Harpoon Leviathan Belgian Quad

I think this will be our first review from Harpoon Brewery from Boston. If it does well then I will try to get some more from them to review. The pour is semi-translucent brown/red with a thin white head that fades quickly into a small ring around the glass. The aroma is of plums, grapes, alcohol, caramel, and berry syrup. Flavor is of sharp alcohol at first but transitions into bitter/sour fruits and cane sugar in the finish. Dry and medium/heavy bodied.

Not bad, but not very good for the style.

Appearance - 3.5
Smell - 3.9
Taste - 3.2
Texture - 3.2
Overall - 3.45/5

Breckenridge Vanilla Porter

I enjoy vanilla flavors quite a bit, so when I saw this beer showcased at a local liquor store, I was dying to try it. Nice hearty porter with vanilla? Count me in.

Beer pours very dark with a slight red tint and opaque characteristics. It has a nice, full head and produces good lacing on the glass. It smells of, you guessed it, vanilla. Also hints of roasted malts, bits of dark chocolate and hints of dark fruits. This beer has a classic porter taste at the beginning, spicy, roasted tongue in the middle and a very strong, vanilla finish. Wonderful flow of flavors. The texture is bitter in the middle due to the malts but the finish is very smooth. It also seems a little frothy and airy.

Overall, a very solid beer and something very good for the winter or early spring. Nice and heavy and solid flavor. No real downsides to this beer.

Appearance - 4.0
Smell - 4.2
Taste - 4.0
Texture - 3.7
Overall - 3.98/5

Delirium Noel

Kind of a strange time to review a Christmas beer on this site, oh well, screw it.

Pours light brown with a slight orange tint throughout and a thin white head. Lacing is decent and it appears to be quite carbonated. Aroma is straight forward for a Belgian ale: cloves, grapes, plums, bananas, vanilla. The taste is kicked off with some initial sweetness but then grows spicier. Some slight alcohol throughout and a clean dry finish. Medium bodied with good carbonation.

Appearance - 3.5
Aroma - 3.8
Taste - 3.6
Texture - 3.6
Overall - 3.63/5

Monks Café Flemish Sour Red Ale

I've been holding on to this for a while but haven't had a chance to try it yet. This beer is actually made by Brouwerij Van Steenberge but in the united states it is sold as Monks Cafe Flemish Sour Red Ale so I will be reviewing that version of it (if there is a difference).

This brew pours dark brown with a slight red tint and a thin just-off-white head. The aroma is quite strong with notes of sweet cherries, lactic acid, and a touch of vinegar. Flavor is quite mellow compared to the aroma with a slightly sour cherry start and a strong malty/sweet finish. A tad thin, light to medium bodied and a decent amount of carbonation. If you are a fan of the sweeter wild ales then this is worth a try if you can find it.

Appearance - 3.5
Smell - 3.8
Taste - 4.2
Texture - 4.0
Overall - 3.88/5

Orval 2006 and Orval 2010

I've been wanting to this this for a long time - compare and contrast two of the same beer, one aged for a long time and other just brewed. I've heard stories that aged Orval, if done correctly, will taste more like a dark strong Belgian ale instead of the nice golden blonde ale that it starts out as. Hopefully we can reproduce the same results that I have heard in these stories, and hopefully there will be a good amount of differences.

2006 Orval:

Starting with the older one, aged for about 4 1/2 years, I begin my experiment. This brew pours a translucent orange/red with a bubbly white head. The head fades rather quickly and leaves a decent amount of lacing on the side of the Trappist glass. The aroma is of dried fruit, slight amount of vinegar (uh oh), some dashing of bitterness, and Belgian yeast. The flavor is sharp and dry at first, reminds me a lot of a sour ale but not nearly as intense and vinegar driven as some I've had. The other flavors include banana and other light fruits. This aged brew is very dry and has an acidic burn in the aftertaste.

Appearance - 3.5
Smell - 3.8
Taste - 3.1
Texture - 3.4
Overall - 3.45/5

2010:

The newer Orval from 2010 pours a cloudy yellow/orange with a huge bubbly white head. Extremely carbonated when compared to the older one and the head lasts quite a bid longer. Just as good lacing and a slightly lighter color. The aroma is much sweeter as well with notes of grapes, citrus, cane sugar, grains, and yeast. Even though it is sweeter it is not as strong of a nose as the aged one. The taste is initially of Belgian yeast (bananas, cloves) with a dry sort of dull finish and a touch of booze in the aftertaste.

Appearance - 3.9
Smell - 3.8
Taste - 3.5
Texture - 3.5
Overall - 3.68/5

Mixed:

For the hell of it I decided to mix the two for the last 4 oz or so of beer left, just to see what would happen. The appearance is mostly the same as the newer Orval with the same amount of lacing and carbonation. The aroma is a carbon copy of the 2010 Orval but with just a pinch of bitter and sour vinegar thrown in. The flavor is sweet and sour at the same time, taking the best of both worlds - sweet fruit and yeast body with a sour acidic finish. I really wish I did this earlier because the Belgians have it right with their "Gueuze", mixing the old with the new is really the way to go.

Appearance - 3.9
Smell - 3.8
Taste - 3.7
Texture - 3.7
Overall - 3.78/5