River Piraat (a.k.a. River Rat Triple)
Selin's Grove Brewing Company

 

*Not sure why this one has two separate listings, they are the same beer. Either way here is my review...again.*

Served on-tap at the brewpub.

A - Pours hazy golden orange with a small half finger tall white head leaving little to no lacing down the glass.

S - Smells of bready yeast, light spice, clove, and lots of juicy fruit. As it warms up more and more sweetness creeps into the picture. Only the faintest trace of the alcohol creeps in toward the end.

T - Starts off with a big sweet kick to the teeth but never getting to the point of being cloying. Once the initial sweetness dies down you begin to get hints of oranges, apricot, chewy Belgian yeast, light spice, and just the faintest hint of some hop bitterness. Finish is mostly candied sweetness, lingering for a short time. Not too bad, but I still prefer the stealth.

M - Medium body and flavor with moderate carbonation. Chewy, sweet, feel carrying through to the finish line. It is soft, yet aggressive.

O - I still think I prefer their stealth triple but this was very nice none the less. I am not the biggest fan of "chewy" beers and this one straddled the line very well. It had just enough flavors to offset the chewy feel, leaving it nearly perfectly balanced. Glad I got to try it.

It's back. On-tap at SGBC, so nice to tick off beers that I've been meaning to try. A tripel taken to the next level; I'd call it a Belgian IPA in another universe.

A: The tripel is a darker color, miles away from the normal tripel golden hue, so much so that brown hues are evident, although it is not a brown ale. Maybe a tea color is the best descriptor. A white head leaves a few legs behind.

S: The nose brings together the Belgian spices of a tripel - candi sugars and peppers - with the hop bite of an IPA. In this case the hops have a citrusy base but don't skimp on the herbal flowery noble flavors. Very enticing.

T: Sweet initially, the candi sugars and hops gradually settle down. The Belgian side is spicy with pepper and candi sugars. The sugars create a fruity taste. Hops, both American and European, bring a full bitterness that is earthy and flowery. Like many good hoppy tripels, the transition from spice and yeast to hops is jumpy, bringing both flavors to the fore before the hops take over. Herbs and flowers dominate the latter part of each sip. A knockout of an ale.

M: The mouthfeel brings both the spices and the hops, each strong in its own regard. I hope that this one lasts a little while longer; I'd love to bring a growler home.

Thanks egajdzis for sharing this one.

Poured a deeper and lighlty hazy golden color with a small sized white head. Aromas of fruitiness, bananas, yeast, some spices, and citrus. Tastes of apples, spices, bananas, and candi sugar. Very sweet with light to medium alcohol in the finish.

Notes from 4/16/08

On tap at SGB on 4/6/08.

A - Hazy golden orange body with creamy, bulbous light beige head and lots of active carbonation. Head reminded me of a souffle. Huge head retention on this puppy!

S - Spicy and yeasty nose with a mix of sweet candi sugar and mild earthy hops.

T - Sweet candi sugar with a fruity aspect that segues into more of a spicy flavor with hints of clove and pepper. Flavor is quite yeasty, but the addition of spicy, earthy hops enhance the complexity of this brew.

M - Medium body with creamy mouthfeel and modest carbonation. Sweetness envelopes the tongue. Mild hop bite in the finish.

D - Another winner from SGB. More complex than the Stealth Tripel, and the addition of the hops gives this Belgian-style ale a bit more of a kick. Very nice!

On tap at the brewpub. Served in a goblet.

Pours a hazy gold with a thin, brite-white head that retains nicely around the edges and with thin wisps across the top that left some decent lacing. The aroma is candied sugars and yeast notes followed by a stark blast of peppery hoppiness and heat.

The taste is a candied feel up front with notes of clove, yeast, bananas, and citrus that is followed by an aggressive spicy hop bite. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with an effervescent poppy feel that then turns into a heavy alcohol ladden slick feel before sliding down the throat. Besides the feel in the body though, the alcohol is pretty well hidden.

Very nice! How do you make their all ready awesome Stealth Tripel even better here? Hop-it-up while retaining the full flavors and hidden ABV of the original. This is a great new creation from Steve & Heather that I'm hoping to get up and enjoy one more time before it's gone. Cheers!

Big ups to Kegatron and his sidekick Kim for securing me a growler of this new SGB brew.

A-Dark, slightly hazy, golden hued copper. Poured first with a thick, fluffy white head that reduced to a thin film that left nice lacing.

S-Nice kick of the Belgian yeast with a side-kick of peppery hops...quite the combo!

T-Initial blast of the banana/clove yeast of the good ole' Stealth Tripel....this is then followed up by a slam from peppery hops. Wow, the quick one-two combo is something else. Even better if you wait and let it warm a bit.

M-Outstanding...a very nice medium body with plenty of malt support for the hops. A syrupy feel with plenty of carbonation to not make it sticky....wonderful.

D-Really nice brew...maybe not a grand slam but certianly a home run....I would prefer more hop forward and not yeast forward but this may be almost impossible to create? Overall a very good attempt at a strong Belgian IPA....hurray Steve!

For those who enjoy the Stealth tripel, you are in for a great treat. For those who enjoy a good Piraat from Van Steenberge, you may also be surprised. While I haven't had a Piraat recently, and can't comment on whether the River Piraat is simply a tribute to the beer or a clone, it is one tasty beer.

It looked golden-honey. I don't recall there being any head on the beer at all when it was presented to me. Throughout the course of the glass, there was also very limited lacing. The color alone was enough to please me. The gentle haze added to its inviting feel.

I definitely tasted subtle amounts of banana. The smell enhanced this perception. They really managed the fermentation on this one because I detected no alcohol taste. This was quite astringent free. It had a pretty smooth mouth-feel. After a few sips that turned out to be more like gulps I had to remind myself to slow down and really savor this excellent brew.

This definitely ranks with the best tripels I've ever sampled and I really do like my tripels.