For today’s craft beer review I’m going to be trying the St. Bernardus Tripel produced by the Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV located in Watou, Belgium.

I hear this brew goes well with turkey, so what better day to have it than today?.  Let’s get to the website, sintbernardus.be, and see what they have to say about this brew.

St.Bernardus Tripel is a traditional abbey ale brewed in the classic “Triple” style of Belgium’s best Abbey Ales. It has a blond to pale amber color with a wonderful head, slightly sweet aroma and the orangey-grassy flavors of hops in the finish. Wonderfully drinkable and surprisingly light.

Let’s sip this bad boy.

This brew comes in a 25.4 oz. bottle with an ABV of 8.0%.

It poured a hazy, golden/yellow to golden/orange color.  It formed a white cap that was decently sized, soapy and quite fizzy.  The retention time was so-so, yet the lacing looked pretty good I thought.

The nose released hints of grain and hay.  Tones of lemongrass, lemon citrus and a bit of fruity pear as well.  A nice component of Belgian yeast and a not particularly strong aroma of peppery spice.  The malt smelled very sweet and enticing.  Deep within the bouquet I even began to notice a fragrance of banana and clove.

The taste let that peppery spice and Belgian yeast pop.  It was way more prevalent than it was in the aroma. More of that sweet malt along with some grassy hops and savors of grain followed.  The fruity pear and lemon citrus really helped tie it all together. Only a very minor touch of alcohol was detected.  It had a very well balanced and pleasing flavor.  Tasty.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied.  Dry, spritzy, bright, lively, crisp and bitey.  It had an almost stinging carbonation, which I didn’t seem to mind too much considering.  It provided a touch of warmth from the peppery spice and a very nice amount of flavor was left behind after each sip.

Over the last couple of years or so I have really begun to love drinking Tripels and this beer is another one that I’m going to have to revert back to from time to time.  It’s a very good beverage and definitely worth a try if you favor this style.  I have no doubt that this brew would go great with a big, juicy Turkey and dressing.  The drinkability was outstanding, however it could still be sipped slipped slowly to let those flavors develop.  Not only that, but I think it could be enjoyed year round and not just the Holidays.  So, the next time you see the St. Bernardus Tripel, pick it up and give it a go.  I doubt that you will be disappointed.

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

Have a great and happy Thanksgiving everyone and I’ll see you next time.  Cheers.

Score:  4.25 out of 5
Grade:  A-