As you may have heard, the Stone Brewing Company is hosting a series of courses on…yep, you guessed it, BEER! I had the pleasure to attend this one as well. Matt Steirnagle was our professor for the course. He is very knowledgeable in the ways of the Belgian brews! He also got the class involved in picking out different flavors and aromas.

We had the pleasure of tasting eight Belgian style ales. Below are my notes from them:

Witcap Pater Single: Aroma of esters. Thin head with little to no lacing. Smooth mouth feel. Light straw color. Taste of light hops and yeast.

Orval: Cloudy golden orange. Nice head. Aroma of yeast and sweet fruits. Heavy carbonation. Sweet and yeasty flavor with melon. Carbonation tickles the entire mouth. A nice spice after taste.

Saison Dupont: Golden cloudy orange color. Small head dissipates quickly. Aroma of sour  as well as a hint of something sweet. Smooth mouth feel. Little carbonation. I was picking up kind of an off after taste. Piney chewy. Lager flavor. I didn’t like it too much.

Unibroue La Fin Du Monde: Golden color. Really cloudy. Nice head that stays a minute or two. Aroma of sour and esters. Smooth mouth feel. Yeasty and esters. Lots of fruits in the flavor. For a 9 percent it hides it well.

Duchesse De Bourgogne: Dark amber. Excellent head. Aroma is almost pure ABV with malts and cherry. Taste is super fruits. Like berry of some sort. Raisins. Sour cherry flavors. Smooth finish with a little dryness. Nice lacing on the glass.

De Proef Flemish Primitive Ale: Cloudy sediment golden color with a nice big head. Tons of overflow from the bottles.  Nice lacing, heavy coating of head on the class as you drink it. Aroma of spices and sours. Taste that takes you away [maybe to Belgium]. Sour, yeast and ester flavor. Spice after tones. Peppery. Hides the ABV with a nice dry finish.

Abbaye De Rocs Grand Cru: Cloudy amber-ish, orange with a very minimal head. Ester aromas. Reminds me of banana foster. Taste of smooth marshmallow caramel.  Getting some pumpkin or butternut squash in there.  Smooth finish minimal after taste. Cleanly finishes.

Houblon Chouffe Doubbelon IPA Tripel: Golden straw color with some sediment. Heavy head. Very nice head retention [I credit the hops for this task]. Super sweet ester aroma with aromatic hops and some piney tastes. Sweet taste with a nice smooth hop flavor.  Dry finish. Moderate lacing. Buttery aftertaste after warmed up.

Also here is a link to the Stone’s Flickr ablum for this class.

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Tags: Abbaye De Rocs Grand Cru, beer review, beer u, belgian, De Proef Flemish Primitive Ale, Duchesse De Bourgogne, Enhance Your Knowledge, Houblon Chouffe Doubbelon IPA Tripel, Matt Steirnagle, orval, Saison Dupont, Stone, Unibroue La Fin Du Monde, Witcap Pater Single

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