Belgian Style Dubbel - Flying Fish Brewing Company

chinchill

South Carolina

3.59/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.75

12 oz bottle of re-formulated(?) 7.2% ABV ale called "Abbey Dubbel". Consumed from a snifter near the best by date on the label: 30 March 2013. Pours a nice orange-mahogany color, clear despite a tiny amount of sediment, The head is small, short-lived, and leaves little lacing.

Aroma/Taste: nice and true to style; sweet with plenty of dark fruit; brown sugar, toffee/caramel. The flavor largely follows the nose. Still sweet, and a tad too sweet, but not as sweet (or yeasty) as the nose indicates.

M: not bad but a bit too asteingent and thin.

O: Not up with the finer Belgian dubbels but certainly respectable and far less expensive in the US

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2013 23:20:05 | More by chinchill

alaimoa

Connecticut

3.2/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours with very little foam but nice dark brown/amber color. Smells like bitter fruit. Mouthfeel pretty good with weak coating but nice carbonation. Overall with 7.2% alcohol it's fairly easy to drink and nothing spectacular about it. Average but good

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2013 21:35:09 | More by alaimoa

pkalix

California

3.93/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

different label on bottle? and a 7.2% abv onthis one?
poured flatly into my tulip glass; thin, transparent brown with no foam or fizz on top.
not much aroma, although i think i'm getting a candy-something in there...
taste is thin, kind of bland. some fruit, lots of malt. here is the website to this one in case it isn't the same as the one i'm writing on: http://flyingfish.com/beers/belgian_abbey_dubbel.html
definitely flat. easy to drink for a 7.2%, but like most of theri beers i've tried, there is a 'fishy' taste to it. i just cant get into much of the stuff from this brewer, but it's not bad. maybe it's just psychological....

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 00:32:00 | More by pkalix

rfgetz

New Jersey

3.29/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Pours a golden orange color, light haze, soapy head. Scent is quite yeasty and peppery, lacing many other qualities of the style. Taste follows suit... Mostly yeast and spice, lacking firm malt presence and fruitiness. Moderate carbonation. Weak sauce... Nothing too bad, but nothing really good either.

Serving type: bottle

03-04-2013 17:22:51 | More by rfgetz

Onenote81

North Carolina

3.83/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

12oz bottle poured into a chalice. Pours a ruddy mahogany with a thin off-white cap of foam on top. This fleets away quickly, leaving just bits of lace on the glass. Aroma of fig, raisins, yeast, syrup, wet hay. Moderate body bolsters this beer. Not overly carbonated as some tend to be. Rich syrupy finish.

Dark fruits pervade. Fig, plum, toffee, bits of ginger, rounded out with a touch of spicy yeast. This isn't overly "Belgian" by any means. Definitely an American stab at it, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. A good representation, and a tasty cap to my evening. I think this would make a good one to draw someone into these Abbey-styles. Nice work, FF.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2013 01:15:36 | More by Onenote81

PintOHops

California

3.31/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Glass - Tulip

A - Amber/brown color with just a touch of haze. The head was about 2-fingers worth and dissipated within a few seconds. Lots of carbonation can be seen. No lacing.

S - Softer aroma's going on. Caramel, toasted bread, cherry. Reminds me of fruit cake a little bit. Slightest bit of herbal hop in there. I got a touch of alcohol as it warmed.

T - Lots of brown sugar, cinnamon, biscuit, caramel. Cherry and alcoholic notes warm the palate and throat. I pick up a bit of raisin as well. It finishes with almost no bitterness, and lingering fruit cake like flavors.

M - Medium bodied with a smooth airy like feel. Carbonation is moderate.

O - I think this was a good offering from the brewery, and a decent shot at the style. Definitely an introduction to the style sorta thing to me. Tasty and satisfying, with a great price tag. I'd have it again. Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 02:15:33 | More by PintOHops

JosiahS

California

3.69/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 3.75

a: A dark red-orange color, clear body and lots of bubbles. The head is thin but leaves a pleasant ring atop the beer.

s: The aroma is sweet with dark sugar, coriander, banana and clove.

t: strong and pleasant malt base, toasted malts mix well with the yeast to give a consistent sweet & reduced banana flavor with a vegetable quality. Finishes clean with very little bitterness.

m: medium body, clean and semi-crisp. Very nice and approachable.

o: Not bad, a straight-forward representation of the style.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 02:12:30 | More by JosiahS

Jimmys

Pennsylvania

2.8/5  rDev -20.7%
look: 4 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 2.75

12 oz bottle. best by: 05.17.13.

A: a beautiful chestnut hue. relatively clear. carbonization is streaming to the surface. slightly off-white head is solid. retention is moderate. some spotted lacing.

S: sweet. brown sugar. a slight figgy aroma. a little flat.

T: much more on the malty side than I expected. a little fishy. much too one note in my opinion. nutty and grain lingers into the finish.

M: carb is mellow. a bit silky. medium bodied.

D: meh, there are a lot of better dubbel's out there as well as a lot of better flying fish brews out there. pass on this one.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2013 04:41:59 | More by Jimmys

gr0g

New Jersey

3.13/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A few years ago, this was the first dubbel I tried (possibly my first Belgian style beer, period). Now, with a lot more experience as well as a great fondness for Belgian style ales, lets see how this offering from South Jersey local Flying Fish stacks up.

Poured into a Chimay chalice, initial appearance is appealing with a reddish-brown color and slight haziness. Head is about one finger with only so-so retention; at least there's a nice "island" of froth in the center. Aroma leads with yeast-forward chalkiness and clove. This tends to hide other components such as fruity esters of pear, plum, raisin.

Flavor profile is "authentic" tasting and would be commendable for a sub 6% abbey single, but for a dubbel it's unremarkable. Esters are more alive than on the nose and there's a satisfying malt base, but it's all too weak. I thought that this at least used to be bottle conditioned in the past, but the relative lack of carbonation points to this currently not being bottle conditioned. The mouthfeel is still pretty good with the carbonation being just fizzy and vibrant enough without becoming harsh.

Like other members of FF's "classic," year-round lineup, this doesn't stand out within its style. Look to the Exit Series or the newer Red Fish for some of their better offerings.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 04:58:14 | More by gr0g

SolipsismalCat

Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +17%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a pint glass.

A: Clear amber with two-finger, white, creamy head that lasted a couple minutes. Okay lacing.

S: Belgian yeast, fruit. Mild.

T: Light to moderate sweetness and light bitterness. Mild dark fruits. Belgian yeast and toasty malt.

M: Medium bodied with lively carbonation.

O: Interesting beer. The taste makes up for the mild nose.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2012 04:25:44 | More by SolipsismalCat

jtierney89

New Jersey

2.5/5  rDev -29.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Got a single bottle from a Spirits Unlimited so it's probably pretty old (You can never find a fresh beer at a Spirits Chain in NJ, just a warning) but I figured since it's a dubbel it should hold up. (Also the only beers that ever make it to a spirits mix-a-six section is old beers and seasonals so)

Clear brown color with a head that quickly dies. Faint nose of dark belgian candy sugars, beets, caramel and toffee.

Ripe fruit flavors, on the lighter end of being medium bodied and crisp. Faint dark fruit bowl up front, followed by a sweet belgian candy sugar taste and then finishes clean with a faint lingering sweetness. The flavors are right but barely and almost undetectable (and for once it tastes kind of fresh) touch of alcohol heat. Simple light and drinkable. But that's not how I want my dubbels. This tastes more like a crossover beer as if AB-inbev made a friendly 7.99 six pack dubbel for people to try. The flavors are right if you dig for them, unoffensive, and light. Kind of like "My-First-Dubbel" kind of thing.

This is not a bad beer.
Though it Doesn't embody a true dubbel in my opinion, just an intro to one.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2012 03:29:56 | More by jtierney89

jwhancher

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a clear amber red with some alright head that eventually fades to nothing. Has some raisin and brown sugar notes. Some sharp alcohol in the nose as it warms . Also has some slight chewy caramel malts. Little to no hop aroma. Tastes similar to nose with medium to full mouthfeel. Flavors also give hints of fig and dark fruits (plum, dark cherry). Average bitterness for the style with a slight bite at the tail end. Overall, a very nice beer. Solid and very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2012 00:43:43 | More by jwhancher

ckollias

Maryland

4/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Enjoyed this 12oz bottle out of a large snifter glass.

A: Pours a hazy brownish-copper hue with a thin 2-finger head that quickly dissipates and leaves a wispy lace.

S: Sweet Belgian yeast aroma with a fruity background.

T: Sweet malty Belgian yeast flavor that turns tart and finished on the dry side.

M: Full body and medium carbonation.

O: This is a solid dubbel. Complex flavors and aromas.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2012 01:39:11 | More by ckollias

Hopfenpeter

Maryland

3.43/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured a almost clear amber brown. Not much of a bubbly white head, dissipates fast with minimal lacing.
The smell is just some malt, not much else.
Thank goodness, the taste is better. Nice combination of dark fruit, brown sugar and malt. Some earthy hops balance the palette.
Nice prickly mouthfeel, and very drinkable. A nice beer, maybe not exactly the style.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2012 02:15:18 | More by Hopfenpeter

maddogruss

New Jersey

3.73/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Had this at Cloverleaf Tavern in West Caldwell.

A: Pours a dark red, mahagany body with a small, white head with some lacing and minimal retention overall.

S: A lightly, sweet toffee smelling beer, but nothing too overbearing.

T: A pretty smooth, sweet grape juice tasting beer with some subtle vanilla notes and hint of toffee and sweet alcohol in the aftertaste.

M: A pretty thin but fairly decent mouthfeel. Pretty nice on the palette overall.

D: A decent mouthfeel and taste combination made for a pretty nice drinking beer. Mouthfeel could have been a bit smoother, but overall, pretty good drinking beer with some warming alcohol.

Serving type: on-tap

08-02-2012 21:04:19 | More by maddogruss

lnashsig

Texas

2.48/5  rDev -29.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

#BOTG 76!

Poured from bottle into New Belgium tulip glass. Pours a dirty brown rain water color, very little head retention. some head pools into the middle of the glass. I guess it looks like a Dubbel, but not one of the better examples. Smell- caramel syrup, raisins, a buttery aroma as well. Decent, but points detracted because it reminds me of what melted milk drops smell like when in a movie theater next to buttery popcorn. Chemically in some ways. Taste- chocolate cherry cough syrup. raisins, butter. This is a stylistic miss, and the chemically syrupy nature of this is present even more. This is not a good dubbel, below average. Mouthfeel is syrupy thick. Not good. This would be a strike out.

Serving type: bottle

06-26-2012 23:31:26 | More by lnashsig

goblue3509

Pennsylvania

2.9/5  rDev -17.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a copper color with ruby red in the middle and brown along the edges. There is a little sticky lace on the glass. The aroma is very faint there is a little aroma at all there is a hint of caramel and that is about it. The taste is a little bit better, there is a caramel backbone with a dark fruit flavor as well as a hint of licorice. The mouthfeel is moderately carbonated and a touch watery. Overall it is an average beer, the smell is a disappointment but the taste picks the beer up some.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2012 19:49:29 | More by goblue3509

FeDUBBELFIST

Pennsylvania

3.25/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 1.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle to tulip. Sampled 10/30/11.

A: Pours with 1 1/2 fingers of creamy light brown head. Semi long lasting. The body is a medium-dark shade of amber brown. An off-putting amount of particulate can be seen suspended in solution. Lacing is spare.

S: The nose is pretty empty at first - and opens slowly, but still lacks the depth/complexity that better versions of the style exhibit. Grain, bread, toasted caramel and spices. Light alcohol is evident.

T: The flavor is slightly more complex than the nose suggested bringing about notes of dried banana chips, clove, a mixture of prunes, dates and apple, light tobacco, plus a little brown sugar towards the back end. Perhaps a little chocolate.

M: Medium body with a semi thick texture. Nice and lively carbonation.

O: Enjoyable and easy to drink, and better than expected - but still comes across as a cheap American interpretation.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2012 02:22:04 | More by FeDUBBELFIST

Thingus

California

3.88/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Recieved as part of a trade with nas4atu... Thanks Eric!! Live review, bottle into Duvel Tulip

Appearance; pours a cloudy mahogany reddish brown color, with maybe a half finger of bubbly brown head, that dissipates exceptionally quickly leaving no lacing and a very thin film... 

Smell; has a bready quality, hints of cinnamon, nutmeg and spices... Definitely has the "Belgian Yeast" smell going as well... The best I can describe that is muted notes of raisins and other similar dark fruits...

Taste; has a definite bready backbone, hints of raisin, nutmeg, cinnamon... Plenty of other spices I can't discern, slight notes of caramel and brown sugar.

Mouthfeel; effervescent in the mouth, with a juicy finish, I'd put this on the lighter side of medium body...

Overall; my fondness for the Belgian style has unfortunately faded quite a bit since the start of my craft beer journey... This was a very enjoyable beer of a style that I don't spend time with.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2012 06:03:30 | More by Thingus

johnnnniee

New Hampshire

3.5/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Received in trade from mdaschaf, thanks for the opportunity!
Pours a deep reddish brown color with a smallish off white head that dissipates all to quickly. Smells of brown sugar and sweet fruity malt mostly. Raisins and prunes with a fair amount of caramelized sugars and hints of spicy yeasty esters. Taste is sweet and fruity up front with dark caramelized sugars coming next. Yeasty funk finishes as well a a lingering burnt sugar sweetness. Medium body with a moderate level of carbonation and a sweet slick mouthfeel. Not bad for an American interpretation of a dubbel. I enjoyed this one.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2012 01:00:07 | More by johnnnniee

jhartley

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint glass.

A- Reddish brown body with a light brown/tan head which quickly dissipates. Nice bead.

S-Sweet sugars and raisins and malt.

T-Tastes the way it smells. Not overly sweet with carbonation that is not too strong, but typical for a Belgian style.

M-Refreshing carbonation feel. Malty sweetness. No prevalent hops that I could detect. Nice sweet finish.

O-Not overly impressed but this does not mean it is a bad beer at all. I received this as a gift and I would like to try this again.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2012 23:54:20 | More by jhartley

keanex

New Jersey

3.4/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

From a 12 ounce bottle, no freshness date. Poured into a Duvel tulip glass.

A: Pours a clear red/amber with very little tan head.

S: Light banana and cloves, Belgian yeast and spices on the nose. Very true to a real Belgian beer.

T: Flavor is really lacking, a bit off even. Slight sweetness of sugar and malts with a slight floral hops at the end. Taste doesn't really match the tongue.

M: Medium bodied with good amounts of fresh carbonation.

O: This hits some marks of a real Belgian, but falls short in comparison to real ones. It's easily available though with a good price.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 06:19:15 | More by keanex

JerseyKirk

New Jersey

3.23/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: 1 finger off white head. Copper to toffee color.

S: Rich caramel sweet, Belgian yeast and slight soy sauce.

T: Carmel and sweet. Just like it smells. Alcohol is not present in flavor.

M: Nice and full bodied.

O: Good dubbel but I think I'm not the biggest fan of the style. Gotta give it a few more times.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2011 02:27:18 | More by JerseyKirk

DoubleJ

California

3.23/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

After a horrific episode with Alexander Keith's, I'm going to "dubbel" or nothing with Flying Fish. On to the beer:

Light chocolate brown with smudges of orange mixed in. The head forms ½ inch thick on top, but slowly dwindeles to a small lace. While mild, there is some good in the nose; raisins, vague chocolate, a pleasant fume of alcohol which gives it a wine-like character. There's also a noticable sour character that gives it an aroma similar to vomit.

Some pear and dates to start off the taste. Mild doses of chocolate covered raisin helps stave off mediocrity. The longer the sip, the more chocolatey it becomes. The body is light-medium and flabby.

Not bad, though very run-of-the-mill by dubbel standards.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2011 06:32:29 | More by DoubleJ

erosier

Connecticut

4.1/5  rDev +16.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

L: Pours a nice hazy orange copper color with a tall and thick off white colored head that laces the glass nicely on the way down.
S: Smells of sweet toasted and roasted malts, hints of sweet and slightly sour fruits, and then a slight yeast aroma at the end.
T: Tastes of a nice sweet toasted and roasted malt backbone, followed by a myriad of fruit flavors, a hint of alcohol, and some yeast flavors.
M: Smooth, rich, medium bodied, perfect amount of carbonation, slightly warming.
D: Very drinkable, overall this was actually one of my favorite Dubbels.

Serving type: bottle

10-22-2011 14:18:04 | More by erosier