Archive for the 'Koningshoeven' category
Koningshoeven Quadrupel
Finally, we’re taking a little jump over the pond to the nice folks in Belgium with this offering, the Koningshoeven Quad. I haven’t had a quadrupel in a while, so this is a nice divergence from my recent escapades.
This one pours a deep amber color with tons of debris and a slightly off-white head. The aroma is very spicy with hints of molasses and dark cherry – it’s very full and almost ‘syrupy’ in the nose, if that’s possible. In the mouth, this is brimming with big flavors. There is a lot of dark fruit – mostly cherry and grape. In addition, there is a sweetness of molasses and toffee, and a mouthfeel that seems to pull from molasses as well, as this is very thick and sticks to the walls of the mouth. Sweetness is the predominant flavor here, and the aftertaste leaves us with a very cherry-like sweetness that sticks around for some time. All in all, this is a very big beer. It tastes extremely full and has flavor for days. However, I’m tempted to say that the sweetness can be just a bit cloying – not a bad thing if you’ll be enjoying it slowly over the course of an evening, but a bit overwhelming if you’re in a hurry. Also, for one reason or another, this is giving me a headache about 1/2 of the way through. However, that might be more about myself than anything particular in the beer.
Koningshoeven Dubbel Ale
This is one of the more obscure Trappist breweries, and this is the first beer from Konings hoeven that I have had the pleasure to drink. This beer turns out quite excellent. This dubbel pours a cloudy purple-ish hue and smells fairly strongly of anise. The head is a caramel yellow but dissipates quite quickly and doesn’t really enter the equation. The flavor is quite complex. The beer has a rather thick mouthfeel. Entering the mouth, it is fairly spicy with noticeable hints of plum and a bit of anise. Through the mouth, the sweet spiciness continues. Down the throat, the sweetness dissolves into a plum aftertaste. Quite delightful, and a good Trappist brew.
