Tripel Decker

Tripel Decker by Clocktown Brewing Co. is being evaluated as a 26C Belgian Tripel. The beer is a deep, faintly hazy golden color with a low head that falls relatively quickly into a ring of white bubbles. The nose is an interesting mix of sharp ethanol, big crackery pilsner malt and high yeast character, with some orange peel notes and vanilla to go along with white pepper and a slight funky barnyard note.

On tasting, it is very attenuated, leading with a notable alcohol hit that is slightly bitter, suggesting some more aggressive components. The hops aren’t really here to get in the way and it is driven by a fine pilsner malt note and slight tartness through the finish. The yeast provides a spicy/peppery phenol and again there are some orange-type notes, but the finish is pretty aggressively alcoholic, with some higher alcohol notes really coming through in the finish, adding a prickly and slightly harsh edge. I will say, it hits the realm of those strong Belgians that are reminiscent of those large goblets at Delirium Cafe!

That said, the alcohol is just a bit too aggressive and solventy to be a top-flight example, but it is overall a nice-enough tripel.