Ovila Belgian-Style Abbey Quad: Ale Brewed With Plums - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

deadonhisfeet

Kentucky

3.81/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a bottle into a Lost Abbey Teku. The pour is clear, but very dark with mahogany highlights. It has a thin tan head that quickly dissipates. Carbonation is moderate to low. The nose is pleasant, but rather faint, although it does seem to come alive on warming. I get notes of black currants, plums, toffee, rum, and puff pastry.

The beer has a full body, and slick smooth feel, and lots of dark fruit. Brown bread on the front of the palate gives way to plums, cherries, figs and a hint of tobacco. On the back of the palate, a rather intense red wine flavor charges in and heats up the finish, which is rather boozy but pleasant.

Overall, a nice beer, but not one I would buy again. It has lots of flavor, but the combination of dark fruit and intense booziness makes it rather difficult to drink. The best quads certainly have fruit and alcohol heat, but they also have malt complexity that this one lacks. Perhaps a bit more carbonation would drown out some of the fruit and wine notes and bring the bready, malty notes more to the foreground.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2013 09:24:44 | More by deadonhisfeet

Nightrain87

California

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-20-2013 03:00:19 | More by Nightrain87

Beer-A-Lot

Virginia

3.96/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A very solid and tasty quad. Looks good, although not a great head. Taste of raisins, plums, figs, and bread. Nicely balanced. Not the most full bodied but not too bad in that area. Enjoyable from the first taste to the end. You feel the booze by the end, but heck, that's a quad for you. I could definitely drink this again. I'd like to try some of the other collaborations of Ovila.

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2013 02:19:18 | More by Beer-A-Lot

Rudy

California

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-18-2013 09:53:10 | More by Rudy

mychalg9

Illinois

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-18-2013 02:28:51 | More by mychalg9

Pencible

Virginia

4.03/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: This poured a hazy black garnet, with some tan had.
S: It smelled like bitter copper and earthy pumpernickel, with some molasses and dates and creamy yeast.
T: It tasted like earthy honey wheat and molasses and spicy Belgian yeast, with some copper and fig and clove. It had a clean bittersweet aftertaste, almost like cola, with some alcohol warming.
M: It was thick with lots of fine natural carbonation. Excellent body.
D: This was a great brew, with complex and delicate scent and taste. The body was great, and the finish was smooth despite the noticeable alcohol. So it was pretty easy to drink, although I suspect it would mellow further if cellared for some years. I was surprised to enjoy this beer so much, even fresh.

Serving type: bottle

06-16-2013 19:11:19 | More by Pencible

Jas45678

Michigan

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%

06-12-2013 23:34:36 | More by Jas45678

YogiBeer

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +15.7%

06-12-2013 22:44:46 | More by YogiBeer

utopiajane

New York

3.16/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

From a straight pour it’s purplish black like an eggplant with a soft full head of foam that fell fast but hugs the glass with soapy lace. Left a thin skin on top and has alcohol legs. Nose is really sweet and I’m immediately turned off. Big heavy malt, sugar, molasses and dough. Plums, more dark fruit sweetness and the subtlest of hop floral and spice underneath. Alcohol is peeking out. As it warms it opens up vinous and with some leather and tobacco . Taste is sweet and then some. Sugar, heavy and cloying. Plums are lost to the sugary sweetness and to the taste of prune. The malt is underplayed and could have used more roast, more toast, more depth and some biscuit. There was no hop presence to balance the sweetness and it was thick and syrupy. Yeast tries to offer up spice but is devoured by sugar. One dimensional. As it warmed it developed a bitterness from the alcohol. Without much carbonation the alcohol is fully on the palate and this hits the stomach like a big sweet donut. I could live without it.

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2013 10:23:17 | More by utopiajane

Flounder57

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12.7 oz bottle was poured into a Chimay goblet.

Appearance: This beer poured a small head that reduced to a thin layer. It is a dark brown color with no clarity or bubbles seen coming up through the glass.

Smell: Caramel malts, doughy, spicy, yeasty, plums, raisins, bananas, figs, and boozy alcohol.

Taste: Same as above. Pretty tasty brew and exactly what I was expecting put of a quad.

Mouthfeel: Warm boozy alcohol, full bodied, low to medium carbonation, spicy, a little chewy, and smooth.

Overall: Awesome stuff. Will look for more of this in the future.

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2013 06:00:14 | More by Flounder57

lsummers

California

3.96/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours black as night with a three finger tannish frothy head that recedes to a half finger head leaving some great lacing behind. Looks mildly carbonated.

Smells coming from this remind me of the classic quad notes. Dark fruits, raisins, slight malty burnt brown sugar sweetness, and that great dessert/pie quality.

Taste hits right away with a sort of dark fruits and slightly smokey malts. A definite sweetness like that of candied fruit. Slight vanilla and toffee. Mostly those overly ripe dark and dried fruit qualities. The toffee malts help mix this all together. Slight boozyness on the backend that detracts a bit.

Mouthfeel is mildly carbonated yet full bodied. This is a thick beer and thank goodness it's carbonated well.

Overall, a solid quad and one that a fan of the style should definitely try. This is a huge beer and you can definitely tell while tasting it. Newcomers should steer away as it could deter them from the style. But to me, this is just plain delicious.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2013 02:48:36 | More by lsummers

Falcone

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%

06-10-2013 02:38:44 | More by Falcone

spedprof

West Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +15.7%

06-08-2013 23:16:54 | More by spedprof

Hellmeh

Texas

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-08-2013 19:56:31 | More by Hellmeh

dfecteau

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%

06-07-2013 13:50:13 | More by dfecteau

ThreeFishes

Florida

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%

06-06-2013 12:46:38 | More by ThreeFishes

krl2112

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%

06-05-2013 00:08:09 | More by krl2112

RummyRedbeard

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-04-2013 17:10:53 | More by RummyRedbeard

sukwonee

Washington

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%

06-03-2013 02:24:53 | More by sukwonee

Chugs13

New Jersey

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-03-2013 01:03:07 | More by Chugs13

CEDAMA

California

5/5  rDev +28.5%

06-02-2013 05:48:36 | More by CEDAMA

timoteo833

New York

4/5  rDev +2.8%

06-02-2013 03:11:08 | More by timoteo833

baklo

North Carolina

4/5  rDev +2.8%

05-31-2013 23:50:53 | More by baklo

Geno206

Washington

4/5  rDev +2.8%

05-31-2013 05:12:54 | More by Geno206

Beaver13

Colorado

2.5/5  rDev -35.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 2

12.7 oz caged and corked bottle. Pours dark amber with a medium creamy tan head that goes to a thin film that laces the glass some.

The aroma is bready malts, dark fruits, some floral wood, Belgian yeast and a bit of harsh alcohol.

The flavor is sweet woody floral malts, with dark fruits and some harsh charred alcohol. It's got some off notes that I can't identify too (plastic and cardboard). The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with smooth carbonation.

Overall, I didn't care for this. I remember it being fruitier with less off notes last I had it (still not great though).

Serving type: bottle

05-31-2013 04:59:31 | More by Beaver13