I don’t know much about this brew or this brewery and the corsendonk.com website was down at the time I was writing this review, so I looked on ratebeer.com for a commercial description.
Has a very distinctive bouquet: yeasty, fruity and slightly smoky. In palate, it has notes of port, raisins and black chocolate.
Sounds good. Let’s pour.
This particular beer came in a 25.4 oz. bottle and it had an ABV of 7.5%.
The brew poured a very dark brown to dark burgundy color with some deep ruby highlights showing through the middle and around the edges when held towards the light. The head was tan in color, soapy and rocky in texture. It was of a tremendous size that held great retention. When swirled the head became a touch more creamy and smooth. The lacing wasn’t bad as it became patchy and prevalent as the beer worked its way down the glass.
The nose revealed some definitive dark fruits. Raisins, plums and grapes. A nice dose of yeasty goodness mixed with some light spices of cloves held true to the Abbey Dubbel style. Very diminutive whiffs of chocolate were accounted for, however they never became a dominant player in the aroma. No real compelling hints of smoke were found either. Overall, I found the bouquet to be quite nice and balanced, although I didn’t think that it was very potent or forthcoming.
The taste revealed more grapes, grape skins and plums. Fairly sweet in that regard. Nice strokes of bread and yeast pulled some of the sugary aspects off the taste. The chocolate was, once again, minimal, but I did begin to find a slight nuttiness that seemed to fit the style well. The spiciness sat right in the middle and towards the end of the drink I began to notice some sort of metallic taste. It never became off putting or distracting, yet it was noticed.
The mouthfeel was medium, crisp, smooth and dry. It wasn’t as chewy as I was expecting and it left only an average amount of flavor on the palate. A nice, soothing and comfortable alcohol warmth was left right at the back of the throat though. As I continued to drink this brew, it seemed to become a little bit thin on the overall feel.
In general, the Corsendonk Abbey Brown Ale seemed to be a pretty good brew. It’s not “world class”, but good none the less. It was quite easy to drink and I had no trouble finishing this entire bottle. The appearance, aroma and taste were fitting for the style and I found plenty to enjoy as I sipped on this brew. It just wasn’t quite as compelling as other Belgian Abbey Dubbels that I have tried are. With that being said, I would recommend giving it a go if you see it in your bottle shop. Feel free to let me know what you thought of it also.
As always, thanks for reading and commenting everyone. It’s greatly appreciated.
Until next time.
Cheers.
Score: 3.75 out of 5
Grade: B
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