REVIEW 75: TRIPEL KARMELIET

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:  Belgium

BREWERY:  Brouwerij Bosteels

STYLE:  Tripel

ABV:  8.4%

PURCHASE:  N/A (gift)

SERVING:  25.4-oz. bottle, poured into Chimay branded chalice. An inch and a half's worth of head from a standard pour; a third of that from a slower one. Great retention.

APPEARANCE:  Translucent and hazy golden color with a bright, sudsy white head. Much bubbling, but very minimal lacing.

BOUQUET:  Malty and citrusy with spicy undertones as well as hints of banana. Zesty from coriander, clove, orange and lemon peel. Not much on the hop front. 

PALATE:  Moderate body. Carbonation is sharp--even downright biting--during the first few sips after the pour; fortunately, it mellows out. Very smooth mouthfeel, with banana, malted grain--not particularly decipherable, but supposedly equal parts oak, barley, and wheat--and citrus the dominant factors. Spicy from mid-palate on, again in the form of mainly coriander, clove, and citrus zest. Things get interesting at the finish. Traces of yeast emerge, as do, in the aftertaste, hints of vanilla and fusel alcohol. It works, but doesn't come off as polished as most other renowned Belgian tripels.

MUSINGS AND METAPHORS:  This was first brewed in 1996, but was based on a recipe from a Carmelite convent in Dendermonde, Belgium dating to 1679. Who are the Carmelites? Look'em up. I can't be expected to do everything for you bastards.

On the label, you will find the quotation, "3 granen," which as you can probably guess, translates to, "three grains." Those grains are, as previously mentioned, wheat, barley, and oat. None of them took the lead here, and none of them were particularly distinguishable. That said, the result was a highly enjoyable representative of this beer style, albeit not a top-tier one.




GRADE:  B+

Carmelites!