Tripel Karmeliet

Brewed by Brouwerij Bosteels
Style: Abbey Tripel
Buggenhout, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip

UPDATED: MAY 11, 2010 330 ml bottle that I purchased nearly two years ago. Pours a brilliant, clear gold with significant rising carbonation and a fluffy white head that slowly subsides to a creamy cap and sheeting lace. The nose is of sweet, clean apple and apple skin with a fruity, spicy Belgian yeast note in support. Medium-bodied and velvety soft with abundant fine carbonation and a mildly spicy, dry finish; very, very nice. The flavor follows the nose with a seamless blend of the sweet/fruity (apple) and dry/spicy qualities. This beer is so well balanced and constructed, I will be amazed if I ever find another "traditional" tripel that I consider its peer.

Hazy amber/gold color; Medium slightly creamy body; Aroma of yeast, citrus, some clove, & subtle fruit; Flavor of sweet malt, yeast, fruit (notably bananas), spice, citrus, and some hops; Finish is dry; Nicely balanced & complex; Overall, a great tripel - I did enjoy it.

Why-oh-why must she come to me in a green corked 750ml bottle?!

There is a fine dusting of yeast at the bottom of her green champagne bottle depths. Bottle-conditioned? I would say so. According to her wire cage, she is good until December 2010, more than enough time to mature a bit in her glassy confines. Of course, I’m all for trying a beer fresh also which is exactly what I did not too long ago. Clear golden grains freshly harvested from the fields gather neatly in my glass below fluffy white clouds. A brilliant stream of bubbles burst their way through to the surface, pushing the clouds aside and releasing a delicious nose. Sweet and rich, ripe tangerines release tantalizing esters as I peel their skins aside, sticky juices tracing their way down my wrist and arm. Orange and apricot marmalade is slathered generously atop freshly toasted hunks of white bread. Honey straight from the comb joins her juicy marmalade friends for a purely selfish indulgence of toasted bliss. Lemon skin and pith plays in the background while lavender and sunflower esters drift along a warm spring breeze. Tripel Karmeliet exudes spring, when Mother Nature starts to breathe life and glory into her winter-weary children. White pepper and grains of paradise spice up the picture, but more in the background then the foreground, complimenting the lemon zest already there. I don’t know about you, but I’m thirsty so without further ado… Smooth with a mildly effervescent mouthfeel. Fresh honey and homemade orange and apricot marmalade kiss my lips with delightfully sticky nectar while whole loaves of soft white breads are removed from time-worn brick ovens. Soft oats abound, a testament to one of the three prized grains used in the brewing of this particular Tripel. Crunchy white water crackers offer a pleasant contrast while only a gentle kiss of dryness lingers after each quaff. Floral and honey esters tinge my breath even as lemon, white pepper, and grains of paradise refresh my weary body. A bottled spring day spent lazing about golden fields of grain while a flower bed sways lazily in a gentle spring breeze. Take that long moment of Zen, bottle it, and call it Tripel Karmeliet.

I really wish she didn’t come in a green glass bottle, but what’s a gal to do. Thankfully, my brew suffered none of the potentially skunked fates that can await a beer bottled in anything other than brown glass. I understand now why Tripel Karmeliet enjoys a cultish status of sinfully delicious quaffability. Much like Duvel, so easy to drink made all that more dangerous by her generous ABV.

750 ml. bottle from Mac’s on West Peachtree. Light orange and dark yellow appearance. Translucent brew with a foamy head that seems to be fading away rather quickly. Bubblegum, yeast, sugar, light banana, clove, and a touch of grass provide a very nice nuanced aroma. Light spicy aroma as well. Wow, I’m very impressed with this aroma; U.S. versions of the tripel seem as though they’re starting to become more artificial-smelling and tasting. This beer is too carbonated. Mother fucker, I am sick and tired of tripels drinking like soda-water for God’s sake. Spicy notes are hitting the taste buds. I’m also betting that yeast, sugar, and bubblegum. The clove and banana aren’t really coming through as they were in the aroma. The flavor is relatively nice, but I can’t understand how or why someone would come to the conclusion that this much carbonation is necessary for a beer. The carbonation is caustic and just biting the hell out of my tongue and mouth. There are some nice flavors here, but the carbonation just kills a lot of what could be considered a stellar tripel.

Pours clear golden with fizzy, 1/2 finger white head. Effervescent, and gorgeous. Lots of apple and pear notes in the nose with mild bread. Dry and tart with apple and pear, slightly grainy with very little bitter. No noticeable alcohol A great tripel.

Beautiful beer, golden with a nice white head. Smells lovely with lots of spice. The spiciest beer I’ve ever tasted, enormous flavour, much more than your average tripel. Cloves and herbs in the lingering aftertaste, and it prickles your tongue as you swallow. This is a GREAT beer.

Fresh and sweet...cookie dough aroma. Golden color. Sweet with light (lemon) citrus/crystal maltiness.

75 cl bottle. Pours a fairly pale golden color with a large white long lasting head. It has a wonderful fresh hop smell to it with some herb aroma. This is a absolutely wonderful beer. It has a grain taste, a floral taste, some herb taste and a just transcendent creaminess to it. This was one of the best beers I’ve had in my life.