t Smisje Dubbel

Formerly brewed at Brouwerij De Regenboog
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Assebroek-Brugge, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass

Bottle. Brownish with a large tan head. Aroma of yeast, dark fruits, honey and sugar. A lot of carbonation, the finish had a lot of warming alcohol. Otherwise, I felt dried fruit, some chocolate and nuts. Ok but a little watery.

Bottle, 330 ml. Orange copper colour, opaque if you serve the sediments. Big white head, there’s always a lace when it fades. Smells mainly of yeast, honey notes, I can’t detect the dates, but I smell papaya. Dust and moss. Rough flavor, taste is hidden by the yeast and the sourness, it’s too sour, and dusty. Papaya again and noticeable alcohol. I’m not really sure what to say, given that the strong yeast and sourness hide anu nuances that it may have. Not easy to drink, I may have to give it another try some day.

Pours a hazy amber with a thick, foamy white head. Quite lovely aroma of honey, blackcurrant, nuts and some malts. Flavor is nice, first sweet, with some fruity highlights and then slowly some bitterness creeps up the palate towards a long dry, bitter finish. Regrettably, some alcohol shines through, which is sometimes a little too much present. Very lively carbonation.

330, little ziggurat bottle. Always attractive. Pours a deep chestnut brown with a comically massive, towering fluffy tan head that’s loaded with suds. In fact, you have to pour the beer about four times to finish the bottle, even if you’re working with a glass that would hold two bottles full. Probably about an 11 finger head, all told, given the opportunity. Try measuring that by yourself. Byt the time you take a drink or two, it’s down to sloppy loose bubbly foam. Suds and fury, signifying nothing. Funky brown apple tart nose, almost a little bit of CO2-y yeastiness, nearly basement but not quite. Kinda funked out for a dubbel, which is pretty cool in this case. Really makes you want to mess around with this yeast, maybe put in some fruit, maybe let it sit around for a long time. Creamy medium body, not quite slippery, and not really quite carbonated, either, by the standards of the beehive head this beer threw. There’s carb, don’t get me wrong, but you feel like these bubbles you’re drinking are the bubbles that didn’t get picked for the team that all went out the top of the glass in foam form. Mid-palates’s chocolatey, got some brown bread, maybe a touch of brown apple cellary goodness. No funk, though. Crisp overripe apple finish, with some dark biscuit and maybe a hint of nuts and toast under that. There’s a lot of nice stuff happening here, but it needs to decide whether it wants to lean toward crispness or complexity, and it needs to make more of an on-purpose impression with the carbonation behavior. But like a lot of Smisje stuff, you get the impression that they worked hard to get it just like this, and they just happen to have more niched-out tastes than some brewers. You gotta respect brewers following their muse.

I enjoyed this beer, poured from the bottle into a glass. It had an aroma featuring caramel malt with a touch of dark fruits and some grainy hops too. The beer was a dark cloudy brown color with some sediment and a dark tan head with decent retention and good cling. The taste was a sweet caramel malt flavor with some fruity effects and a touch of sourness and bitterness. The body was very wet and creamy, but was a bit watery with low carbonation.

Pours a dirty brown with chunks and floaters. Angry head settles somewhat, but never calms completely. Aroma of dirt and mud, but in a good way. Full mouthfeel, flavor is slightly sweet, slightly spiced, and evolves slowly. Subtle finish. Great example of an abbey style dubbel.

Sampled at Yourdarklord’s house. Pours a dark amber with a retentive tan head. Notes say aroma is weird. Fine carbonation. Flavor of raisens with some accents of peat and tobacco. Not much else was written down. I must have been busy talking. Oh well

This beer smells really bad. Flavor is ok but not good either. I’m never having this one again. (Bottle 33cl)