’t IJ Zatte

Brewed by Brouwerij ’t IJ
Style: Abbey Tripel
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip

33 cl bottle. Slightly cloudy orange-yellow beer with a thick pillowy white head that lasts to the end of the bottle. Aroma is very spicy with notes of apricot, bread and honey. Flavour also shows a lovely bready complexity backing up peach, cinnamon and clove. A kiss of plummy flavour as well as the lighter fruity notes, apricot/peach, wheaty spice and a fairly full creamy body. Finishes slightly herbal with a lingering floral hop note over everything. Lovely brew.

Pours a slightly hazy deep gold into a tulip. Conglomerate head quickly recedes, but stays on the surface. Fruity apricot, green apple and bisquit aromas. Slick. Sharp fruit and caramel notes. Like a caramel apple. Lasting spicy apricot finish.

Hazy golden body with a large, tight beaded, white head. Aroma of some spice and also some fruit such as orange and maybe even passionfruit. Medium body, some cheese, some citrus notes and severeal other flavours, good carbonation and seems to have a long finish. Enjoyed this drop although my partner didn’t.

Following our relatively recent visit of Amsterdam, myself and my good friend McNick had three remaining bottles of ’t IJ’s offerings. What better than an afternoon triptych with some brilliantly crafted ales? Our first aspirant was the Zatte, exhibiting the consistently flawless beauty of ’t IJ’s brews in its slightly foggy acacia honey hue and fabulous flocculent foam. Sticky specks of lace cover the goblet as it engulfs my nose to reveal sweet melligenous scents flowing into fruity notes of apricot and orange peel. Nectarean yet spicy; were I more hirsute, one could have inadvertently confused me for a gargantuan bumblebee collecting its treasure. Coriander, nutmeg and white pepper in equal proportions lend to the complex fragrance. Also notable are corn flour and artichoke, the former characterizing the cereal tonality of tripels, the latter representing a vegetative aspect common throughout ’t IJ’s gamut. Spices dazzle the tongue with a dry blend of pepper, paprika and coriander to which the familial asparagus flavor confers a touch of the brewery’s unique character. Pineapple, perfume and Corn Flakes form an equally eclectic trio befitting the prickly palate and nearly absent alcohol. The sum can be gulped with no worry and plenty of punch - a top tripel, to be sure.

My second time around with the people from tIJ brewery. The first wasn’t the best of beers so I had hoped this was better, and it proved to be so. Aroma was fruit (apricots) and yeasty, but fairly one dimensional. A cloudy orange/yellow color. Flavors were apricots, bready yeast, some malt sweetness and a bit of citrus. I think I’d buy this again.

Another interesting trippel that I picked up during my travels. Slightly sweet, but not over the top or cloying. Cookie dough maltiness with some orage jamminess, thick sticky mouthfeel. Finishes dry, but has a wonderful lingering finish, like a dry sauvingon blanc.

33cl bottle, best before 03/2006. Drinking it right now. Poured into small Bodum glass coffee cup. Deep golden color with lots of sediment and visible carbonation (bubbles). Looks like a golden gelatin. Small head. Present aroma - lots of candi sweetness but in a different manner. Real deep earthy sweetness. I am starting to get a rhythem to these beers aromas. Taste is similarly earthy belgian. I almost want to say a roasty sweetness or woodsy. Leaves a sweet wet forest aftertaste. Original.

Notches marked March/05. Born or best? Hazy gold with a few floaters, topped by a frothy, 1 inch white cap. Aroma of old grains similar to a very light whiskey with a few ice cubes melted in it. Sweet fruits, mildly sour funky yeast, vinegar, also. Flavors are sweet and fruity, rich yet crisp malt, a subtle herbal/pepper spiciness, tangy vinegar, just a bit of musty funk, and a dry yeasty finish that makes me want to drink it way too fast. Very mellow. Full, smooth palate. Solid brew, have to try some of their others.