Specular Reflections
Block 15 Brewing - Southtown Tap Room

Color like very watered down coffee or walnut wood stain. Smell of cold oolong tea. Caramel-like flavor. Relatively light and less bitter, compared to most dubbels. Effervescence is an afterthought. Overall nice and drinkable. Good for a dubbel.

16oz can

Pours a finger of off-white head into my snifter. Retention is subpar and the head fades within a minute or so. Lacing is ok. Body is a deep mahogany. Looks alright.

Nose has a big dose of stone fruit, lots of fig, and maybe even a touch of tart raspberry. A healthy dose of clove blends really nicely - it’s spicy, with a touch of alcohol. Rich malt notes of caramel and subtle chocolate round out the profile. This smells wonderful.

Flavor collides over caramel and clove, with chocolate coming out in the finish. Some fig hiding in the background. Not quite as complex as the nose, but just as massive of a flavor. Tastes fantastic.

Carbonation is very high, and the beer has a great lively feel. Body is medium, but the carbonation makes it drinks pretty full. Somewhat bitter, with a modest but noticeable alcohol bite. Some sweetness, but well attenuated. Overall a great little mouthfeel.

Drinkability is perfectly fine.

Chocolate continues to come out as the beer warms, clove remains very prominent. Overall just a lovely beer from start to finish. The alcohol is there but I find myself giving two shits, if anything it just provides more character.

 

Look: Opaque amber in color with a lively and noisy, off-white head that forms a nice pillow and slowly recedes, leaving behind great lacing
Aroma: Dried black mission figs, prunes, warm brown bread, toffee, brown sugar, and Belgian yeast
Taste: All sorts of dried dark fruit come on strong on the initial sip, quickly joined by sweet bready notes and toffee. Darkened caramel along with brown sugar notes and yeast follow the fruit and bread before rich bready malt and yeast close it out
Mouthfeel: Full bodied, fairly high carbonation, soft throughout – a little silky even, and finishes with a fairly soft but very carbonated touch
Overall: I dig it. I’ve always been a fan of Block 15’s Belgian beer program/lineup and this is a tasty example of an American-made Dubbel. Great dark fruit notes, lots of bready depth, and some sweetness in the form of again, darker-colored sources (piloncillo, brown sugar, melanoidin, caramel). The carbonation does cut into its softness on the finish some in my opinion, but that would be my only knock and it’s a small one. A tasty and solid Dubbel

Bottled Sept 2020. A frothy head tops a light brown pour, sticky lacing. Light on tongue, it transports you to Brussels and one of their noted bistros. Stone fruit, light spicing and that wonderful yeast flavors. Medium dry, long finish. This is a very capable dubble.

Lightly hazed amber with two fingers of off white head. Some splotches of lace.
Smell is yeasty bready molasses.
Taste is yeast dark brown bread molasses slightly bitter.
Mouthfeel is light to medium with good carbonation. Finish is dry and bitter sweet.
Overall a well crafted beer. Tasty and pleasant. Bottled on Aug. 2019.

 

500ml bottle purchased from Lifesource Natural Grocer in Salem OR
$4.99..great price as usual.
Pours a dark chesnut brown with a nice frothy tan head,
Nice malt bread, chocolate and yeast aromas..good.
Taste the same ..more malt loaf than Belgian yest..but its there along with raisins, banana and hay.
Nice smooth well measured mouth feel.
A nice Belgian inspired ale

 

16.9oz bottle picked up...somewhere local. According to the rear label it was bottled in August, 2018.

Poured into a tulip glass, this was a dark, cola-like color that took on a dark ruby aspect when held up to light. Big, creamy and sudsy beige colored head, leaving lots of lace on the glass as it slowly settled.

Actually disappointed by the nose, as there isn't much of one, even after letting it warm up for a bit. Some dark fruit scents are present, but fairly weak, along with a malty sweetness.

Weird. Not much aroma, yet quite a lot of flavor. Cloves, dark fruits, and sweetness all mingle together in a pleasing way, with a dry, fruity and lightly spicy finish.

Fairly light bodied, with high carbonation. Lightly creamy mouthfeel.

Delicious beer even allowing for the strangely anemic nose. I'll have to try this again and see if I have the same experience, but also because it was a great tasting American Dubbel.

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a medium to dark orange brown with fine, one finger light khaki head with great retention and thick lacing. Aroma of candi malt, Belgian yeast, raisins, plums, figs and clove. Flavor follows with mildly sweet malt, Belgian yeast, raisins, plums, figs; a little dark biscuit develops into a semi-dry, quite clove spicy finish. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. A very authentic tasting, very Belgian dubbel with fine fruit notes and great, solid malt body. Starts somewhat sweet and finishes drier, which is a little off style, but the full flavors pull this through. Very nicely done and enjoyable.

 

Specular Reflections nails the appearance. A beautiful deep mahogany colored beer with good clarity. Bubbles swarm upwards in the tulip to support a massive khaki foam. It's airy makeup allows this to coat the glass with ease while mainting a mountain range of suds.

After what seemed like forever for the head to settle, a deep inhalation reveals a wonderful classic dubbel aroma. Clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg spices cover fig, raisin, and dark cherries. Freshly baked sweet bread is buried underneath a layer of Belgian dark candi.

The initial sips while still cold bring out the same dark fruits as mentioned earlier with a large emphasis on the clove and nutmeg spices. As it warms, sweet icing covered cinnamon rolls take lead, and it's glorious.

Specular Reflections is highly carbonated a fizzy feeling, both appropriate to style. This might be influencing me to believe it feels lighter than expected. It's full of spice and ends surprisingly dry, with a mild floral and even dirty bitterness on the end.

This is a knockout for the style, especially being U.S. born. The appearance is undeniable, the aroma and flavor capture the the essence of a traditional dubbel very well. I feel the texture is a tad off, but not a complaint. For fans of the style, especially given the rediculously low cost, this is a must try. Cheers.