CB's Margaux (Signature Series)
CB Craft Brewers

Appearance: Pours a clear goldenstraw with a rather modest head for the style; leaves just a few dots and dashes of lace behind

Smell: The yeast dominates the aroma - stone fruit and a hint of spice

Taste: Doughy, underneath, with stone fruit flavors developing; a bit sugary through the middle, with white pepper and coriander poking through; the spices linger into the finish along with the doughy flavors; maybe a hint of apricot in the aftertaste

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: Tripels are tough to brew and I have found only a few domestic brewers (mostly those who are Belgian specialists) who have mastered the style; sadly, this one is mediocre

Thanks, RochesterAaron, for the opportunity

 

 

I haven't reviewed in a very, very long time - but I felt responsible to tell people how bad this beer is. It smells and tastes like a mess. Tripel is my favorite style and I would hate for someone to be turned off to the style because they try this thinking it is indicative of a typical Tripel - it's not. The nose is all soap and smoke. The flavor - soap and smoke. I think maybe some ginger is in there and possibly some Belgian yeast behind it all. I'm not sure what they did to this beer, but my guess is too many spices along with something to do with a campfire. I like spice and I like campfire, but a tripel should be fruity/light/estery - and too much spicy/floral flavors will make anything taste like hand soap smells. Don't bother trying this one, there are other affordable tripels out there.

The foil and top are popped, and we pour a brew of solid gold. It holds a two finger head of white bubbles showing decent retention. Rings of patterned lacing are left around the glass as it goes, and a ghostly film is left across the liquid. No haze or sediment is noted, and carbonation appears average. The aroma shows clove, warming cinnamon, orange peel, Belgian yeast, toasted and wheaty malts, wasabi heat, and huge raw ginger root spiciness. Our first impression is that it is very sweet, but otherwise nice for the style. As we sip, waxy cake frosting sweetness hits with lemon peel, ginger, and light grassy hops. The sweetness overwhelms to the peak, where phenolic clove, boozy bite, wheaty dryness, raw cinnamon stick, and raw, cooling ginger root hit hard. This all mixes with orange flesh sweetness and cooling vanilla, to further chill the palate. The finish is with more even malts, bittering and bready Belgian yeast, more bittering orange rind, spicy phenolic clove, and black peppery booze. The aftertaste breathes more of that raw ginger, some earthen hops, breakfast tea tannins, lemon and orange rind, yeasty metallics, and clovey bite. The body is medium to full, and the carbonation is average. There is nice slurp, froth, sip, and puck to each sip. The mouth is lightly coated in wetness and satiated. The abv is appropriate and warming, and the beer drinks decently.

Overall, what we enjoyed most about this brew was the flavoring. There was plenty of spice, fruity citrus, and yeast to go around, but really it felt quite muddled and messy around the edges. The flavors were at no point refined, and we were left with a curious brew. The most interesting thing about it was actually the wild ginger inclusions on the nose, and towards the back of the flavoring. Honestly, it smelled like a sushi box was just opened up, with fresh ginger piercing the back of the nose. It is a relatively refreshing beer, and a good attempt for the style, but nothing spectacular.