U.S. Duvel/Chimay Equivalent?

hey that is for him to decide, all we can do is suggest things. he said beers like them, chimay makes 3 beers he did not say which 1. geez

 

Not being a dick here... I struggled with that as well. But I looked at multiple styles (dubbel, tripel, quad, golden ale, blonde ale, etc.) before considering making a recommendation (personal experience with the beers in question notwithstanding). Three factors to consider when scouring the lists: price, availability and number of reviewers. And the list does not offer any clues on the first two, which are paramount to OP.

 

well how is my taste for beer going to help him or yours? what you love he may hate. He has to try beers, we can say drink this or that all day, bottom line its his money and his taste buds. My top 5 is not any ones elses period. or sure we "could" match on same things, but who knows? I sure do not and I been doing this GOOD beer drinking thing a LONG time.

 

Easy answer--I'm not going to recommend a beer by score alone.

 

it was just a list, not my rankings. he could sort by state distro but I do not think that an option

 

I'm not sure how the pricing/availability works out, but you might go with Westmalle. I consider their tripel to be the benchmark. La Chouffe is great if you can get it on draft, but don't buy the green bottles unless you can get them extremely fresh. I'd also give Local 1 a try if it's available in your area though I think it's only in 750ml bottles.

Another one worth mentioning is Great Divide Colette. It's not as big as the BSPAs but it has a nice belgian character and it's supremely quaffable.

 

La Chouffe is the cheapest "supermarket" Belgian in the Netherlands (3-4 euro at Albert Heijn) but it's one of the more expensive ones here ($13-15), which, in part, accounts for its sitting on the shelf forever. The least I paid in Groningen for Belgian multipacks was Kasteel and Grimbergen, but LaTrappe was only slightly more--and here LaTrappe is ridiculously priced, especially the Quad. The cheapest import is Affligem, but it's not at all as good and is a Heineken brand. Duvel is almost the cheapest Belgian import in US of any quality.

 

Spring for the Chimay Blue. There is no equal. It's the beer that God drinks. He doesn't drink Canadian or American knock-offs.

 

but for the op pranqster,long strange tripel , and velvet rooster are not more expensive, and BT comes in 12 oz 4-pks

 

Bruery Mischief and Lost Abbey's Inferno Ale.

both excellent Belgian Strong Ales, comparable to Duvel, year round and often under $9 for a 750.

 

Has no one mentioned Goose Island Matilda?

If not... I mention it.

Cheers!

 

Given the OP's budget I will recommend the only two I can think of which are available readily in 6 or 4 packs, neither is Duvel or Chimay but both are good - Pranqster in 4 packs for about 8 dollars is a decent Duvel "Belgian Strong Golden" inspired beer, and New Belgium's tripel, while lightly spiced, is a great bargain take on Belgian tripels and available for 8-9 a 6 pack. Then you can try the originals when your budget allows. Also try ageing the originals if your able to keep nice beer around without indulging, both Duvel and Chimay are fun to try with some age.

 

If you scroll back far enough, you'll see that I also recommended LST. Don't know Velvet Rooster. I can tell you that I see Duvel 4-packs for $13-14 and BT at the same stores here for $15-17. So I really am comparing apples to apples on price. My main point is that OP asked how he can get something comparable cheaper and recommending BT simply does not answer that question, which is all I pointed out.

 

Local 1 came to my mind immediately as a cheaper substitute for Duvel--they hit the style pretty well. But Brooklyn Brewery beer isn't distributed in the West, and OP lives in Washington state.

As for the Pranqster recommendations, the taste is right but the bottles I drank weren't very lively. The mouthfeel of Duvel was missing.

 

At 10 a four pack Boulevard's Long Strange triple is very good as is the sixth glass and tank 7.
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Blvd Tank 7. Yum yum. I drink it on special occasions, along with other extremely good quality beers.

 

TJ's often has both Chimay and Duvel, along with Ommegang and Brooklyn Local 1 (on the East Coast). Usually these are 750, ranging from $8 for Brooklyn to $13 for Chimay White. Sometimes they have 4-packs for essentially the same price. Costco may bring the Duvel 3-pack in the fall.

 

My main point if you look at my original post was that 75 % of the brews that i suggested are in fact cheaper you picked out one that may or may not be depending on where you live. BT where i live is $2 < Duvel and beside that fact i was just recommending this 1