Belgians On The Road vol. 1

Travel vol 1

Russian river
Santa Rosa ca

On Saturday before the wedding in Hopland, I had a bite to eat and a couple of beers at Russian River in Santa Rosa, while Tempa was at the mall buying a last minute sweater. What an absolute treat! I sat down as soon as a bar table became available, which took a minute, and I had to vulture it, because they were packed on a Saturday afternoon. I ordered beer bites immediately (the greatest garlicky, sliced up, cheese pizza with warm marinara dipping sauce in the world. On a limb I say they're the best thing on the menu, better than their regular pizzas. They have a notoriously slow kitchen (I just think it's smaller than it needs to be.) but I also ordered a consecration, because it's one of their Belgians I have not had. Tasting notes:


Consecration 10%
dark sour aged cab barrels

Dark brown
No head from the draft
Smells like sour cherries
Tastes tart, but smooth (not like vomit ;))
Tartness masks the alcohol completely
Drinkable but barely
More of an experience than anything else

So that was something. The beer bites were exquisite, both because they are and because I had already enjoyed most of the 10% beer on an empty stomach. Tempa had not arrived yet, so I ordered another beer:
Temptation 7.25%
barrel aged sour blonde
No head, again, honey colored
Not much of a scent, smells a little sweet, not sour
Surprisingly tart, not so much as Cosecration.
Certainly more palatable but just beyond, again, what I would call an everyday beer, just a tad too tart

In the mean time chatted with some dude named Gary, nice fellow, about baseball on beer (Giants/A's game on - A's winning.) But Tempa finally arrived and helped me finish off the second beer and the beer bites. It was a beautiful time. Maybe not the most complete post of all time, but then again this is about me, and the beer. I will not rank these two beers for a couple reasons, but mainly because as Belgians go, with regards to my mission, the were out there. Wonderful experiments in the limits of Belgian Style Ale!

Monk's Pics

North Coast: Brother Thelonious

Another small bottle (12oz), another bottle opener, and it's back across the pond (and the North Sea) to North America in Northern California: North Coast Brewing from Fort Bragg. They also make the glorious Rasputin, which if you have not, have it! Dare I say it's the best stout out there? Can't, that's for another blog.

It's named Brother Thelonious, who as we all know was a Monk, and it is advertised as a "belgian style abbey ale". It weighs in at 9.4% alcohol.

The pour produces very little head, and the fluid is dark, a burnt umber that gives way to hints of red when held against the light. The nose is very heavy, syrupy. I am having flashbacks to Chimay Grande Reserve. It smells spicy, like coriander, and sweet, with only a hint of alcohol.

It is like a big Chimay Blue, believe it or not. It is like drinking a cold, thinned out bread pudding that is warming once it hits your stomach. It is malty and so sugary and thick.

I mean it is good. But it may be too sweet even in a 12 ozer. If I can say this without being disrespectful, I think this would be a great beer for dessert after a long night of drinking, where you can just sip it slowly, and then fall asleep; when you can sleep in in the morning and head down to Pine State Biscuits for a Reggie Deluxe and a few cups of coffee. (Which I am not tonight)

1. TJs

2. Damnation

3. Chimay

4. Orval

5. North Coast's Brother Thelonious

Orval Pics

Orval: Trappist Ale

Pics are up. Who isn't excited?

Back to Belgium! Mmm another Trappist Ale. This time Orval. And another thing I am excited about is it's not a Pint & 9, it is just a manageable 11.2 fl oz. And it's a chugger at only 6.9% alcohol. I'm kidding but it is on the lower third of a Belgian style ale (which we are normally talking about doubles and triples - meaning basically, it is fermented 2 or 3 times.)

So I rustle around for a bottle opener, which I have not needed so far and I have had no need to keep one in my Belgian Beer Blog Staging area. Because if you weren't paying attention the others have all been corked (super classy.)

After the pour, the color of Orval in the glass is a slightly golden, I'd call it a light amber I guess.

The nose is somewhere between phenolic and fatty acidy. No but seriously (I just looked up a beer tasting wheel at http://www.alabev.com/taste.htm, I learned phenolic, which means band-aidy, at an Epic tasting in Seattle at the Holubs) it does smell a little soapy and "clean." It smells like a soapy Damnation. As I keep smelling, it's odd that there is such a lack of scent.

So I guess I'll dump some down my gullet and see how it tastes. It has no real sweetness to it, which I have come to expect from Belgians. It is also slightly watery by comparison. It is more bitter than the others, which is not a bad thing. It appears to have only bitter hops as it lacks that floral nose and flavor. This is such a different beer.

It is good. And apart from this 'competition', it is a tasty little beer, and turns what I've believed to be a Belgian style ale on its ear. I applaud the Orval monks for being different (and I may find all these Belgian beers to be drastically different from one another) but perhaps they need to get out of the monastery and taste some of their peer's beers. ;-)

1. TJs

2. Damnation

3. Chimay Blue

4. Orval

pictures