IPA Belge
Brasserie Dunham

IPA BelgeIPA Belge
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From:
Brasserie Dunham
 
Quebec, Canada
Style:
Belgian IPA
ABV:
6.5%
Score:
83
Avg:
3.65 | pDev: 10.14%
Reviews:
22
Ratings:
53
Status:
Active
Rated:
May 09, 2015
Added:
Dec 26, 2010
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  4
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.03 by Sanmaral from Spain

May 09, 2015
 
Rated: 3.25 by ledjip from Canada (QC)

Sep 08, 2014
 
Rated: 2.27 by MatChar from Canada (QC)

Jun 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by Guzzle_McBrew from Connecticut

Jun 02, 2014
Photo of Triat00
Reviewed by Triat00 from Canada (QC)

3.16/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
On tap: Dont even think about trying another beer! The first time I tasted it on tap, it was nothing but perfect. It was balanced, bitter, a good belgian yeast taste, aroma and smell where toward the citrus and the herbal side,... again, on tap, drink it!

Bottle:
I must say that its totaly different from the tap. The aroma and smell fade away, the cabonation is exagerated and its nothing compare to the balance shown on tap. Not as bitter, not as tasty and dont smell as good.
May 24, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by Mack from Canada (QC)

May 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by Magibeg from Canada (ON)

May 17, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by IanSpindler from Canada (AB)

May 17, 2014
Photo of biboergosum
Reviewed by biboergosum from Canada (AB)

4.21/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
750ml bottle, part of a small group of Dunham offerings to recently arrive here in Alberta.

This beer pours a murky medium apricot amber hue, with two trim fingers of lazily foamy, spongy, and bubbly dirty white head, which leaves a decent array of layered bleeding paint lace around the glass as it slowly ebbs away.

It smells of biscuity, crackery pale malt, a touch of caramel, soft earthy yeast, a hint of orange pith, and peppy grassy, leafy hops - more like a Belgian ESB at this stage. The taste is more assertively hoppy - the citrus notes open up, with an orange, grapefruit, and lime wedge bitterness leading the way - followed gamely by more bready, biscuity pale and caramel malts, rather well behaved crisp, and mildly funky Belgian yeast, additional spicy tropical fruit notes, and a pretty easy-going alcohol warming.

The carbonation is prominent, if only in a commandingly frothy sense, the body a sturdy medium weight, and actually quite smooth, those hops apparently having better things to do than mess around here. It finishes off-dry, the almost doughy biscuit malt still large and in charge, while the polite to a fault yeast trails off, and the fruity essences all sort of coalesce into a sort of singular entity.

One tasty brew, this one is - however, it has little in common with damned near every other version of the style that I've yet encountered. For starters, I don't have to justify that weird combination of acrid yeast and overly bitter hops, as illuminated above. Also, the booze is kept to, oh, I dunno, an IPA level strength - why the standard Belgian versions are actually Imperial in their ABV, without saying so, is beyond me. Anyways, I really enjoyed this ESB, uh, I mean Belgian IPA, that much is certain.
Apr 17, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by joemcgrath27 from Canada (AB)

Apr 13, 2014
Photo of biegaman
Reviewed by biegaman from Canada (ON)

3.49/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Brasserie Dunham's IPA Belge has a body about as attractive as Lena Dunham's. The first few ounces resulted in nothing but foam, which had to be spooned into the sink. The last few ounces were nothing but sediment which, not before sullying the beer's complexion, were poured into sink. At this rate the sink will have more to review it by than me.

This really is an ugly beer; it looks like someone threw a handful of dirt into an iced tea. Its foaminess is commendable...until I remember that I had to refund half of it. Belgian yeast is an excellent ingredient in a beer - provided you know how to keep it in check. Judging by the aroma, this brewery doesn't; it stinks of old bread, stale spices, and rotted fruits.

The best Belgian IPAs combine my favourite elements of both IPAs and Belgian ales: vivid tropical hoppiness and soft, airy effervescence. This example of the style, however, embodies some of my least favourite characteristics of those respective styles: harsh bitterness and plain malts soaked in unabashed alcohol. This beer is pretty rough around the edges.

It both smells and tastes like a barn interior on a rainy day. And it seems twice as strong as it actually is (6.5%). It's a hard pill to swallow, far from what I'd call an 'approachable' offering. Imagine eating a plain white cracker that's been peppered with a spice rack assortment, lemon juice and chased down with a shot of vodka - it's dry, relatively tasteless, and it burns.

Quebec is home to some of the most and least competent microbreweries in Canada. My first experience with Brasserie Dunham hasn't been the most reassuring; IPA Belge would suggest these guys still have a few things to figure out. It's not an awful offering by any means, but it's certainly not anything I'd buy again. A very weak example of the style...
Jan 18, 2014
Photo of Haydn-Juby
Reviewed by Haydn-Juby from Vermont

3.54/5  rDev -3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
A: Golden and clear , a surprise for a Belgian yeast strain. A finger of head and visibly aggressive carbonation. Good retention and lacing.

S: Citrusy hops and a bit of that Belgian yeast character

T: Once again I get a bit of those hops. I'm leaning towards an american variety. I also get a bit of that belgian yeast character in the form of bread and perhaps a bit of clove in the slightest presence as well. The malt character is almost honey like and rather delicate. The bitterness is a bit too much in my opinion and could use a bit dimming down.

M: Nice carbonation but the body could use a bit more work. The carbonation is definitely accurate for a belgian style.

O: It was good but nothing really extraordinary.
Jan 08, 2014
Photo of polloenfuego
Reviewed by polloenfuego from Canada (NB)

3.61/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
From a 750 ml bottle to a tulip.

A: golden straw in cokour with a slight haze this beer pours with an enormous fluffy white head that slowly breaks leaving nice lacing and soft caps.

S: grassyness, some malts, faint yeasts and hops.

T: grassyness/mustyness/earthiness, piney hops, tart fruits and malts.

M: full carbonation, medium body

O: rated pretty well, but the fact that it was a carbonation bomb certainly took away from it. I would also guess that my bottle was less than super fresh, but there isn't much I could do there as there were no dates on the bottle. Still...I enjoyed it, and I will try others from Dunham in the future.
Jan 01, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by rale from France

Dec 23, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by randallpink from Canada (ON)

Dec 19, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by Bf_89 from Canada (ON)

Dec 15, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by peensteen from Canada (ON)

Nov 27, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by timeo from Canada (ON)

Nov 12, 2013
Photo of mick303
Reviewed by mick303 from Canada (ON)

3.72/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
750 mL bottle into tulip. A huge soft creamy head, with really solid retention and lacing. Colour is an unfiltered cloudy amber gold. Lacing is very impressive. 4
S – lemon, fresh grassy herbalness, florals, some light biscuit malt. A bit of a fruity tartness, green melon, not a lot of yeast character, mostly strong mineral aspects. 3.75
T – a clean start, tart fruits, then more biscuitiness. Melon, clean malts, green throughout, grassy, florals, tart pear, a bit more dryness and tasty character to the finish but the hops are mostly muddled. Good balance on the minerality vs. clean malts though. 3.75
M – balanced, bit of a tang to it, moderate carbonation, but the end is a bit slick, there is dryness that comes a bit late. Satisfying minerality and tartness throughout.
Didn’t strike me as a memorable BIPA. The hops were tart and citrus but fell a bit flat and the yeast didn’t really have a ton of flavor beyond the mineral feel. Within style, and a serviceable beer I would have again, but I don’t feel likely to seek it out again and think there are more exciting examples of this great style. It’s a perfectly fine beer, but I think there are better out there and this underperformed and could be a lot more interesting. 3.5
Oct 30, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by WeissBoy from Canada (ON)

Oct 27, 2013
IPA Belge from Brasserie Dunham
Beer rating: 83 out of 100 with 53 ratings