Orval Trappist Ale
11.2 oz bottle poured into an oversized wine glass. Bottled on 9.23.08 with a best before date of 9.23.13. A: Pours with a ferociously rocky, barely off white head. Plenty of stick-to-the-glass so far. Excellent retention. Very volatile appearance but also very rich and luscious looking. Appearance is hazy with a completely opaque burnt sienna, twenty year old penny color. The head is falling at a ridiculously inconsistent rate, creating lopsided mountains. 5.0 HANDS DOWN. S & T: The aroma is strong, filled with fruity fermented berries, sweaty socks and spicy phenols. The hops are present on the nose, but are merely ambient at this point. The flavor gets fruitier and spicier and the hops are much more noticeable now, presenting lemony and grassy flavors. Lightly chalky. M: Heavily carbonated, almost unbearablly so. Lively, prickly, fizzy, a full-bodied mouthfeel that finishes really, REALLY dry. Astringent with an acidic quality. Holy shit. Whether this beer is to your liking or not, there is no debate that the mouthfeel on this sucker is an experience unto itself. D: Orval's drinkability is low based on it's mouthfeel alone. The aroma and taste are very good, but I can't see myself having more than one of these in a sitting.