Abbey Triple - Sprecher Brewing Company

Vitals:

Name: Abbey Triple (yes they spelled it different than the style)

Style: Belgian Tripel

IBU: 13

ABV: 8.41%

Gravity: 19 deg. Plato --> 1.076 OG

Purchased at: Riley's Wines of the World

Descriptions:

Appearance: Pours a dark orange, almost a University of Texas burnt orange. ZERO head on this beer, no cap, no lace, NOTHING...so weird. Seems very lightly carbonated, translucent and hazy. To be honest, this looks quite lackluster.

Smell: Fruity (banana) and spicy (cloves) with some yeastiness. Smells good but there's not too much else here. Maybe some other fruits on the nose and there is definitely a faint alcohol smell to it. Smells good but nothing else special.

Taste: Starts with very sweet notes (maybe caramel?) and the fruity banana kick which turns over with the spicy clove and slight bite of alcohol. You get some of the good old Belgian yeast flavor, which is good. Leaves you with a sugary and boozy aftertaste; slight detractor. The middle of this beer is very strong and then fades out, but you get some alcohol heat...hides it's ABV very marginally at best.

Mouthfeel: Lighter side of a medium bodied beer and not much carbonation. Provides the interesting spice/alcohol heat which is interesting...I can't figure out if I like that or not. That feeling rolls down the back of your throat throughout the experience.

Overall Grade: B

Comments: I had this at Quivey's Grove Beerfest last year and thought it was amazing. Now, placing it in context, with more experience with different styles, I think it's still a solid beer, but not as complex as I remember it. At ~$8 for 4 pints it's not a bad deal and is a slight step up from Leffe Blond. I still prefer Bedlam from Ale Asylum or Delirium Tremens if I'm having a Belgian beer at this point. Try it if you're interested, or if you're a Belgian beer connoisseur, but you can probably find something as good or better if you try.

Cheers,

Hurls