Tripel Threat - Cambridge Brewing Company

JustinAniello

Connecticut

4.05/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A - Pours a cloudy golden yellow with a one finger head. Dissipates to minimal lacing.

S - Heavy apple cider aroma, various spices mingle in the scent. Light citrus in the background.

T - Sweet caramel at first, followed by the apple and spices from the aroma. Reminds me of a white wine.

B - Medium body, light carbonation. Light dryness in the finish.

O - A good tripel, nice flavors that blend well together. A good lighter beer for when you need something on the sweeter and fruitier side. I could see this being excellent in some warmer weather.

Serving type: on-tap

12-08-2011 01:30:45 | More by JustinAniello

CuriousMonk

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

06-19-2013 01:02:13 | More by CuriousMonk

doremite

Massachusetts

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

06-13-2013 22:31:29 | More by doremite

Philousa

California

2.43/5  rDev -36.9%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.25

Pours a golden metallic color, very clear with a small amount of head that disappears to just a ring around the glass. Toasted wheat bread, cinnamon, clove, sugar, honey, and other dark spices. This is sweet and dark at the same time. The tangy Belgian pilsner malt is very prevalent, as it should be, but it's almost annoying in how tangy and spicy it is. I get clove and other heavy spices, with a heavy dose of candied sugar before the alcohol flavor sets in. Hops are muted, but somewhat bright and floral, not too bitter. This is slick and heavy in the feel, with low carbonation and a sweeter than normal finish, though still dry.

This is just a single dimensional beer that is heavy and not to style at all. I'm OK with not going to style if you offer something unexpectedly good. This just falls flat.

Serving type: bottle

06-13-2013 05:45:10 | More by Philousa

BeerImmediately

Pennsylvania

3.31/5  rDev -14%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

22oz into tulip, decanted for 30 min or so to reach cellar temp. (Aw, who am I kidding, my kids were distracting me).

Faint head over standard golden body, virtually no lacing.

Aromas are heavy on the gym shoes and alcohol-soaked banana phenols. A little apple and white wine, too. Somewhat dessert like, somewhat cordial liqueur like.

Mouthfeel is right for the style and ABV... Slightly creamy, but finishing with a little zest to cleanse the palate. Flavor is full of banana flambé and roasted marshmallow sweetness, with not-so-refined white wine (hooch style), some rubber chemical quality in the middle, and closing with a dry, dirty finish.

American brewed triples have certainly come a long way since this pioneer, but this one still does alright.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2013 03:04:31 | More by BeerImmediately

HattedClassic

Virginia

4/5  rDev +3.9%

06-07-2013 22:23:30 | More by HattedClassic

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

4.01/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Batch #1 bottled November 2011, poured from a 22oz bottle into a tulip glass.

A: The beer is a bright gold color, with a short off-white head that fades quickly and leaves a thin on the glass.

S: The aroma contains apples, Belgian yeast, caramelized malts and some hops.

T: The taste starts out sweet with flavors of caramel, apples and citrus followed by some breadiness from Belgian yeast and a hearty but not too heavy malt character. The hops presence is mild but complementary and brings a good balance. There’s some esters and alcohol sting in the background. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and very crisp, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

O: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, strong kick, good representation of style, this is a solid Tripel worth drinking for a long time.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2013 02:00:49 | More by TheManiacalOne

SebD

Ontario (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%

06-05-2013 21:19:00 | More by SebD

ElijahRivera

New York

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

06-03-2013 17:58:05 | More by ElijahRivera

shehateme

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -9.1%

06-01-2013 19:44:47 | More by shehateme

GRG1313

California

4/5  rDev +3.9%

06-01-2013 04:54:02 | More by GRG1313

jaxon53

Connecticut

3.75/5  rDev -2.6%

05-30-2013 09:01:34 | More by jaxon53

woosterbill

Connecticut

3.55/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Bomber into a Gandhi-Bot tulip. Thanks to whoever opened this on NEBCO this past Saturday.

A: Hazy medium amber body with a thin off-white head that leaves spotty lace. Average.

S: Moderate breadiness, light bubblegum, and some fruity esters. Apricot and apple. Solid.

T: More malt-dominant than the nose. The fruitiness is relegated to the finish, where strawberry and apple both lend sweetness to highlight a touch of booze. Tasty enough, but neither terribly complex nor memorable.

M: Smooth, soft, lightly carbonated. Delicate.

O: Enjoyable enough, but not even in the same ballpark as the best of the Belgians.

Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

05-27-2013 00:58:51 | More by woosterbill

EmmetD

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +10.4%

05-26-2013 14:23:03 | More by EmmetD

ejimhof

Pennsylvania

3.25/5  rDev -15.6%

05-26-2013 10:59:50 | More by ejimhof

jmerloni

Massachusetts

4.71/5  rDev +22.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75

A - Vibrant, lively hazy orange-yellow with nice frothy white head that is very, very sticky, retains well, and laces on the glass very well.

S - Pear, bubble gum, white grapes, honey, hops, breadiness.

T - Wow. This is excellent. All that is detected on the nose in an expert balance. Hoppy but not too biting following each swallow. This is really excellent.

M - Medium to full bodied. Sticky. Bubbly but not overly carbonated. Very, very, very smooth.

D - I've never even heard of Cambridge Brewing Company and I'm very, very, very impressed with this first offering of their's. Will DEFINITELY be checking out more of their brews. This is an A+ Belgian tripel. I'm very, very impressed.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2013 02:50:38 | More by jmerloni

andrewinski1

Maine

3.44/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Thanks to Bendurgin for sharing this bottle! Poured into a tulip. The color is nice clear golden. There is a small head that doesn't last very long.

The aroma has some nice pepperyness. Some graham crackery malts blend with a touch of grassy hops. The yeast is the prevalent component to this aroma.

The taste is full of crisp honey-sweet malt. There is a slightly peppery yeast finish. Not much hop flavor in the taste, just enough to complement the sweet malt flavor.

This is medium to full bodied. There is some nice crisp carbonation here. Not bad, nothing here stands out; but maybe that's a good thing also.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2013 03:07:34 | More by andrewinski1

neophilus

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Dark golden pour, thin white lacing on top. Very clear beer in the glass.

Aroma is very earthy, catty scents on top of a somewhat dry cracker malt smell. The first sip introduces a dry, crisp ale flavor. More earthiness on the tongue that mellows out into a subtle mix of red berry yeast esters and softly sweet malt backbone. The earthiness of the yesat almost dominates but eventually calms down a bit to let the peppery, spicy and red berry flavors make an appearance. Finishes with a bitter orange peeel flavor, not quite citrusy but the rind of the fruit shines through.

Drinks like a Saison that lost it's way, more dry than sandpaper but will quench your thirst and you'll never detect the ABV in this one. Great precision in beer making even if the flavors aren't my bag.

Serving type: on-tap

05-08-2013 19:19:36 | More by neophilus

jaasen64

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -2.6%

05-05-2013 15:39:33 | More by jaasen64

Tjvan2

Iowa

4/5  rDev +3.9%

05-01-2013 03:12:45 | More by Tjvan2

mactrail

California

3.64/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3

Pours a lovely golden amber in the Ommegang chalice. Really a nicer than average head and loads of lacing. Champagne bubbles in the not quite clear brew. Some candy sweetness along with pear fruitiness and apple brandy.

The drier style of Tripel. Flavors much like a Saison but hot with alcohol. The Belgian flavors emerge through a variety of flavors in each sip. Eventually, however, the dry yeasty taste dominates and powers into a bitter ending. The yeasty bitterness doesn't linger as much as a big load of hops, but it accomplishes the same balance against the sweet malt and booziness.

An intriguing, complex, and powerfully flavored strong brew for your sipping delight. From the 22 oz bottle purchased at Bottleworks in San Diego.

Serving type: bottle

04-29-2013 06:17:02 | More by mactrail

smcnulty1981

Rhode Island

3.5/5  rDev -9.1%

04-22-2013 14:13:31 | More by smcnulty1981

drgonzo2k2

California

3.75/5  rDev -2.6%

04-19-2013 03:02:44 | More by drgonzo2k2

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.5/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Cambridge Brewing has demonstrated a breadth of success with an array of styles. Belgian are tricky. How did they do?...

Bright gold as it decants, the ale casts a light haze through straw highlights. Partly frothy and mid-statured, its stark-white head is pulled apart by more spritzy carbonation. Its appearance is of both sparkling wine and beer. Its short retention and lace is a little un-Belgian-like.

Big sweet aromas are floral- chocked full of honey, orange blossoms, marmalade, apricots, apples, berries, and perfume. With freshly grated cloves in the background, the ale takes on the aromas of honey suckle with a twinge of vinous white wine.

Candied-sweet early, late, and in between- the initial sweetness is straight up of honey and powdered sugar. Those confectioner's taste coat the ester character of apple peels, apricots, lemons. and white grapes. Again, with a cast of white wine that presides over the ale- a spicy finish of white pepper, earthy straw-like hops, and a medley of under ripened berries signal the beer's closure.

Medium bodied throughout, the light sticky malt character clings to the mouth and extends its turn to finish. Semi-dry, warm, and spicy- the beer lingers long with its sweet-spicy interplay.

Although this Tripel is sweet balanced, it portrays all the tastes of Belgian ales but does so in a more simplified taste than indigenous examples from Belgium. Where it is as deep in taste or as rustic or as hoppy- the ale is heavily inspired from those strong Abbey ales. It pairs well with fresh fruits of white grapes, blackberries, and fresh strawberries.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2013 16:58:56 | More by BEERchitect

jondeelee

Massachusetts

3.68/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Tripel Threat opens to a full-bodied banana and clove nose, ripe with spices and fruits. Pear, apple, berry, orange, white grape, and apricot mix with pepper, and a spritzy pink grapefruit and grapefruit rind layer from the hops adds a nice touch to the mix, made more bitter by shades of pine resin. The beer is quite sugary and sweet, with loads of brown sugar, and even a touch of super-sweet confectioner’s sugar adding to the fruity base. The sweetness is held back a little by the aforementioned spicy notes, as well as a light toast crust and Grape Nuts cereal base. At the edges is even a slightly funky, sour note, adding depth and complexity. As a whole, the nose is very nice, being balanced and offering a wide variety of aromas. A bit more punch would have been nice, especially as the fruity notes tend to lose their potency somewhat quickly, but as a whole the first impressions are good.

On the tongue, the beer begins very sweet, with berry, blood orange, peach, maraschino cherry, and apple mixing with brown and confectioner’s sugar, the initial blast shockingly sugary. The bananas and cloves, as well as white pepper, do come in after a second, bringing relieving spices, but the sweetness is still near cloying at times. Not even the tart pink grapefruit, grapefruit rind, and pine resin fully take away from the sugary rush. This sensation does not appreciably abate in subsequent sips, the sweetness reaching aspartame or stevia extract levels, and while the spices, hops, and touches of toast crust and wet wheat from the grains try to keep up, they simply can’t. There’s also a fairly heavy vodka vapor that fills the nasal cavities and lingers into the aftertaste, which is otherwise a continuation of the super-sweet aspartame fruit esters. Mouthfeel is medium-light to medium, and carbonation is medium to medium-high, adding to the burning mouthfeel.

Overall, while the nose had decent promise, there’s simply too much unchecked sweetness in this beer, which swings wildly into cloying and chemically aspartame notes, made more bitter by heavy alcohol vapors, and the beer in many ways resembles an alcoholic martini made with fruity vodka, sipped while eating wheat crackers.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2013 00:47:10 | More by jondeelee