Fugue State
Commonwealth Brewing Company

 

Commonwealth Brewing Co. "Fugue State"
32 fl. oz. pre-filled crowler, 11 days old at sampling

Notes via stream of consciousness: If I somehow forget who I am or where I'm at during this please forgive me ;) Good name for a Tripel, by the way, although perhaps a little bit pretentious. On the other hand, coming up with good names for beers can be tough though, so I'll just stick with 'good name for a tripel'. It pours a hazy golden-orange body beneath a two-finger thick head of frothy white that settles fairly readily to a thin surface covering and average collar despite the fact that plumes of tiny bubbles can be seen rising beneath the surface. The aroma is sweetish like rock candy with some earthiness, some mineral, and a light bit of fruit and phenol (plastic, clove, pepper). The flavor follows with malty graininess (is it Pilsner malt?), some apple, pear, and orange, a touch of honey, and a light spiciness as well as some lightly grassy and softly herbal notes that appear towards the swallow and linger gently in the finish. It's somewhat reminiscent of orange marmalade, and on occasion I'll get a light note of soft lemon. It's not particularly bitter, I'd guess around 25-20 IBUs, but some lingers, and with the delicate peppery spiciness and perhaps a touch of alcohol, it finishes mostly dry as some residual sweet malt steadily erodes from the palate. 'It could be...' is where I initially thought I'd go next with this but that's kind of pointless as it is what it is. And I'm not even sure that the brewery calls this a tripel, although I'm not sure what else you'd call it, but I won't even go there ~ and even if I did it's still a pretty damned good tripel. So what have I missed? Mouthfeel. It's medium-bodied with some dextrinous character to it, and gently effervescent ~ I wonder if I'd had it on tap would it have been been a little more zippy, and perhaps seemingly drier as the carbonic bite of the CO2 would have accentuated the peppery character and alcohol? Regardless, it's a pretty darn solid beer and I'm sorry that I didn't get to spend more time at the brewery to try more beers - or get to take more home as it seems their crowler seamier wasn't quite working and I missed out on a can of dark ale because it got a slight tear at the top. Just another reason to return to Virginia Beach I guess!

Tasted at the Park Lane Tavern in Hampton, VA. This was one of the few local beers listed on the menu and it was served in a pint glass. I have not had a beer from this brewery before and I did not expect too much, but was very pleasantly surprised!

Appearance was a bit hazy and the head was fairly weak for a tripel, but everything else was spot-on for the style. The aromas were of fresh noble hops and bready malt with a definite black pepper yeast note. The flavors were very similar and had a rich, layered depth. The body was light and crisp with a good level of carbonation. The alcohol level was warming but not overwhelming.

Well done, Commonwealth!