Brouwerij der St. Benedictusabdij de Achelse Achel Bruin

**Aroma:** “Sturdy banana esters, moderate toffee-like malt, slight clove, and no hops character. As it starts to warm up, a slight alcohol note becomes apparent. Light fruit esters—banana, cherry, and apple. A very subtle aroma overall.” **Flavor:** “A spot-on flavor profile for a dubbel with fruit esters (light raisins, banana, and clove) that dominate, but don’t overwhelm the satisfying deep malt body. Hops bitterness is moderate but sufficient to balance the beer. High carbonation. The flavor is much bigger than the aroma suggests.” **Overall:** “A wonderful, well-executed example of a classic dubbel. This could easily be the standard bearer for a Belgian brewery’s lineup. Neat spicy phenolic. Less fruity esters than some of the others and a very accomplished malt character.”

**Aroma:** “Bready sweetness, brown sugar, caramel, very Belgian nose. Very floral aroma—jasmine. Doesn’t smell like a Flanders. Very perfume and grap- ey. Strong acetic-acid aroma, balanced with a slight malty sweetness.” **Flavor:** “Flavors of blackberries and cur- rants. Fruit cocktail: pear, maraschino cherry, apricot, pineapple. Light tartness gives way to a very sweet, light-bodied beer. Finish is cotton-candy sweet. Malt is almost chocolaty. Doesn’t taste like a Flanders. Moderately low acidity is out of style. Strange perfume and grape flavor. Spicy phenolics. Odd flavor combo. Slight carbonic bite. Creamy body and a sweet finish.” **Overall:** “I think it may be a love-it or hate-it beer. There are no discernible off flavors but the combination of sugar-sweet and tart is quite odd. As a Flanders, it’s weirdly fruity and not very sour at all. An approachable beer, but perhaps a little on the sweet side. Would be excellent as a dessert beer paired with ice cream.”

**Aroma:** “Complex malt on the nose, with white bread, toffee, and caramel malt sweetness, and fruity esters with hints of raisin, cherry, plum, and date. A hint of sherry, red wine, and port suggests aging.” **Flavor:** “Nice mingling between caramel and toffee notes from the malt and raisin, plum, and date esters. Slight chocolate. High carbonation creates a bit of a bite. Alcohol is present but not hot. Finish is balanced, with just a hint of sweetness that lingers. Again, port and sherry highlights suggest aging.” **Overall:** “Very tasty, rich, and complex with a sherry and port character not found in most others. Sweet but not overly sweet. An excellent example of the style that honestly appears aged (very gracefully). Malt and fruit character work very well together, and the balanced finish makes it a memorable and remarkable example of the style.”