Westmalle Dubbel
21 May
Name – Westmalle Dubbel
Country – Belgium
Type – Dubbel
Appearance – Poured a dark mahogany type color with some red highlights. A big tan head tops it off.
Smell – Pretty traditional Belgian smells with the dark fruits and candi sugar.
Taste – I usually hate saying it’s the same as the smell but it really is. Very nice dark fruits like grapes and figs and plums mixed with a sweet candi sugar. You get a bit of the booze as it warms up some.
This is one I’ve really meant to try for quite a long time but just never got around to it. The nearly $5 price tag kind of put me off too. But I figured it was time to indulge on this being one of the true Trappist breweries. I really enjoyed it. I typically like the quadrupels more but this was very pleasant and drinkable. Will definitely go back to it again.
Overall Grade – A
I’ve been putting it off for the same reason – pricey for the little bottle, but that’s probably a bad reason not to try such a fine-sounding beer!
This is a really nice Dubbel, and one of the first craft beers I really LOVED. It seems surprisingly simple and it just gets more and more complex the more you drink it. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Westmalle is just good, no matter what they make. Trappist brews get me every time.
Interesting note (and good timing) – Bob just did a review of the Dubbel and Tripel on TBC.
http://thebrewclub.com/2010/05/24/westmalle-double-and-triple-belgian-ales/