Steam Tug Tripel
Figurehead Brewing Co.

Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a medium golden amber with a coppery tone and a fine, two finger white head with great retention and solid lacing. Aroma of lightly grainy malt, Belgian yeast, orange, apple and pear and a touch of clove. Flavor is dry candi malt, apple, orange and coriander; a bit of clove and spice bitterness in the finish. Medium bodied with moderate creaminess and nice mouth feel. A very nicely brewed domestic tripel. Hits all the flavor character I want in the style, particularly the Belgian candi malt and fruit forward yeast. Pleasant mixture of apple and orange, with good spicing. The creamy mouth feel is excellent. A bit less flavor depth than the best Belgian ones, but a competitor with good North American ones. I liked this tripel.

Poured from 375mL bottle into my BeerAdvocate teku.

Appearance: medium golden hue with an almost totally clear body and a very light effervescence. Head is a finger of frothy ivory foam; pretty!

Smell: sweet malt, but not cloyingly so; there's a light dash of pear-like fruitiness and no hint of booziness. Quite nice.

Taste: it's quite sweet, and there is a bit of boozy heat here. The peariness is still present, which is good, but it's not quite enough to make up for the booziness. Not bad overall, but not perfect.

Mouthfeel: medium-rich body with a good level of carbonation and creaminess.

Overall: a decent-enough tripel; I like the aroma and I like the flavor for the most part but the hotness of the alcohol is a bit of a distraction. Worth a try if you are a fan of the style, though.