Suggest a Belgian style...

You're certainly not going to find any clove in Oud Bruin or Flanders Reds so go hog wild with those. Take a look at the leaderboards for those, and probably avoid American versions at least until you feel like you have a good baseline for the style. And of course if we're talking sours there's also lambics, but those are a whole different world...

Belgian pales/strong pales/tripels are going to be the style that showcase that clove-y yeast the most obviously so I'd avoid those at least for the time being. If you do drink more of this stuff you might start to warm up to them though. Belgian IPAs might be worth a shot but finding good examples is hard in my experience.

The dark stuff sounds like it's a little more borderline. Not sure I'd suggest dubbles but try the other classic Belgian quads. Strong darks are probably a good best, as are Belgian stouts although again it can be hard to find good examples.

And finally, saisons. Not generally dark although they can be. The yeast is similar but tends to be more peppery/spicy than clove or bubblegum (although many American versions screw this up for some reason). DuPont is the absolute classic/standard/benchmark for the style so try that first if you haven't already.

 

“Life is a journey, enjoy the ride!”

― Nissan

Cheers!

 

Mh..
For something very different- ever tried Orval, fresh and with age?

 

Gulden Draak is a delicious beer and very nice blend of flavors.

 

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/56/ - Belgian Strong Dark Ale

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/142/ - Quadrupel (Quad)

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/57/ - Dubbel

 

Have you tried Final Absolution from dragonmead in Warren? I didn't think that I like Belgian beers until I tried that beer?

 

Orval is usually a perfect answer to any question, but in this case I wouldn't spend the money on it. Matilda is a homage to Orval.

 

Chris, how close does it get in your opinion?

I have had Matilda a few times on draft and I must confess I never made an 'association' with Orval. Maybe I need to buy Matilda in bottles and wait 6-12 months before drinking them?

Cheers!

 

Ok I have no clue about Matilda.
It's just that Orval is radically different to all other trappist- and abbey beers, so usually, it's usually a good bet to give it a try when you don't like the rest of them

 

No idea. I've had Matilda maybe twice over the years. I'd love to have them together to form my own opinion though.

 

Quite a few Belgium Strong Pale ales that I haven't found a strong clove flavor in them. First one that comes to mind that I enjoy and is easily found in Michigan would be Delerium Tremens.