“Since 1856 the monks have also been brewing a dark Trappist beer along with their table beer. Since the recipe was modified in 1926, they have been brewing slightly heavier beer. This is the foundation of today’s Dubbel.”
Served in a Duvel Trappist tulip. The murky brown pour is topped off by a finger of loosely held bubble that eventually settles to a halo with a reasonable lace left clinging to the glass.
Geez it’s hard to resist a traditional Belgian Trappist Dubbel and the aroma of this sexy beast shows exactly why. It starts with the hallmark scents of banana bread, clove, fruit esters and brown sugar but as it settles in the glass wafts of tobacco, banana split, bubblegum, Christmas cake and plum jam begin to develop. It’s a super complex concoction but it’s extremely addictive. Incredible.
In the mouth it’s full bodied with a creamy texture. Despite the richness and weight it still manages to glide over the tongue with minimal grip in the swallow. Maybe a slight hint of bitterness there in the tail as well.
Upfront we taste all of those yeasty fruit esters and sweet, sugary malts spiked with a mild warmth from the 7% ABV. As it progresses we begin to see the rich notes of banana bread, Christmas cake and cocoa mix it up with the spicy clove and pepper that delivers this complex and sweet yeasty finish.
That’s a really classy Dubbel. The question is where does it rate among some of the best Dubbels in the world? Personally, we think the Ommegang and the St.Bernardus Prior 8 are slightly better…..but not by much. Still a lot of great qualities to this Dubbel. Delicious.