Name: Triple

Brewer: Stoudts

Style: Belgian Triple

Cellared On: October 12th, 2007

Original Tasting: October 24th, 2007

As I popped the cap of this beer, I was absolutely not prepared for the fantastic array of smells that burst forth from the bottle. Belgian yeast dominated the odors, taking with it hints of spices and fruity esters. This has to be the most complex smelling beer I’ve ever sampled. The aromas kept hitting me as I poured this pale golden brew (it was much paler then the picture below). There was pleanty of carbonation, but only a relatively small head formed from the pour.

Yeasty flavors dominate the flavor of this beer - at first. The “zestiness” of the yeast hits you right away, paired with a host of fruity flavors - nectarines, peaches, cherries, and pears come to mind. There’s also some hints of vanilla hiding in the background. Bright candy sweetness quickly develops and stays through the finish. There was no bitterness really to be had, and the alcohol is almost completely hidden. The medium-to-heavy mouthfeel for this brew was a bit surprising to me given how light it looked.

The active and fun flavors of this brew really made it a pleasure to sample.

Six Month Tasting: April 5th, 2008

“Bright” is the word that’s leaping to mind. Bright fruity esters in the smell and in the taste. Peach, cherry, and apricot are very evident in this brew. What’s not evident here is the candy sweetness. This beer dried right up! I’m getting almost a grainy, biscuity kind of malt background laying behind the fruity flavors in place of the candy sweetness that was there before. There’s the slightest touch of bitterness on the finish.

Other then drying right up, this beer hasn’t changed much at all. It’s still a really fun beer to drink.

One Year Tasting: October 26th, 2008

Interesting. The bright fruity flavors and subtle malts are pretty much the same. What’s different is the candi sweetness - It’s back! I’m not sure why the one year would be sweeter then the six month brew. Other then that, there still hasn’t been much change.

I guess we’ll have a better idea of which one is the outlier with the next tasting.

Cellar Outlook: I don’t like this beer’s chances to improve. It’s bottle-conditioned with a decent abv % (9.0%), so it should be able to stand up for awhile. The problem here is that the flavor profile of this beer is so bright and bubbly now, I just don’t see it getting any better.

Six Month Outlook: Things are holding up well here. I’m still not sure this brew can improve, but it’s sure not fading yet.

One Year Outlook: I can’t wait for the next tasting - what’s the sugar level going to be?

Next Tasting: October 2009