Blond
Brasserie de l'Abbaye du Val-Dieu

 

 

 

330 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Also available in Norway at Vinmonopolet. ABV is 6%. Brewed in the abbey. Secondary fermentation in the bottle. Hazy golden colour, no head, minimal carbonation. The bottle cap can’t have been air tight - a part of the glass rim was missing. The aroma and flavour were okay, though. Yeasty, sweetish, fruity and spicy aroma, notes of leather and oak too. Fruity and spicy flavour, quite nice. Soft mouthfeel, due to lack of carbonation. Will need to try another bottle.

Poured from the 33cL bottle into a mug. The beer is a pale yellow color with particles suspended inside, topped with a foamy white head that leaps up over 3 fingers and sticks around a while.

S; Banana bread, spicy clove, sweet Belgian yeast and honey. Light fruits round things out here.

T: Bright and fruity up front with crisp apple and pear and a hint of honey. Rounds out into Belgian yeast and some spices including clove and even ginger. Finishes smooth with banana bread and a vague nut character lingering on the palate for a while.

In many ways a typical Belgian blonde, but a superb example of the style. Not super remarkable, but spot on.

On tap at Das Beer Garden. Cloudy yellow. Smells a little sweet and a little fruity. Grain and Belgian yeast character. Tastes of grain and fruity yeast flavors. A bit sweet. Medium body. Decent.

 

 

Blind-tasted except for the beer's name and brewery/country, zero reviews below read (yet!)...
L- Pale straw, slightly hazy, pours with eager 6Cm pillowy white head. Chilled/rested bottle but the foam went like a rocket! Rising CO2 is vigorous too. ps @ +10mins, Head still 1Cm, and lacing formed down side of glass.
S- Belgian yeast, some aromatic notes.
T- Dry! First sip of beer today and this has quite some hoppy dry zing to it. Brief suggestions of some malt before heading off again into a hoppy-dry finish.
F- Dry, with some malts revealing themselves bringing partial balance.
O- I was surprised by quite how hoppy this was right on the front. It's not a profile I associate with abbey-brewed beer. It's a nice beer, nothing to note 'wrong' or out of balance, just... IDK for me this might be more suited to warmer months than when it's 6C outside.
Review/scoring all done, now the reveal, I get to read the bottle lables to see what I missed! --> Bottle-conditioned [yep, there is minor silt left in the bottle]. They also claim this is the only 'true Abbey beer', it being brewed by monks inside the abbey itself.
330ml bottle BB: 14/08/22 £2.85 Bought from BeautifulBeers/BurySt.Edmunds as part of a large pick-your own consignment to London.

 

Bottle at Echarle Huevos. Huge head that fades quickly, pale head, almost no lacing. Aroma, at first, is citrics and barnyard. Then comes banana, cloves, pear.
Medium body, rough texture.
Taste of citrus, clove, coriander, pears, bananas.
Correct.

 

De color dorado, con una buena cabeza espumosa. Cuerpo y carbonatación media. Aroma a pan y malta. En boca es agradable, frutal con un final levemente picante sintiendo la presencia del cilantro.

 

Pale gold and refreshing. Crisp and citrusy, a bit malty but not too much. A variety of fruits come to the palate, always with pleasant notes. Rich as the great beers are, a must drink.

 

Citrusy lime/lemon notes with hints of bitterness.

Pours a cloudy golden color with a medium top of white head that dissolves slowly and leaves a lot of lacings on the glass.
Aroma is of bread, yeast, herbs, grass, apples, pears, banana and some citrus.
The taste starts of fruity with spicy and yeasty tones. It then gets more bitterness in the flavour before finishing of slightly dry. Kind of unballanced in the flavour and the aftertaste are a little weak. Mouthfeel is smooth and clean but a little watery.
Medium carbonation with a medium body.
Is a fairly good blonde ale, but I expected better from this brewery.

 

 

wonderful tasty blonde. need to review it some day.

 

 

 

 

From Optimus Beer. In Val-Dieu glass. Playing A Foretold Affair. Pear and clove yeasty esters. Very smooth, so much that it feels a bit bad, too watery. Alcohol well hidden and low bitterness. Too foamy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've now had this twice. Nice flavor for a Blonde. First impressions are yeasty, musty, but finishes lemony with a hint of bitterness. Gets better as you drink more. An effective fizz and creaminess finish at the back in the end. Recommended.