Wrigian
White Birch Brewing
- From:
- White Birch Brewing
- New Hampshire, United States
- Style:
- Belgian Pale Strong Ale
- ABV:
- 10%
- Score:
- 86
- Avg:
- 3.81 | pDev: 12.6%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 40
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Sep 01, 2014
- Added:
- Mar 17, 2010
- Wants:
- 5
- Gots:
- 6
SCORE
86
Very Good
86
Very Good
Brewed with a complimentary blend of rye and hops to highlight the spicy nature of rye.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by cosmicevan from New York
3.25/5 rDev -14.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
3.25/5 rDev -14.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
March 2011 batch 2
a - bottle geysered upon the pop. Filled my E snifter and took a while to tame the head and get a solid pour. Brew was amber plum with a thin foamy head after things settled.
s - nose is plum and apple.
t - like the nose, apple and plum with some grapes.
m - soft feel, not over carbed
o - surprised it geysered since the rest of the beer was in solid shape. Nothing too carzy or offensive. Not really memorable, just decent.
Jan 23, 2014a - bottle geysered upon the pop. Filled my E snifter and took a while to tame the head and get a solid pour. Brew was amber plum with a thin foamy head after things settled.
s - nose is plum and apple.
t - like the nose, apple and plum with some grapes.
m - soft feel, not over carbed
o - surprised it geysered since the rest of the beer was in solid shape. Nothing too carzy or offensive. Not really memorable, just decent.
Reviewed by morebeergood from Massachusetts
3.7/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.7/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bottle is labeled as 2011. Poured into a stemmed glass. Brownish red body. Decent head and lacing, but nothing spectacular. Nice spicy aroma. The flavor of this beer was really the highlight. Reminds me of a hoppy Belgian dubbel. It has a nice bite to it, but has a great brown-sugar sweetness also. The negative here is the fact that this beer is unfiltered and sadly a huge chunk of sediment slid into the glass on the second pour, and really muddied the body. Should have only drank the first 15 oz, and left the rest. The first glass was pretty tasty though.
Apr 07, 2012
Reviewed by nickfl from Florida
4.25/5 rDev +11.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
4.25/5 rDev +11.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
A - poured with two fingers of off-white foam on top of a clear, amber brown body. The head settles fairly quickly but leaves decent lace.
S - spicy yeast notes of plum, red apples, cinnamon, and clove.
T - red apple and plum up front with some bread and caramel. More fruity character in the middle with clove and cinnamon. Finishes with sugary, dark malt, plum and lingering caramel apple.
M - medium-thick body, moderately high carbonation, and a somewhat dry finish.
D - very nicely done, this is one of the best, most authentic belgian dubbels that I've had from an american brewery. The malt character is spot on with a nice, fruity yeast profile. Considering that this bottle was the better part of two years old when reviewed, it obviously hold up well to aging.
Feb 03, 2012S - spicy yeast notes of plum, red apples, cinnamon, and clove.
T - red apple and plum up front with some bread and caramel. More fruity character in the middle with clove and cinnamon. Finishes with sugary, dark malt, plum and lingering caramel apple.
M - medium-thick body, moderately high carbonation, and a somewhat dry finish.
D - very nicely done, this is one of the best, most authentic belgian dubbels that I've had from an american brewery. The malt character is spot on with a nice, fruity yeast profile. Considering that this bottle was the better part of two years old when reviewed, it obviously hold up well to aging.
Reviewed by kylehay2004 from Illinois
4.15/5 rDev +8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
4.15/5 rDev +8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
A: single finger head with some thin retention and lacing. Deep amber and garnet, hazy body.
S: cola, dark fruit and fig mostly, some caramel malt.
T: Dark fruit and fig with a slight burnt toast finish. Caramel malt throughout.
M: oily, medium to thick body. moderate to high carbonation.
Overall this one is very good. More of a Dubbel by my tastes.
Feb 03, 2012S: cola, dark fruit and fig mostly, some caramel malt.
T: Dark fruit and fig with a slight burnt toast finish. Caramel malt throughout.
M: oily, medium to thick body. moderate to high carbonation.
Overall this one is very good. More of a Dubbel by my tastes.
Reviewed by SickGnar from Pennsylvania
3.97/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.97/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A: Warm ambery copper with a good size, slightly golden, off-white head. Settles slowly to a nice skim of foam. Second pour from 22oz bomber is far more hazy. Very minimal lace.
S: Very fruity – pears & plums mostly, but also hints of apples, dates, figs and more. Candied sweetness underlies the fruity esters. Good amount of rye spice in the background bready malts. Hint of Belgian yeast notes that grows as it warms, and is far more yeasty in the second pour from the bomber.
T: Spicy rye is foremost here. It adds a really nice kick to the bready & caramelly malts. Belgian yeast funk is even more present than the nose. The mélange of fruit esters is also here, but more focused on plum. Though balanced to malts, this is backed by a reasonably firm bitterness with strongly woody and slightly herbal hop character.
M: Medium plus body with carbonation to match. Quite a fair amount of tacky sugar sweetness up front, but it ends slightly drying.
D: A nice, very Belgian, pale ale. A regular pale – not a strong one – my bottle says abv 6.3%. Solid base pale with rich Belgian character & an interesting rye twist. Full of flavor and very drinkable.
Dec 18, 2011S: Very fruity – pears & plums mostly, but also hints of apples, dates, figs and more. Candied sweetness underlies the fruity esters. Good amount of rye spice in the background bready malts. Hint of Belgian yeast notes that grows as it warms, and is far more yeasty in the second pour from the bomber.
T: Spicy rye is foremost here. It adds a really nice kick to the bready & caramelly malts. Belgian yeast funk is even more present than the nose. The mélange of fruit esters is also here, but more focused on plum. Though balanced to malts, this is backed by a reasonably firm bitterness with strongly woody and slightly herbal hop character.
M: Medium plus body with carbonation to match. Quite a fair amount of tacky sugar sweetness up front, but it ends slightly drying.
D: A nice, very Belgian, pale ale. A regular pale – not a strong one – my bottle says abv 6.3%. Solid base pale with rich Belgian character & an interesting rye twist. Full of flavor and very drinkable.
Reviewed by rudzud from Massachusetts
4.07/5 rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
4.07/5 rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Shared by jlindros and poured into a tulip.
A - Poured into the tulip a hazy garnet with a white blanket that fades to leave light clouding and haloing.
S - Nice belgian yeast notes along with lots of apples and good funk. Nice spicey rye too.
T - Super funky belgian notes. Some good rye spice as well as, as someone else mentioned, some nice almost bark like quality on the tongue. Interesting...
M - A bit light on the carbonation for me. Its a nice crisp finish but would benefit from more carbonation.
O - Overall this beer was alright. White birch tends to be hit or miss and this one just barely, barely hit for me.
Nov 10, 2011A - Poured into the tulip a hazy garnet with a white blanket that fades to leave light clouding and haloing.
S - Nice belgian yeast notes along with lots of apples and good funk. Nice spicey rye too.
T - Super funky belgian notes. Some good rye spice as well as, as someone else mentioned, some nice almost bark like quality on the tongue. Interesting...
M - A bit light on the carbonation for me. Its a nice crisp finish but would benefit from more carbonation.
O - Overall this beer was alright. White birch tends to be hit or miss and this one just barely, barely hit for me.
Reviewed by smcolw from Massachusetts
4/5 rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Batch 2, March 2011, 6.3% ABV
Very large, slowly fading head. LOTS of chunky lace on the glass. Orange-amber color with a moderate amount of cloudiness.
My initial impression is Root Beer, but completely dry. On second smell, I detect what reminds me of freshly peeled bark--something I've never smelled before in a beer. It's appealing and unusual.
The first notable taste is the classic taste of Belgian yeast. Very smooth, rich body with a good amount of carbonation. While the beer is in the mouth, it's completely malty (and yeasty). The swallow brings out the bittering hop. More of a balancing touch than a kick in the throat.
—-—
Batch 3 from May 2011 (7.0% abv)
This batch smells of deep, sweet caramel. The taste is similar with warming alcohol in the background. Based on my previous notes, this seems to be quite different.
Oct 01, 2011Very large, slowly fading head. LOTS of chunky lace on the glass. Orange-amber color with a moderate amount of cloudiness.
My initial impression is Root Beer, but completely dry. On second smell, I detect what reminds me of freshly peeled bark--something I've never smelled before in a beer. It's appealing and unusual.
The first notable taste is the classic taste of Belgian yeast. Very smooth, rich body with a good amount of carbonation. While the beer is in the mouth, it's completely malty (and yeasty). The swallow brings out the bittering hop. More of a balancing touch than a kick in the throat.
—-—
Batch 3 from May 2011 (7.0% abv)
This batch smells of deep, sweet caramel. The taste is similar with warming alcohol in the background. Based on my previous notes, this seems to be quite different.
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