Straffe Hendrik Brugse Tripel Bier 9° - Brouwerij Straffe Hendrik / Huisbrouwerij De Halve Maan

kojevergas

California

2.74/5  rDev -30.1%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.75

Served on-draught into beerfest stemware (Antwerp Beer Passion Weekend 2011). Reviewed from notes taken in summer 2011.

A: Pours a two finger head of lovely cream nice thickness, and good retention. Body colour is a clear gold. Appealing.

Sm: Slight cream accompanied by bland floral hopping. A light strength aroma.

T: Caramelized malt, malts evoking nuts on the fringe, floral hop character, and a full bodied barley foundation. Fairly complex, but not special. Well balanced and decently built.

Mf: Smooth and wet, suiting the flavour profile decently. Adequate carbonation.

Dr: A higher ABV beer that drinks pretty easily. Decent quality. I wouldn't pay over 2 euro for it again.

C-

Serving type: on-tap

05-22-2013 20:47:21 | More by kojevergas

Arno

3.78/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

It's a nice golden color colored beer. Not too much foam, but nice sugary lacing. It reminded me a lot of Duvel, but a tad more sweet and possible more tasteful. It has a almost wheaty, white beer, base with some banana bread like etc ... More sweet and heavy then you're regular white beer, without having that big alcohol taste. Quite nice.

Apparently the bottle has a bit more bitter to it. On tap it's a tad more mellow and sweet. So might be worthwhile to have a try from the bottle as well.

Serving type: on-tap

02-02-2013 01:35:38 | More by Arno

UCLABrewN84

California

3.93/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Lucky Baldwin's in Pasadena, CA.

Pours a slightly murky honey orange with a foamy bone colored head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, grain, yeast, slight spice, and some citrusy aromas. Taste is much the same along with some honey and chalky flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer with some nice aromas and flavors. Good stuff.

Serving type: on-tap

07-04-2012 06:47:24 | More by UCLABrewN84

n2185

North Carolina

3.43/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: pours a slightly hazy honey color with a finger of white head that fades into a thin layer with little lacing.

S: Belgian spices with lots of bubblegum and candy sugar aromas. Faint light fruit aromas toward the finish.

T: spices up front again with a lot of candy augar and white grape flavors. The finish is of sweet breads.

M: medium-light body with lowish carbonation, this beer isn't too thick, but is a little on the watery side.

O: an alright tripel. It needs a crisper body and more depth, but it's still solid.

Serving type: on-tap

06-01-2012 23:09:40 | More by n2185

PhillyStyle

Georgia

3.9/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Brassiere Beck, Washington, D.C.:

The beer appeared a clear, dark yellow, almost a copper color with a thick fluffy head with decent retention. No lacing to note.

The nose had citrus to it along with a nice bready quality and a bit of alcohol was noticeable.

The taste followed the nose very well along with some noticeable spices and perhaps some earthy hops and a somewhat nice boozy finish.

The beer had a medium feel to it with great carbonation. The beer was clean, crisp and very pleasant to drink. Overall, a very good example of the style.

Serving type: on-tap

10-04-2011 16:18:21 | More by PhillyStyle

blackie

Virginia

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

a: served in a bar branded tulip, the beer is a clear medium golden in color, sporting a nice layer of white carbonation with average retention

s: sweet pils malts, yeasty spice - pepper, mild phenols, light fruits, all the typical belgian characteristics are here, sufficiently complex and definitely well-brewed

m: carbonation lively and smooth, body ranging to the lighter end of medium

t: pils malt base with a nice aged hop balance to counter the honeyesque sugars, mild citrus tones, delicate spice, nicely crisp in the finish, everything comes together nicely

d: for a blind purchase I found this one to be very enjoyable, returned for seconds

draft at Fire Works, Arlington

Serving type: on-tap

01-31-2011 01:20:56 | More by blackie

MightyCow9

Texas

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Very smooth light flavor and mouthfeel. Sour and bitter yeasty finish with a good Belgian character. The yeast flavor is the most dominant thing in this beer, and I am glad. They really let the malt and hops play a light background role to a very drinkable tripel.

Serving type: on-tap

01-31-2010 22:56:24 | More by MightyCow9

kristenspaintings

California

4.11/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Straffe Hendrik makes a good product. I fell in love with their style of beer making when I toured their brewery in Brugge, Belgium. They have an intimate knowledge of hops and how to use them to their fullest advantage.

This triple is an amber color and smells fruity. The generous head leaves a lovely lacing on the glass and has a nice mellow taste.

The beer itself has a beautiful toasted malted hop flavor that's not too intense but varied and interesting, a velvety cream mouth feel and has a second life in its aftertaste.

This is a very enjoyable beer to drink slowly and savor with a nice pastry, fries or maybe mussels.

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2013 20:30:44 | More by kristenspaintings

4000qtrap

Missouri

4.25/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.25

Source/Serving: 22oz, bottle cellared 3 years

S: Lots of bright caramel/toffee with a seamless, juicy orange-floral-herbal twist. Not peppery or spiced at all, but everything else. Compelling, distinctive nose for a trippel.

T: Unusually sweet upfront for the style, quite a load of staightforward caramel malts. Blends effortlessly with a lot of complex floral and yeast notes which are distinctive, hard to describe, and tasty. Definitely not spicy at all. Edges of orange are pleasant and herbal hops are faint. Sweetness is ever-so slightly balanced by a bit of alcohol and hops, keeping it from being too-too sweet. But, its sweet. More body than a typical trippel by a load too, but very drinkable. Classic Belgian un-interpretation twist to a style, which I like, with this baordering on a lightly hopped Belgian pale ale I'd say. However, since this bottle is 3 years old, it could just be the hops have faded.

Notes: A malty trippel that isn't spicy, but is complex, interesting and floral-orange-y.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 06:16:13 | More by 4000qtrap

eric5bellies

Australia

4.05/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Drank from my Duvel Tulip. After tsting this fresh from the tap at the Brewery I thought i'd buy a bottle

A - Pours a clear golden honey colour with a decent two fingered head that retains very well and laces.

S - Pronounced aromas of spice, malt and citrus.

T - Up front some nice spicey malts, followed by some banana and some sticky sugars. Booze is well hidden.

M - Medium body and medium carbonation. Very smooth.

O - Really like the balance in this beer. A little sticky in sugar but the ABV is very well hidden.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2012 13:19:49 | More by eric5bellies

mick303

Ontario (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

330 ml w freshness date. Pours a huge towering light tan head, which has amazing retention and lacing. Colour is a relatively dark honey colour. Quite hazy also.

Nose has an upfront yeastiness, a light floral element and a nice toasty malt. Quite fragrant, light but really nice.

Taste has a great sweet honey creaminess, with floral, mineral notes, apple, clove, yeast comes through strong on end. Tons of strong flavour comes across and pretty good complexity. Hops are well balanced, this is a bit robust, but has a bit of the flavour seems a bit stale. Finish is mildly briney, mineral character.

Mouthfeel has a quite big body, balanced with a nice carbonation. A bit heady, but it is quite refreshing. Altogether a bit bittersweet on the palate, a bit cloying, but works well enough, big.

Nice example for a belgium tripel, comes across a bit robust for the style, has a lot of flavour, but doesn't work as well as some others I've tried. I would still recommend this as a very good beer. It works pretty well.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 16:47:11 | More by mick303

spointon

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I poured this one from an 11.2oz brown bottle into a stemmed goblet.

A= This ale poured a deep/dark gold color with a slight haze and a 3/4" snow white head. The head dropped quickly and did not leave behind much in the way of lace.

S = I picked up alcohol, some pils malt sweetness, and a big soft note of pear and pineapple.

T = Started off with a hint of malty sweetness before moving into a nice spicy phenolic note. This was followed by a burst of fruity ester that was more like pears in the beginning but as the beer warmed it became very tropical...with pineapple and mango coming to mind. Hops were subdued and had a character to them that makes me think this bottle has some age on it. Alcohol was there but not overpowering. Finished mostly dry but with a kiss of sweetness.

MF = Medium body felt very creamy, likely due to the carbonation level which was significant but tiny bubbles made it feel soft.

D = Really drinkable. The alcohol stays pretty well hidden and the flavors are interesting yet easy to move through. I will be buying this again.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2012 05:31:38 | More by spointon

Douberd

Netherlands

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330 ml brown bottle, poured into a tulip.
I poured it very slowly as not to disturb the yeast on the bottom, but nevertheless, I got a huge head of four finger, off-white in colour, slighty froathy in texture. After a while half of it is gone, leaving quite a lace around the glass. The remaining half of the foam has an excellent retention. All that on top of a deep orange, copper-like coloured beer, and while tiny bubbles are finding their way to the surface.
Aroma is fruity, with notes of yeast, wheat, alcohol, some orange peel maybe and spices.
Taste is also fruity, mostly citrus fruits and mainly on the finish. Alcohol is notable. Bubblegum and apple notes
Medium to full body, average carbonation and very dry on the palate.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2012 22:57:14 | More by Douberd

morimech

Minnesota

4.08/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours a clear amber color with some yeast particulate matter churning about. One finger of dense head forms and sticks around for a long time. Plenty of lacing is left down the glass.

Not the most intense aroma but still has nice qualities of caramel, pears, tropical fruit, with some herbal hops. Seems to have an equal proportion of malt and yeast esters.

Very enjoyable flavor of malt and yeast esters. Notes of caramel, light fruit that gives the beer a vinous quality. The label claims there are toasted malts in this beer but I fail to detect them. More than a slight alcoholic flavor and warmth in the finish. Semi-sweet flavor.

Well done bottle conditioning. Medium body with nice carbonation. My personal tastes would of liked the carbonation to be just a tad more spirited.

Very well done tripel. Will not replace St. Bernardus but still a worthy contender.

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2012 23:29:19 | More by morimech

Bierman9

New Hampshire

4.35/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I picked up this 0.33l bottle on 05Oct12 at a great little bottle shop on the Belgian-Holland border. Quaffed it in my room Maastricht on 06Oct during a break between shopping and drinking. Cost was €1.52, fwiw.

Had a lovely, medium golden color, with a very slight haze. Carbo was plentiful and steady, and the head was healthy, off-white, foamy and fine. Lacing? Top shelf! Had a lovely nose which combined spiciness and tropical fruit. Had a medium body, with a light, prickly airiness.

Was a touch crackery, with some candi sweetness. A little more tropical fruit was present here, which segued into a dry, peppery finish. Quite nice! This really hit the spot! Prosit!!

4.35/5 rDev +9.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

1522

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2012 19:53:32 | More by Bierman9

eduardolinhalis

Switzerland

4.23/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330ml bottle served in a Chimay chalice.

A: Pours a dark orange color which is quite dark and clear to a Tripel. Beautiful, anyway. Forms a huge white to yellow colored head with great retention and a lot of lacings left around

S: Caramel malts backbone with strong notes of dark fruits, toffee and candy sugar. Quite sweet indeed. Quite bready too with strong notes of Belgian yeasts. Mild notes of flowery hops. A bit of alcohol in the very end. Less spiced than a classic Tripel but excellent anyway

T: Follows the nose. Very malty and bready beer. Notes of dark fruits, mainly plums and raisins. Toffee, candy and caramel malts. Upfront is sweet and end is considerable bitterness which is slightly citrus. Well balanced

M: Heavy creamy molasses body. Good carbonation and the classic Belgian bittersweet aftertaste

O: Very drinkable. An excellent Belgian Tripel specimens with strong personality

Serving type: bottle

10-09-2012 19:47:39 | More by eduardolinhalis

smakawhat

Maryland

4.03/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from 22oz bottle into a tulip glass. Good solid pop off the cork.

A real nice golden and clear orange amber body, and nice slow rising thin carbonation creeping up, plus a big fat rising column of fire in the middle. Head is rocky, thick white and clumpy with good retention, and clings real nicely to the sides. Really good looking tripel here.

Very clean smelling, with airy malt, and a nice candy sweetness. Hints of peppermint and menthol. Some sweet pear and apple fruits. Really nice smelling.

Palate hits with a very solid body. Nice malts roll and coat the palate with a nice candy sweetness. An interesting hop bitterness angle something between pine and matching spritzy fruit on the nose of pear. Lost of carbonation, and a little gaseous but controllable. Not boozy either.

Overall pretty solid, and it does have a nice menthol action to it on the finish.

Serving type: bottle

08-20-2012 01:41:55 | More by smakawhat

metter98

New York

3.9/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: The beer is hazy golden yellow in color. It poured with a finger high beige heat that died down but consistently left a thin head covering the surface.
S: There are aromas of yeast in the nose. As the beer warms up, some sweetness becomes evident, along with some hints of grassy hops.
T: The taste has flavors of malty sweetness with hints of fruit and yeast.
M: It feels medium- to full-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is a good representation of the style and has its alcohol surprisingly well hidden.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2012 23:40:57 | More by metter98

JayQue

Virginia

3.73/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Good but not great Tripel. You really have to let this one warm up all the way to get the most out of the flavors.

Pours a slightly hazy apricot/light copper color with a lot of floaters swimming around. Really needs a hard pour to get any size bubbly white head. The head fades fast. Minimum lacing.

Aroma is mild....apples and pears and a little alcohol. Not that complex.

Taste is pretty good. Apples and pears, some warming alcohol, hints of candi sugar and belgian yeast. Still fairly subdued but the more complex elements show up in the taste.

Mouthfeel is a hair light but still rich. The alcohol is subdued, does not affect the drinkability.

There are better Tripels out there but this one is still fairly decent.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2012 01:12:10 | More by JayQue

beerthulhu

New Jersey

4.15/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: A honey-gold pour is a dark murky orange is the vessel filled with a vibrant fulfillment of yeasty goodiness. The head is milky and frothy, a finger high with a strong rate of retention. A strong effervesce makes all that large macro particles of yeasty goodiness dance with delight while making my heart flutter. Love the extra junk in the glass as always.

S: The nose was restrained, bright oranges, with a lemony sourness with some wet pale grain muskiness.

T: The flavor was musky grains, lemony sourness, fresh greenery that all blends beautifully together. Oranges, a hint of fresh grapefruit, wheat, wet citrus with a bit of musky tropical fruitiness. The flavor is bright and spicy, clean, and well polished and rounded with a tight crisp nature. A small bit of toasted grain sweetness with some musky yeastiness, bread, lemon and pineapple rounds things out.

M: Mouthful was crisp and bright from the carbonation with a nice frothy body.

O: Overall crisp clean and very easy to consume and forget this is 9.0%abv that feels and drinks almost like a session in the beginning. Enjoyable triple with a hidden alcohol that makes for easy, generous sips. Not overly spicy, overly inundated with alcohol, just a very good example of a cleanly brewed and well crafted triple that many will overlook in their pursuit of the next bigger, bolder thing. The alcohol will catch up with you in the end, but you’ll enjoy the ride getting there. Crazy smooth drinkability even with all those yeasty chunks.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2012 23:08:21 | More by beerthulhu

katan

Colorado

4.13/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

750 ml into a goblet. This was under the pressure, the cork almost came off into the ceiling.

A - Pours a deeper darker golden color. Lots of pearly white head formation, but the beer itself doesn't show much bubbling. Must be fairly carbonated, just not letting it out.

S - Bright and spicy nose - lots of coriander, clove, and a high amount of white pepper. Seems almost sweet in the background. A great tripel nose.

T - Starts off pretty dry, very balanced and grainy flavors. Very earthy flavors start to grow, but then the citrus and spice start to come through in the mid-stream. Finishes with a more sour citrus bite, almost acidic. Alcohol warmth is lightly present.

M - Very strongly carbonated, moderate bodied beer. Finishes very clean with just a little bit of retained alcohol warmth. Its dryness is clear when you see how little of this high alcohol beer is left behind.

O/D - A solid tripel - especially if you lean towards the dry and clean side. Not as sweet as today's modern tripels, which makes me think this goes back to the age where these beers were a little more wild and more attenuated (maybe not clean). Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2012 00:43:39 | More by katan

Cyrano41

Virginia

4.48/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a goblet, thin head with light lacing.
Aroma had strong fruit overtone, mostly citrus. Can a smell be tangy? this was. The color was a deep orange-red.
Mouthfeel was full but not heavy. Taste was complex, fruit layered with malt and hops. A very smooth brew, well balanced between sweet and bitter. This was one of the 180 offerings at Bilbo Baggins, in Alexandria, VA. I strongly recommend the beer and the pub.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2012 13:57:41 | More by Cyrano41

LiquidAmber

Washington

4.18/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Review from 3/2011 notes. Poured into a Nostradamus flute glass. Pours a cloudy medium orange amber with tons of floating yeast particles. A thin white head with light lacing and good retention. Aroma of light fruit, malt and Belgian spicing. Taste is similar to aroma. Pleasant light fruit, sweet malt, spice. A bit of a hop kick in the finish. Nicely made tripel. Worth a revisit.

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2012 03:32:59 | More by LiquidAmber

superspak

Michigan

4.33/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

750 ml bottle into chalice, bottled in 2010. Pours cloudy golden amber color with a nice 1-2 finger dense off white head with fantastic retention that reduces to a thick cap that lasts. Some spotty lacing on the glass, with plenty of carbonation streaming up. Aromas of big lemon, pepper, clove, apple, orange, coriander, honey, biscuit, herbs, and yeast spices. Nice and well balanced aromas. Taste of big lemon, pepper, orange, pear, biscuit, honey, coriander, herbal, and floral notes. Lingering notes of citrus, pear, pepper, and herbs on the finish for a while. Great balance of flavors with nice complexity. Medium-high carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a very creamy and slightly slick mouthfeel noticed after the carbonation died down. Alcohol is well hidden with only a slight warming on the finish present. Nice and smooth drinking for the level of alcohol. Overall this is a fantastic Tripel offering. Great complexity, balance, and smooth drinking for the level of alcohol.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2012 03:15:40 | More by superspak

daledeee

Iowa

4.2/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A small bottle

Poured a dark gold with brown hues. Clear with a white head and good lacing.

Nose is apricot and sweet with malt. Might be bubblegum too!!

Taste is fruity with pears, sweetness, hops, malt. A complex beer with very good clean taste. Mouth feel is quite nice with just the right carbonation. Definitely a fine brew.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2012 00:47:08 | More by daledeee