Leffe Radieuse - Abbaye de Leffe S.A.

DoubleJ

California

4.19/5  rDev +12%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

I've had a taste of Radieuse before, but being at Leopold in Den Haag brought me a chance to drink a bottle on my own. Coming from a 330 ml bottle, on to the beer:

Beauty in a glass is a ruby red with orange and brown hues, a long lastng head, and webbed lacing around the glass. The aroma of dark candi sugar, soft yeast, prunes, and red grapes sets the tone for a fun aroma. Even more fun is the taste; while sweet, brings a lovely fruitiness, toffee, clove, and soft enough to continues to be consumed. It's medium bodied witha slight syrupy feel.

Given my lack of previous success with Leffe, I'm a little surprised by how much I enjoyed Radieuse. I would be glad to meet this beer again.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 03:54:39 | More by DoubleJ

metter98

New York

3.78/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: The beer is clear reddish brown in color. It poured with a half finger high light beige head that died down rather quickly, leaving some lacing on the surface and a collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Light to moderate aromas of dark fruits and spices are present in the nose - cloves seem to stand out in particular among the spices.
T: The taste is similar to the smell and seems to be dominated by favors of dark fruits and cloves along with some hints of yeast.
M: It feels medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: The alcohol is well masked from the taste so this beer is rather easy to drink considering its strength.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2013 17:22:59 | More by metter98

PolarBear3

Australia

3.44/5  rDev -8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a brown copper colour with off white frothy two finger head that retains fairly well

S - Strong sweet candy like aromas with malts. Plum, some cherries with a hint a vanilla.

T - get the sweet malts and dark fruit straight up and slighty bitter and a little boozy on the finish.

M - medium bodied with medium carbonation

O- Fantastic aromas on the nose which promised so much but I thought was a little disappointing in the end. Worth a try but not he best of the Leffe variety.

Serving type: bottle

03-07-2013 11:08:34 | More by PolarBear3

FLima

Brazil

3.88/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Nice thick and consistent head. Copper red color.
Fruity aroma from cherry, also cloves and coriander. Good carbonation.
Sweet taste from malt combined with spices, and hints of plum. A little citric and not so bitter.
Alcohol (8.2%) was very well hidden, just left a slightly warmth in the aftertaste. Very balanced beer. Being Brazilian, I see Inbev products with some caution, but in this case we should be thankful that they are able to produce beer with such quality at decent prices.

Serving type: bottle

11-11-2012 00:42:47 | More by FLima

Arno

4.25/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

appearance: Light brown / amber. Creme head, which fades quite quickly. Good lacing.

smell: I get a mixture of rye and plum mainly. With some light caramel, almost honey like sweetness. Yeasty.

taste: Like the smell suggests actually. You get the rye and light caramel/honey like sweetness. Then some plum comes through.
The finish has still a mild rye flavor, more bread like. Very mild bitter coming through from the yeast and candy sugar sweetness.

mouthfeel: Medium bodied, quite round and smooth and a little bit sugary. Medium carbonation.

overall: It's a fine beer. It has a nice sweet but balanced flavor signature. With the rye, plum and caramel/honey/candy sugar it's more a winter beer i guess. It's yout typical fresh beer, but very enjoyable nonetheless :)

Serving type: bottle

08-21-2012 22:02:40 | More by Arno

eduardolinhalis

Switzerland

3.93/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330ml bottle served in a Leffe chalice.

A: Pours a dark clear amber color forming a big beige fluffy head. Medium to low retention and some lacings left. Beautiful beer

S: Very fruity. Dark fruits esters, mainly plums. Sweet candy and strong notes of sweet malts. Belgian yeasts. Hints of alcohol

T: Follows the nose. Sweet upfront. Sweet candy, caramel malts, dark fruits (mainly plums). End is composed of a smooth hoppy bitterness which is just pleasant

M: Medium to heavy mild molasses body. Sweet upfront and mild bitter hoppy aftertaste

O: Easy drinking beer. Despite of being a large scale beer, Leffe is still a nice Belgian style beer

Serving type: bottle

07-14-2012 18:06:26 | More by eduardolinhalis

shigg85

Japan

4.5/5  rDev +20.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bought this at the Tobu department store in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. Poured into a white wine glass. Amazing dark hue with smells of banana and clove that pop out prominently, as well as apple and coriander. The taste matches with banana coming through the strong ethanol presence. Overall, this was a wonderful strong Belgian that I would definitely recommend and that I will be looking for again!

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2012 06:02:06 | More by shigg85

sfprint

Germany

3.85/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

exp 3/4/13
A: Dark orangy red, scum on the surface as a head. Transparent, no visible rising carbonation.
S: Sweet plum, very similar to plum wine but less sweet than that.
T: Nice. Perhaps plum like, but not so sweet. I've had similar ones that I can't remember the name of, but I don't think any were as good as this one. Nice blend. Very slight tartness in the aftertaste.
M: Almost no carbonation, medium body.
O: Good, special flavor. Well blended.

Serving type: bottle

03-14-2012 01:22:15 | More by sfprint

paulozanello

Brazil

3.63/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a dark rubi color, slightly hazy. The head is tan and very exuberant, with good retention and an average lacing for a highly carbonated belgian abbey beer.

Aroma is caramel malts, nuts, clove, honey and burnt sugar along with fruity notes mainly cherries and plums.

Taste starts with sweet caramel malts, cristal malts, clove, with lots of residual sugar and a certain burnt note as well. Although not as intense as the aroma there is again a cherry like fruity note. It ends very dry and abruptly despite being sweet at first.

Body is medium with very high sparkly carbonation. Little to no bitterness perceptible. Abv is very well hidden.

Like many belgian beers brewed with high performance yeast there is a perfect balance between the initial sweetness and a dry finish, even for a large scale brewery such as Leffe.

Serving type: bottle

01-18-2012 22:53:19 | More by paulozanello

jjkatter

Australia

3.6/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

bottle poured into a Trappistes Fochefort goblet...

A- nice copper color, with plenty of carbonation. wispy white head settles quickly

S- fruity with hints of cherry, citrus and pleasant yeast

T- surprisingly heavily malty flavor. caramel with cherry and a sweet, toasty, malt finish. Pleasant, but not on par with other Belgian offerings.

MF- nice mouthfeel, but lacks balance. A somewhat dry finish

Overall- While this beer far exceeds most beers on the market, it falls below average for Belgian brews. I do drink it regularly, but that is because of the limited offering here in Eastern Australia and its priced a full $1.50 per bottle below Chimay Cinq Cents.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 19:05:42 | More by jjkatter

Raebies

Australia

3.7/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

In the glass it is a golden brown with medium fizz. I drank it a little too quickly straight out of the fridge, but the complexity still came through. Clean, distinct flavours of pine hops and banana fruitiness. A mild to medium acidity. I am definately curious about trying other beers in the Leffe range. It packs a whollop at 8.2% ABV.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2011 01:58:08 | More by Raebies

RodneyFarva

Spain

4.33/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330ml bottle poured into tulip glass.

pours copper colored with a 2 finger head which dissipates with moderate lacing

mostly malts, some fruits in the nose, plums and raisins.

taste is fairly sweet, malts and same fruits throughout, with a noticeable alcohol sweetness at the end

overall, I quite enjoy it. better than several other Belgian Strong Dark Ales I have sampled

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2011 20:49:49 | More by RodneyFarva

aeolianshredhead

Australia

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- Pours a light copper brown with a fairly big off white head which lessens down to half a finger of foam after a while. Decent looking. Leaves some inconsistent lacing.

S- Malts! Pretty much malts all the way through with that nice, raisin/plum scent. Smells very appealing. I don't pick up any alcohol on the nose at all.

T- What we have is some malts upfront followed by definite raisin/ plum hints which finishes with some light bitterness. All in all, this is quite a sweet little number albeit lacking some robustness. Best part is- no hint of alcohol. Although, I would prefer a little more warmth on the back.

M- Nice mouthfeel. Very smooth with a good body and decent carbonation. Pleasant.

O- This is a good beer. It really isnt absolutely wowing me but it is definitely an above average brew. Pairs well with dessert food bit also stew or something similar. Nice effort.

Serving type: bottle

08-23-2011 08:27:30 | More by aeolianshredhead

TheBrewo

Michigan

3.63/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

We pour a brew that radiates an orange-brown color when held to the light. It produces a massive two and a half finger head of cream colored bubbles which retains nicely. The lacing left as it slowly departs is impenetrable. There beer is fully transparent and the carbonation appears active. The aromas that fill the nose are characteristic of any other Leffe beer. The malts are soft but strong, with dashes from minimally burnt and caramel malts. Otherwise the other prime component is that Belgian yeast they seem to like. It is slightly tart to the feel, but sits nicely with the malts. Esters abound with faint banana and vanilla. The final thing to waft off the surface is a spicy booze quality, that mixes with a syrupy strawberry sweetness. As we sip a bitter grain hits up front. This transitions quickly into a softer caramel malt. There is also dark fruit here, of figs and plum, which sits with a black pepper booze, much as it did in the nose. The middle is much milder, with a complete toning down of the heavy flavor components, which are distilled into a simple malt and yeast balance. It is somewhat bitter, as in the onset, but much lighter on the malts. Moving to the finish we see a revival of the robust booze character and a brief flash of sugary sweetness and a cooling affect from the esters. There are also faint phenolic cloves to round everything out. The aftertaste breathes with characteristic Leffe grain, yeast, darker fruit, and booze. The body is medium and the carbonation is high. The feel to each sip is a bit thin and watery, as far as the liquid itself goes, but the quality to the lips is with a nice froth and smack. The head provides a continual creaminess throughout the experience. The abv is nice and high, and the beer drinks quite easily.

Overall, what we enjoyed most about this brew was the aroma. While it shared many elements exhibited in all Leffes, despite the stylistic differences, it found a nice balance between darkness, fruitiness, and booziness. This enhanced as the beer warmed. Where we fell a bit was in the corresponding flavor, which seemed to show the lighter side of what was promised by the nose.

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2011 01:03:33 | More by TheBrewo

shambeano

Australia

3.63/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

first review in a little while, poured into a tullip at room temperature.

A-pours a brownish amber, pretty clear but with about 2 inches of fluffy white head even though it was a careful pour. big bubbles pop away leaving a lot of sticky lacing,and about a half cm that simply refuses to fade away.

S- upfront a whole bunch of sweet malts, caramely, with dark fruits, sultanas and raisins, with a touch of alcohol.works together and nice.

T- much like the taste, a toffee maltiness, that dominates upfront followed by alchoholy dark fruits, sulatana, raisin and dried fig. but not too much more.

M- creamy to begin with, but that is cut through by the carbonation soon after, making it feel a bit lighter bodied than it should. slightly dry finish by the end.

O- i enjoyed this beer, looks good and a good nose, but lacks a bit to taste and in the mouth comparitively. still, a very nice beer that im glad ive tried and a beer im sure i will feel like in future.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2011 13:47:45 | More by shambeano

SirChuckles

California

3.58/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Just because it's a "typical" Belgian, doesn't mean it can't be tasty. This hard-to-find Belgian gives your taste buds notes of caramel at first, followed by a little wheat and typical Belgian malt. If you like either the Leffe Blonde or Brune, I think you'll enjoy the Radieuse. It is a little heavy on the carbonation side, so definitely a beer to take your time with.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2011 17:04:04 | More by SirChuckles

kojevergas

California

2.28/5  rDev -39%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

33cl Leffe bottle poured into ZBF 2010 stemware in me friend's gaff in Ghent, Belgium. Reviewed live.

A: Three finger head of fair cream and thickness, but good retention, especially for the ABV. Very dark copper colour; nontransparent.

Sm: Floral and fruit ester hops. Very fresh. Refreshing. A mild scent, but rather appealing.

T: Caramelized malt alongside poorly balanced floral and slight ester hops. Maybe even some grape is there, but it's so indistinct and muted it's hard to isolate. Not bold or particularly complex. Unrefreshing. Very boring.

Mf: Smooth and wet, with a touch of dryness towards the finish - the reason for it isn't clear. Not at all complementary of the flavours on the body.

Dr: High ABV, but it doesn't come through. Drinkable but fairly low quality. Skip over this one; there are better beers in Belgium.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2011 21:16:35 | More by kojevergas

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

330ml red foil-capped bottle. Props to tbeckett for this bit of less than readily available abbey ale.

This beer pours a clear, dark copper hue, with three fingers of foamy, billowy pale ecru head, which settles slowly, but surely, rendering some decent 'Old Lace' lace around the glass. It smells of bready caramel malt, burnt brown sugar, vinous black fruit, and some zippy floral/earthy hops. The taste is more big bready toffee malt, dark candy sugar, some mild Belgian yeast, and a surprisingly prominent, and bitter, forest floor hoppiness. Lurking in the background, one can detect the simmering booze, but it remains a mere wraith at this point. The carbonation is on the down side of front and center, the body nice and full and a bit spritzy, and smooth nonetheless. It finishes with a relative echo of grainy, sugary malt, against a rising hoppy specter and booze warming.

The regular Leffe Blonde bores me, mostly because it's just, well normal. Lately, I've been macking on the BSDAs, as a sort of antidote (or partner in crime) to my DIPA predilection, and have made my way through all of the locally available offerings of the former. Great to try an another well-wrought example of big, boozy malts, but Belgian-balanced. Phew.

Serving type: bottle

06-25-2011 22:48:56 | More by biboergosum

heygeebee

Australia

3.85/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

from notes...

Pours a deep copper, two finger head. Some lacing. See them bubbles racing toward the surface!

Typical Belgian aromas. Some toffee and caramel.

Taste is quite sweet, malts, caramel, with little a bitterness. Warms as it goes down, but not too much alchol noticeable given the ABV.

Mouthfeel is quite light for the style - wouldn't have minded a bit more 'chew'.

Really quite good.

EDIT

Don't try one of these warm. Taste is dominated by cough mixture / throat lozenge / almost a bit of the dreaded wet cardboard as well as an aftertaste...

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2011 10:41:52 | More by heygeebee

BlackHaddock

United Kingdom (England)

3.6/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

33cl Bottle, best before 9th Feb 2013, reviewed Apr 2011. Poured into a Leffe chalice.

The body was a clear Mahogany Browny/Red colour above sat an off-white head of large bubbles that was to leave some good lacing as the beer level fell.

The beer gave off a slight hop aroma with red berries and summer floral smells mixed in.

The beer came across as a well carbonated, semi-sweet beer with hints of red berries in the flavours, especially in the aftertaste. The alcohol wasn't evident in the brew, well hidden considering it holds 8.2%ABV.

One of the Leffe stables better beers.

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2011 20:43:14 | More by BlackHaddock

rvdoorn

Netherlands

4.38/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottle 2000 vintage.
Look: poured a deep red-brown color, leaving almost no head
Smell: Heavy sweet malts, caramel, nuts, vanilla, dark fruits and spices.
Taste: Sweet plums, caramel, but also some red cherries. Spicy and creamy.
Mouthfeel: Medium-low carbonation, thick body
Overall: By far my favorite leffe, and as shown by this bottle, with great aging potential

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2011 17:49:43 | More by rvdoorn

kjc51478

Germany

3.4/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Dark appearance with small head.

S: Chocolate and spice with noticeable hop scent.

T: Very pronounced hoppy flavor with chocolate and spice notes. Not enough balance for me though.

M: Good carbonation and smooth finishing

O: Has some overall weaknesses with balance but a decent beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2011 01:10:45 | More by kjc51478

brentk56

North Carolina

3.8/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours a clear amber color with several fingers of head atop; great retention and stickage

Smell: Fruity aromatics, with raisins and apple spice cake elements

Taste: Opens with a fruity character - the raisins and apple spice cake from the aroma start things off; by mid-palate; the spicy complexity of the yeast adds depth and balance; after the swallow the sweeter flavors linger while the spice fades

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate to high carbonation

Overall: A good beer but not in the same class as the top flight BSDAs; easy to drink and rather enjoyable

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2011 20:16:58 | More by brentk56

iguenard

Quebec (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Fast gone head of pale brown. Beer itself is a red-browning color, very estery with some lace on the glass to boot. Sugar, heavy malted aromas,
much like sweeter version of a Maudite™. Hints of spice, raspberries, alcohol and corriander. Fruity and sweet. Strong amlt tastes, chocolate malt and a bitter-like hops bite kicks in once the alcohol starts up. Nice balance, a bit on the rough side as far as transition goes, Very thick body for an amber ale. Syrupy sweet, enough to hide powerful alcoholic taste. Warm and filling, strong and calming. Creamy. Very sweet and spicy belgian amber ale, a bit put back by its strength though for the kick, it's totally worth it. Great with red meat, italian meats.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2011 18:27:06 | More by iguenard

Wegomlegging

Virginia

3.88/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The Leffe I accidently drank turns out to be a great mistake! The reddish hue of the beer sits below a nice head. It smells a bit like the Bruin but with a slightly more yeasty complexion. I love the taste, not like the Blonde cousin in that you can sense a malty alcohol hint that follows a fruity wetness you just have to have more of. Wasn't as good of a mouth feel once it got a little warm, so recommend having this one cold in your Leffe stemware! Overall a very good beer, but I wish it was more available in the U.S.

Serving type: bottle

05-06-2011 04:07:01 | More by Wegomlegging