Val-Dieu Grand Cru | Brasserie de l'Abbaye du Val-Dieu
Brewed by:
Brasserie de l'Abbaye du Val-Dieu
Belgium
val-dieu.com
Style: Quadrupel (Quad)
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 10.50%
Availability: Year-round
Notes / Commercial Description:
No notes at this time.
Added by BeerAdvocate on 12-02-2006
View: Beers | Place Reviews | Events
Ratings: 380 | Reviews: 162
3.56/5 rDev -14.4%
look: 2.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25
look: 2.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25
4.28/5 rDev +2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
4.11/5 rDev -1.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
3.81/5 rDev -8.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
i had this on tap recently and wasnt very impressed, it definitely didnt live up to the ratings here. a thin murky brown beer without very much head after the initial pour and a real lazy look about it for a belgian specialty brew. the nose is good, darker than some quads, more chocolate notes than dried fruit, although suggestions of dates and raisins are surely here. i smell alcohol and brown sugar, and less belgian yeast than i had anticipated. it tastes kind of old, not exactly oxidized, but tired, like it had been in the keg or the line too long, or had been subjected to extreme temperature fluctuations. feels and tastes flat to me, and the belgian yeast seems fatigued as well, some clove spice, but still a lot of sweetness and less fruitiness than many quads have. cocoa for sure, some odd cherry quality, a bitterness to finish with the sweet, molasses, wet wood, and slight maple. it tastes good, but it lacks the depth and invigorating feel of the best examples of the style. id like to try this fresher, or in the bottle, i bet its a much better beer, but in this instance, my first beer from these guys is well below what i had expected from it. they cant all be great, but i suspect time and distance from the brewery are at fault rather than a lackluster beer. until next time...
1,302 characters
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
i had this on tap recently and wasnt very impressed, it definitely didnt live up to the ratings here. a thin murky brown beer without very much head after the initial pour and a real lazy look about it for a belgian specialty brew. the nose is good, darker than some quads, more chocolate notes than dried fruit, although suggestions of dates and raisins are surely here. i smell alcohol and brown sugar, and less belgian yeast than i had anticipated. it tastes kind of old, not exactly oxidized, but tired, like it had been in the keg or the line too long, or had been subjected to extreme temperature fluctuations. feels and tastes flat to me, and the belgian yeast seems fatigued as well, some clove spice, but still a lot of sweetness and less fruitiness than many quads have. cocoa for sure, some odd cherry quality, a bitterness to finish with the sweet, molasses, wet wood, and slight maple. it tastes good, but it lacks the depth and invigorating feel of the best examples of the style. id like to try this fresher, or in the bottle, i bet its a much better beer, but in this instance, my first beer from these guys is well below what i had expected from it. they cant all be great, but i suspect time and distance from the brewery are at fault rather than a lackluster beer. until next time...
1,302 characters
4.59/5 rDev +10.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
3.99/5 rDev -4.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.75/5 rDev +14.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
3.96/5 rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Opens with a nice pop, pours coffee/cola color, generous light tan head with large frothy bubbles. Aroma is typlal Belgium ale plus raisins & plum. Flavor is alcohol, raisin & plum & chocolate. Mild alcohol burn & plenty of carbonation tingle.
245 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Opens with a nice pop, pours coffee/cola color, generous light tan head with large frothy bubbles. Aroma is typlal Belgium ale plus raisins & plum. Flavor is alcohol, raisin & plum & chocolate. Mild alcohol burn & plenty of carbonation tingle.
245 characters
4.68/5 rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
4.09/5 rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Poured from tap into sniffer, minimal head and lacing. Dark brown in the glass, little or no light gets thru. Fruity Belgian esters on the nose with plum, raisin on the nose. Taste is initially chocolate, fruity yeast and flows into dark stone fruit, plum comes to mind. Finish is a semi sweet, but a small amount of bitterness keeps it in check
348 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Poured from tap into sniffer, minimal head and lacing. Dark brown in the glass, little or no light gets thru. Fruity Belgian esters on the nose with plum, raisin on the nose. Taste is initially chocolate, fruity yeast and flows into dark stone fruit, plum comes to mind. Finish is a semi sweet, but a small amount of bitterness keeps it in check
348 characters
4.54/5 rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
3.53/5 rDev -15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
4.36/5 rDev +4.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
4.17/5 rDev +0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
4.13/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Poured from a 750mL caged bottle into a tulip
Pours a fine, if not inordinately dark, color for the style. Despite the careful pour, there is a significant amount of sediment and particulate yeast here, and it is a little unsettling in its turbidity. A bit lacking in head, but excellent lacing throughout.
The aroma is the weakest factor, but not because it is offputting. There just isn't much of it. Dark fruits and sweet malts mixed with dark chocolate and anise are present, but very subdued.
After the somewhat disappointing subtlety of the aroma, the flavor is unique and outstanding. It isn't a typical Quad in any sense of the word, but it hits all of the right notes. The most prominent note is yeast, yeast, and more yeast. It hits you right in the face and, if you are a fan of the dark Belgian arts, that is a good thing. The quintessential Belgian yeast note is as strong in this brew as in any other I've tried. But it does not overwhelm. Malty sweetness, herbal anise notes, and bitter dark chocolate/espresso flavors round out the brew, with a fairly strong, but not quite solvent, boozy punch at the end. Deceptively dry and bitter at the finish.
The carbonation is stronger than expected given the lack of head, but a bit more carbonation, and a bit more subtlety on the alcohol bite would serve this well. Still, very drinkable, and not at all cloying. In fact, some may find this less sweet than they might expect from the style.
Overall, a unique but still excellent take on the style.
1,531 characters
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Poured from a 750mL caged bottle into a tulip
Pours a fine, if not inordinately dark, color for the style. Despite the careful pour, there is a significant amount of sediment and particulate yeast here, and it is a little unsettling in its turbidity. A bit lacking in head, but excellent lacing throughout.
The aroma is the weakest factor, but not because it is offputting. There just isn't much of it. Dark fruits and sweet malts mixed with dark chocolate and anise are present, but very subdued.
After the somewhat disappointing subtlety of the aroma, the flavor is unique and outstanding. It isn't a typical Quad in any sense of the word, but it hits all of the right notes. The most prominent note is yeast, yeast, and more yeast. It hits you right in the face and, if you are a fan of the dark Belgian arts, that is a good thing. The quintessential Belgian yeast note is as strong in this brew as in any other I've tried. But it does not overwhelm. Malty sweetness, herbal anise notes, and bitter dark chocolate/espresso flavors round out the brew, with a fairly strong, but not quite solvent, boozy punch at the end. Deceptively dry and bitter at the finish.
The carbonation is stronger than expected given the lack of head, but a bit more carbonation, and a bit more subtlety on the alcohol bite would serve this well. Still, very drinkable, and not at all cloying. In fact, some may find this less sweet than they might expect from the style.
Overall, a unique but still excellent take on the style.
1,531 characters
4.2/5 rDev +1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Nice hazy dark brown appearance, long beige head retention, fruity and spicy smell.
Full body, spirituous, warming, sticky. Moderate to high carbonation level.
159 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Nice hazy dark brown appearance, long beige head retention, fruity and spicy smell.
Full body, spirituous, warming, sticky. Moderate to high carbonation level.
159 characters
3.97/5 rDev -4.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
good but light for a BSDA - may be better with age
50 characters
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
good but light for a BSDA - may be better with age
50 characters
4.62/5 rDev +11.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
4.43/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Val-Dieu Grand Cru from Brasserie de l'Abbaye du Val-Dieu
Beer rating:
87.1% out of
100 with
380 ratings
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Poured from the bottle into correct glasssware at De Garre in Bruges.
Pours a murky, dark reddish brown, with some fine foam. Not the prettiest beer, and darker that usual for the style.
The smell is fruity and a bit sweet. Plums, raisins and some brown sugar are prominent.
The taste is spicey and fruity, with the brown sugar and raisins from the nose making a return along with some cinnamon and cardamom. Delicious!
Mouthfeel is medium and chewy, good level of carbonation.
Overall, a very good quad, with some unique elements. Not pretty, but tasty!
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