D Straat Dubbel
Deschutes Brewery

 

Served in tulip glass from tap

A - dark brown/black with a decent head, good fizz
S - Super dark cherry, clove and spice with hints of chocolate
T - espresso, mocha, caramel with some dark fruit
M - Lighter than expected but with good viscosity
D - Very balanced with alcohol in check

Verdict:

I wrote my notes and scored this beer before having the Abyss (which was also on tap) so this is completely unbiased! This is a great Dubbel, but I have enjoyed better versions from Belgium and Canada. All in all a great effort by my favorite local brewery!

Draught at the PDX pub, served in an imperial pint for only $4.75 (I'll have no pity for Rogue when Duschutes finally puts them out of business!), D. Straat Dubbel is a murky, dark amber tinged brown with a tight, creamy, light sand colored head that leaves light, foamy lace.

Smell is a bit sweet, a bit sour, grainy malt, orange like citrus and brown sugar.

Taste is very spicy, phenolic and sharp, with light fusels. Bittersweet, but with a clean finish. Pretty authentic, but I prefer sweeter to spicy dubbels. Not bad, but average.

Mouthfeel is very creamy, with a medium light body but nice and chewy.

Drinkability is OK, not really my taste in the stay, but once my palate adjusted to the sharp phenols, it was a pretty easy drinker. Still, just your average dubbel...

A: looked nice in the snifter with red ruby hues and cloudy copper body. Head was small, coarse, and bubbly and the color of light brown sugar and left only a few speckles of lace

S: roasted grains, soft sugary fruits and not much else. Huskiness at the helm

T: grains are somewhat raw and pull in light banana notes with burnt sugar/candies. Towards the end is a paltry spicy bite that seems to get confused at times. I am not sure what to make of this one, a rather feeble attempt. Lacks in overall complexity and experience

M: high concentration of carbonation and a medium-well body. Goes down alright, nothing to holler about

D: I will pass on this. This is the worst Deschutes brew I have had to date. However, I am not phased by this and will continue to support a brewery that does wonderful things!

Having my 2nd now here at the Portland pub so thought I should probably to give this a review with my new 'toy' that may or may not be made by a company named after a popular red fruit. As an FYI actual name of the beer is D Straat Dubble, not Streut.

Straight off, dubbles and similar low abv brunes are probably my least favorite Belgian style and even with those low expectations set in my opinion they are also usually pulled off with the lowest amount of success by American brewers. And if you've ever heard me talk about American Belgians, you know that's saying something.

According to the fresh beer sheet this is Deschutes first ever attempt at any Belgian style ale. Good on them that it's such a success. It comes in surprisingly and nicely somewhere inbetween Chimay Red and Westmalle Dubble, though I suspect it's Westmalle yeast being used as it shares more of that yeast's higher attenuation dry floral boozy characteristics (it comes off a slight bit stronger than it's 7.1% tag, which is a good thing in my opinion). Everything about is perfectly executed by style (even down to high, at initial pour at least, carbonation) and because of the rarity of that found in American Belgians I'm inclined to overrate it a bit even though my personal taste leans away from dubbles and closely related weaker brunes.

Brewed on their new 20ish barrel system in Portland, it's unlikely you'll find this anywhere but there since that location doesn't bottle. Good job Deschutes.

This is a drinking Dubbel which is perfect for the patio in the new Pearl District brewpub. The beer is red tinged brown with a fresh fruity nose. The complexity is not really there but instead a balanced drinkability makes up for it and makes this beer worth ordering