Tripel Karmeliet


The look of this beer is great - a slightly cloudy, apple-juice or honey-yellow colour, with a very tall head. The head is decently maintained by lots of bubbles in the glass. There is no lacing, but I find that is often the case with these Spiegelau glasses - they're just too smooth for the head to stick!

Out of the bottle and glass are classic, bright, triple smells... also some reminders me of some saisons I've had. There is apple, spice (coriander, I suppose), and fruits. Some people mention smells of bubble gum. I looked (OK, smelled) for it, but it wasn't very obvious. As the beer warms up, some hints of alcohol come out, as well as a more malty, sweet scent that reminds me of something in the honey-caramel-pineapple-maple glaze (like on a ham) family.

The flavours are nice. The smell coming out of the glass as you drink almost clears your nose out, keeping things fresh. In the sips, you can taste some fruit like mushy ripe apple, spice - not quite cinnamon - maybe it's the coriander again, and perhaps more of a sense of bubble gum here, as it's sweet.

There is very active carbonation in the mouth - lots of strong sensations all over the tongue, but mostly on the sides and very tip. The finish is sticky on the middle of tongue.

Compared to the Dominus Vobiscum Triple I just had, it has some similarities in looks, smells, and flavours, but I must say I like the DVT better.