Abbey Tripel
Blackberry Farm Brewery

 

2016 vintage
Big fizzy head fades fairly quickly but never completely disappears, hazy large sediment golden tan

Most big fruity esters, lots of apple flesh and apple cider, pear, mild phenol spices, touch of bubblegum, big blond Belgian malt and honey, little candy caramel and biscuity, butter apple crisp little toasted grain.

Taste sweet malts, candy sugar, little caramel toffee candy, syrup, candied apple, more fruity esters, apple pear almost mullberry, little biscuity blond malt, mild peppery saison spices, touch of booze

Mouth is med bod little syrupy little boozy, tons of carbonation

Overall pretty good and fun tripel, not quite traditional but very nice.

i cannot get enough blackberry farm beer right now. when i go to a liquor store and i see a new one, it has become my first purchasing priority, even independent of the price. the beers are so inspired and refined, this is a wonderful tripel. the pour iss a little discouraging at first, sure its lively and belgian looking, but its loaded with sediment that seems almost too dark and too dense to have yielded such a delicate brew, there are some serious floaters in here, but i ignore them and dive in. strong banana or plantain in the nose, light grassy and peppery spice to it, vanilla and confectioners sugar in the nose too, classically belgian but almost some saison elements here too, this is really interesting aromatically. the flavor is also quite dynamic, less sweet and baked than it smells, with a light earthy malt profile, floral honey, wheat, even oats or something too, this feels pillowy from the grain, and is just sweet enough. the yeast is awesome here, more developed than the other of their abbey beers i have had, either a different strain or a warmer or longer fermentation, its really quite beautiful and robust here, sweet lemon, white pepper, growing grass, straw, banana, and clover, just astoundingly natural to me, gorgeous over this grain base, and even drying up towards the finish. rushing carbonation is just right, a little less body here than others, the faintest oxidation in the finish (got this from a warm shelf), and more complex yeast esters that linger a little bit. as good of a tripel as i have ever had from an american producer, i reckon this can go toe to toe with the very best belgian examples of the style and not be out of place in the least, its that good! worth every penny.

 

Bottle to chalice, the appearance was a golden bronzed color with a sly transparency about it. Just a cap of a little white foamy head that fell off pretty quick to leave some light lace. The aroma had some lemon sweetness, honey, freshly cut grass, bubblegum, banana, herbal to earthy, light clove, floral hop character, hay, driftwood and a touch of dried sweet graininess. Light coriander/clove blend at the end. The flavor had some sweetness playing with the wood, lemon, honey and grass. Belgian yeasty/breadiness. Then theres a fresh faint floral damp character flowing in and then spotting the aftertaste in the same way. Finish was dripping with the honey, lemon and Belgian yeastiness. The palate was about medium bodied with a decent sipping quality about it. Carbonation felt fine. ABV seemed to feel just a touch under than what was projected, but I didnt mind so much for me. Overall, for the most part, its a pretty good Belgian Tripel.

The little Tennessee brewery that shows that you don't have to travel to Belgium to have a taste of Belgium. You can do so in the southern Appalachian brewery with the firm pilsner taste of tripel ale but engulfed with the premiere fruit and spice character that makes the ale magical.

Sparkling light gold and with the faintest of yeasty haze, the expressive ale quickly fills the nose with generous citrus, melon and orchard fruit and their counterpart of pepper, wine and botanical notes that pull graceously from the beer's foamy meringue. Sweet maltiness grazes the tongue with fresh baking bread, angel food cake and a hint of pulled candy.

Floral and fauna filled, the ale explodes like pop rocks on the middle palate. Relaxing malt sweetness allows for the playful acidity of the ale to trend more and more wine-like with bubbly chardonnay. White pepper, vanilla, light clove and an overall flowery taste balances the fruit-forward taste of apple, lemon, orange and pear along with a kiss of pawpaw and honeydew. Lightly bittered, the finish is brisk with a fresh grassiness that seems of sassafras and mint.

Medium full in body, the beer's texture is lightened by vinous acidity, alcohol warmth, hop dryness and the further trailing malts. Such complexity and rounded flavor shouldn't drink this effortlessly, but the expressive carbonation lifts the ale from the tongue and ushers in a fast, crisp and digestible taste with a peppery, grassy, winey afterglow.

L: beautiful golden color, lots of carbonation, big head
S: Belgian yeast, some fruit
T: a little funky, especially on the back end
F: lots of mouthfeel, medium body, funky, a little boozy
O: I'm not crazy about their interpretation of one of my favorite styles