Beer – #753 – Gulden Draak
I overcame my willpower and went for it, a real Belgium Ale, famous even.
the white bottle, the black banner, the golden dragon and the red letters,
This is in a 330ml bottle, a beer that is 10.5% ABV, 4 IBU, and 315 calories, all up this is 2.49 standard drink units in NZ.
Brewed by Brouwerij Van Steenberge in that style that is Belgian Strong Ale – Top 50
Ertvelde, Belgium
Silver hair Golden Draak
Gulden Draak is a high fermentation beer with secondary fermentation. For the secondary fermentation, wine yeast is used. The white bottle, the black banner, the golden dragon and the red letters, constitute a stylish result that has no equal among the many Belgian special beers. Gulden Draak can be drunk as an aperitif or dessert, or whenever you have the time to sit back and relax. But this barley wine is also perfect with and in stews, especially the Ghent variety. It is also a plus in sauces for red meat, such as a bordelaise. It is particularly suited as a dessert beer, especially in combination with dark chocolate.
So, what could possibly go wrong?
Strange aroma that I thought was sour, but which isn’t very strong, bit much of nothing.
Dark brown poor with a white fully head that was quite noisy, but settled down. Aroma in the glass moves more towards that sugary malty bubblegum thing that Belgian beer has, and which I quite like.
Wow, that really is a full on beer with a high flavour burst of sugary heavy sweetness, a slight alcohol tang and a lovely soft finish.
Really heavy on that steeped raisins and fruit thing, and a lovely softness in the mouthfeel.
So whilst I am enjoying the lovely tastes and the aroma there is an underlying doubt that this isn’t quite as full in the middle as it might be, and the finish sort of lets it down a bit, it kind of peters out without a goodby kiss and fades away.
As nice a beer as it is I still wanted something else, and as this warms that alcohol tang just begins to give a slight sourness edge in the mix, not unpleasant and of the style, but the taste profile is pretty cramped as it all seems to happen pop-pop-pop and doesn’t have unfolding layers.
The pdubyah-o-meter rates this as 8 of its things from the thing. It is a nice way to have the one beer, and get something familiar and enjoyable without being too heavy, or to light, one that made me smile, but also on that made me wish for something th same but dialled up a notch.
The double dip review
- Where did I get it? my local Liquorland, but it should be most good places.
- Am I enjoying it? I am it is lovely beer to get you over the evening.
- Would I have another? I would indeed.
- Would I share with a friend on a porch and set the world to rights? this is an easy yes, what a lovely beer to enjoy, and what a lovely beer to go with a conversation and one music.
Music for this: ” Pilot to Bombardier ” have an album ” Wild Bells” on Spotify
Alt-Rock or Alt-Country have a go and see. Though more country, and it needed just a tad more than I got from it, otherwise it was a nice background to a nice beer.
BELGIAN STRONG ALE
Belgian Strong Ales can vary from pale to dark brown in color, darker ales may be colored with dark candy sugar. Hop flavor can range from low to high, while hop aroma is low. The beers are medium to full-bodied and have a high alcoholic character. Types of beers included here include tripels, dubbels and ultra-strong abbey ales.
A life just as ordinary 