow off. Overall sugary sweet aroma makes you think that it is going to be quite sticky. Thankfully its not as it seems. CO2 assaults your tongue with pins and needles. Dark green herbs and yeast burst off your cheeks with mixed fruits trailed behind. Candied orange peel sprinkled with dried earthy hops and a dose of spice. A low peppery note stays in the back but wants to be more active. There is malt in there but it has a light oxidized note and that paper-like quality blends in with the leafy herbs. Quite an herbal bomb since the high CO2 really drives that through. There is some great citrus that comes through if you can swirl out some of the CO2. Just dry enough not to be sticky but it wouldn’t hurt to be a little drier.

UPDATED: FEB 11, 2010 [9/9/09] Bottle at friends’ house in Amsterdam. Lovely hazy deep golden color with lively carbonation and a white head. Aroma of yeast, some wood, tropical fruits (mango and pineapple notes), some malt and mild . Sweetish flavor with malt, caramel, honey notes, fruits and yeasty spiciness that’s getting stronger towards a dry finish with some alcohol. Medium-bodied.

A nice beer, but not really to my tastes. Like the others from the brewery, exceptionally made in the Belgian style, but I find the spicyness a little too overpowering, much as I do with the Unibroue beers. A beer I’d recommend to others but not buy again myself.

Bottle. Poured a cloudy golden amber. Aroma was mainly yeast and mixed spice with a bit of pine and a mild hint of citrus. The palate was surprisingly dry and the flavour was quite woody. I was expecting this to be a little fruity which was not the case. This is an interesting beer but it isn’t overly compelling.

Bottle. Poured cloudy orange/brown with a small white head. Aroma of spice, citrus, light malt. Taste is really refreshing with plenty of spice, tart fruit, yeast, and bitterness. Mouth is pretty carbonated and refreshing. Overall, a nice complex ale.

UPDATED: JUL 7, 2009 Pours red/brown with a small fizzy white head. Very odd nose, not at all what i expected. Quite tart & woody, reminded me of rodenbach and the like: tangy red fruits dominate. Palate is alot more uniform for the style. Some caramel malt with quite a considerable amount of yeast spice. High carbonation serves to dry up the palate and compliment the yeast spice. Pretty interesting, but overall a little confusing.

UPDATED: JUL 5, 2009 Bottle, lots of carbonate. Opening the bottle is folllwed by a fountain of beer and foam ;-(. Is this due to transportation?) Furthemore a nice, dense head, a good finish, a bit of walnuts. Also from tap (re-rating) at de balie. Amsterdam. Hints of caramel, nice smooth finish. You do not taste the alcohol but it’s treacherous!