La Trappe Dubbel

Rating:

laTrappe_dubbelTrappistenbeirFact: La Trappe (De Koningshoeven) is one of only two Dutch Abbey brewers that can carry the authentic Trappist product label. The other is the lesser known Zundert by Abdij Maria Toevlucht.

Served into a beer tulip the deep mahogany pour whips up a generous 2 finger tan head that eventually settles to a fine layer on top. Good head retention. Laced well. The differences in aroma between Dubbels and their siblings – Tripels and Quads don’t differentiate a whole lot but once you smell a Trappist beer all the rest seem to be inferior. Instantly our olfactories are tantalised by the rich, syrupy and spicy aromas of raisin, port, brown candi sugar, alcohol, clove, toffee, banana and honey. Moderate sweetness which is nicely offset by the earthy undertones. Very nice. Surprisingly smooth in the mouth with a gentle creamy texture. The carbonation levels are low and the body is about medium, maybe leaning to the fuller side. A malt-forward combination of caramel, fig, spice, raisin and alcohol initiates the flavour profile, with spice along with a subtle alcohol warmth (7% ABV) continuing on through the mid-palate. A sugary sweetness is picked up late and eventually followed by the sweet, sticky finish with good legs. Wow, classy stuff this would have to be one of the better Dubbels on the market. Completely true to it’s style, not overly sweet but still rich and complex with all that chewy goodness going on. Hats off, this is a top shelf brew.