Hello everyone.  For today’s craft beer review I’m going to be trying the Maredsous Abbaye-Abdij Blonde 6 produced by Duvel Moortgat located in Breendonk-Puurs, Belgium.

I had the 10 not too long ago and really enjoyed it, so I’m eager to see how this 6 holds up in comparison.

Here’s the commercial description from the website, maredsousbieres.be.

The light Maredsous Blonde was the abbey’s very first beer.  Nowadays, the monks still drink it daily at lunch.  

Maredsous Blonde (ALC. 6%) is a delectable Blonde ale with sprightly fruitiness, soft malting, and a slightly dry, gently-hopped finish.  A sparkling nose, complex flavors, and a touch of bitterness give this fine ale all of the refreshing qualities of a classic Belgian Blonde. 

Let’s drink.

This beer comes in an 11.2 oz. bottle and it has an ABV of 6.0%.

It poured a cloudy orange to amber color with chunks of sediment floating about.  The collar was slightly off white and of decent size.  It was kind of creamy, but yet a tad fizzy also.  The retention time was ok and the lacing was acceptable.

The nose had a very noticeable yeast and sour dough fragrance.  Very herbal and earthy too.  Some fruity notes of over ripened apples and lemon citrus coalesced nicely with light touches of coriander and pepper.  Overall, the nose wasn’t overly complicated, but rather fitting and pleasant.

The taste was extremely similar to the nose.  Heavy hints of yeast and slightly toasted sour dough breads.  More of those earthy hops and day old apples.  The lemon citrus seemed a bit more relaxed, however still noticeable.  The spicy pepper added a nice bite on the back end and the complete flavor profile seemed quite “round” and comforting.  Also, very well balanced I thought.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied, smooth, kind of soft and dry.  The carbonation was good and a real nice dose of flavor was left behind on the palate after each sip.

This is a pretty nice beer I must say.  It was a tad straight forward, but it still had enough of the proper characteristics to make for a very pleasing drink.  The drinkability was super good and I think it would be well suited on a warm Spring or Summer day.  I’ll tell ya, I’m liking these Maredsous beers quite a bit.  I, obviously, need to try the 8 to complete the trilogy.  They all seem solid and appropriate, so I’m sure the 8 will be very good as well.  I would definitely recommend giving the Maredsous Blonde 6 a try if you can obtain it.  It’s, all around, a very enjoyable drink.

Thanks for reading and commenting everyone.  I really appreciate it.

Until next time.  Cheers.

Score:  3.85 out of 5
Grade:  B+