Gulden Draak 9000 Quadruple - Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.

jondeelee

Massachusetts

4.55/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Gulden Draak 9000 opens to a rich, fruity nose overflowing with banana, strawberry, cherry, orange, peach, pear, sweet apple, and melon fruit esters. The sheer variety of fruit aromas is astounding, as if the beer were 50% fruit juice. But there’s also a nice spice bouquet, including clove, coriander, and touches of white pepper and nutmeg, long draughts of wildflower honey, honeysuckle, caramel, vanilla, and toffee, and a good, light base of baguette and pastry. The panoply of sugars and fruits in here, when held next to the pastry notes, make the beer smell like a delicious spiced fruit pie. But there’s also an alcoholic note, as of champagne, white wine, mead, and a hint of cognac, which speaks to a spiked fruit trifle. As a whole, the nose is fantastic, offering one of the more varied, layered, rich fruit-and-sugar based aromas I’ve ever encountered, the beer smelling like it should be its own dessert course.

On the tongue, the beer begins with a typical banana and clove note, but this is quickly joined by other fruits and spices, the berries, peaches, pears, sweet apples, cherries, and melon fruits from the nose translating very nicely, and the cloves joined by sharp bites of white pepper. The wildflower honey and honeysuckle also translate nicely, giving the beer an almost super-sweet Stevia extract rim, with brown sugar, caramel, and toffee adding further sweet textures. Hops provide just enough sweet pink grapefruit flesh to add a pleasantly citrusy, bitter edge. The alcoholic content here is champagne-like, with medium white wine and mead overtones, and these blend well with pastry and light toast crust. Near the end of the mouthful the beer takes an even sweeter turn, for a half-second or so spiking in Stevia extract sweetness, before subsiding into a fruity, sugary aftertaste that mimics the main flavors, and lingers on the tongue for a good while. Mouthfeel is medium, and carbonation is medium-high, adding to the champagne feel.

Overall, this is excellent beer, and one of the better quads on the market. I did find that the taste didn’t quite live up to the promise of the aromas, but even at that, the flavors were delicious, and almost perfectly balanced. A must-try for fans of Belgian ales.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2012 21:00:27 | More by jondeelee

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

4.15/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from tap into tulip at yardhouse in palm beach gardens fl. Poured a hazy maple syrup color with 2 fingers of head. It looks a little light in color for a quad...
The aromas delivef with a fruity malt and chocolate nose there is no mistaking a quad...although this is a bit lighter than say a st bernardus.
Taste is dried fruit and banana ....almost hefe like. With a bit of sweet caramel and chocolate. A very easy drink but you do taste some booze.
Not a bad quad by any means...but different. If you are looking for something like st bernardus or westy...this isn't it. Its a bit lighter...more like a german quad if that's possible...I'd drink again for sure.

Serving type: on-tap

05-22-2013 21:57:42 | More by DrinkSlurm

Chaney

District of Columbia

4.08/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Served in an Olde Hickory glass.

A: Poured a deep, rich, amber color, immensely cloudy, and with an uneven solid white head that stuff around for a while.

S: Fruit... fig jam, plums, and lots of Belgian funk. Reasonably potent.

T: I did the sweet, almost tart, aftertaste first and foremost. Great fruit component, which was much brighter and non-dark fruit-esque than most recent quads I've had.

M: The carbonation was one of the best I've ever had in a quad. Sure, it was kinda high and spritzy, but comfortable as hell. The sweetness was dead on the the lacing was pretty intense.

O: This was expensive, no doubt, but to my mind, this was worth every penny.
Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 00:27:45 | More by Chaney

bzach

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

05-19-2013 02:29:26 | More by bzach

dmorgan310

Michigan

3.75/5  rDev -8.3%

05-18-2013 22:21:09 | More by dmorgan310

GTB

North Carolina

4/5  rDev -2.2%

05-18-2013 09:57:49 | More by GTB

pin

Australia

4/5  rDev -2.2%

05-18-2013 00:41:08 | More by pin

KornWallace

New York

4/5  rDev -2.2%

05-17-2013 17:01:44 | More by KornWallace

JerzDevl2000

New Jersey

4.1/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Picked this up at Top Hops, not having any beers from Brouwerij van Steenberge before nor having had a Quad in quite some time. Although this was indeed strong in the alcohol department, it was quite smooth as well and a lot to take in as I took each sip. The amount of rye and booze in here almost made this feel like a Barleywine, but the sweetness was present from start to finish and reminded me that this was indeed, a Belgian beer.

The pour to this was quite impressive, as the beer had a rich apricot hue that was translucent, a head that resembled a root beer float, and lacing that marked off each level as I made my way through the session. A lot of sweetness and rye in the nose, which was also felt in the mouthfeel. That was reinforced by some sour apple, bear, roasted malt, and a hint of caramel stickiness. The alcohol came on slowly and lingered long in the aftertaste, providing a strong but subtle warming effect.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2013 14:06:08 | More by JerzDevl2000

meangreenc

California

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

05-16-2013 02:48:48 | More by meangreenc

Derek

British Columbia (Canada)

4.43/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

More like a strong triple/blonde than a quad, but really nice.

A: Deep bronze with a huge white head, very little retention, no lace.

S: Lots of tropical fruit with hints of steelie mineral.

T: Candied pineapple & papaya, hints of mango & white pepper, warming alcohol, balanced bitterness.

M: Very bubbly/carbonated, extremely dry, almost champagne-like, with a very crisp finish.

O: Great brew.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 03:06:00 | More by Derek

Kylethebear

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +16.1%

05-15-2013 00:24:42 | More by Kylethebear

aty11b

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

05-14-2013 01:10:41 | More by aty11b

BelgianBeerPope

Belgium

4/5  rDev -2.2%

05-11-2013 12:58:55 | More by BelgianBeerPope

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

4/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

330ml, same little squat bottle as the normal Gulden Draak. The Golden Dragon's bigger, and even boozier brother?

This beer pours a hazy medium apricot amber hue, the rising effervescence non-stop, with three fingers of very puffy, thinly foamy off-white head, which leaves some patchy gnarled root lace around the glass as it slowly seeps away.

It smells of darkly caramelized and slightly toasted malt, fruity banana bubblegum, candy floss, rather soft earthy yeast, subtle leafy, wet grass hops, and a mild vodka-like booze twinge. The taste is sweet, sugary pale malt, slightly upgraded with some roasted caramel notes, more titration tube banana esters, ethereally musty yeast, applesauce, earthy, weedy hops, and a thin membrane of alcohol warming.

The carbonation is a bit pointed and frothy at first, but settles quickly enough, the body medium-heavy in weight, and generally smooth, and even evokes a semblance of creaminess here and there. It finishes fairly off-dry, the still sturdy fruity malt and understated dark sugar seeing little opposition in the form of hop or alcohol astringency.

While a genuinely tasty offering, the overall intricacies don't really keep up with the best in class - sure, the booze is expertly integrated, and while there's lots going on in its own right, there's just a certain je ne sais quoi lightness of being that renders me just a wee bit down about this style that I share many's affinity for.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2013 02:02:46 | More by biboergosum

Kerrie

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

05-06-2013 00:53:59 | More by Kerrie

FliryVorru

Alabama

5/5  rDev +22.2%

05-02-2013 20:11:52 | More by FliryVorru

Mervjahn

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +10%

04-30-2013 03:01:35 | More by Mervjahn

DerekMorgan

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -14.4%

04-28-2013 03:06:04 | More by DerekMorgan

McBraniel

Virginia

4/5  rDev -2.2%

04-26-2013 15:52:01 | More by McBraniel

brotherloco

California

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

04-24-2013 03:13:51 | More by brotherloco

SLeffler27

New York

3.66/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Hazy golden copper with a pale gold three-inch foam over turbulent carbonation that wells up from within a Gulden Draak tulip glass. Thick patches of lace are left after the head slowly retreats.

Light, funky yeast with toasted malt and bananas. Some melon fruits and bubblegum are also present.

Somewhat more bitter than anticipated by the style. Some notes of white wine give way to cinnamon and other spices, while light caramel sugar leads to a quick, sweet finish.

The body is medium with a satin texture and lively, fine carbonation. The alcohol is as expected in this dry beer.

While not quite to style, this was enjoyed while reading and listening to live harp music. The moment was sublime on a gentle, quiet afternoon, while the stark exterior whiteness contrasted against the dark green Norwegian pines.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2013 14:52:20 | More by SLeffler27

Louis_Toschner

South Carolina

4.26/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Had on tap @ Old Mill Brewpub in Gulden Draak tulip. Beautiful orange/ coppery hue, kind of like a sunset over the water, (I may have been a little influenced by the fact that they are lakeside.) The nose was very pleasant...it had the smell of fresh baked bread, a little "candy-ish" and light on the hops smell. The taste was very in sync with the smell...fresh bread, sweet candy-like hints, and nice, but not over-bearing hops flavor. Mouthfeel was a bit silky but a bit chewy as well.

Overall, this definitely one I will be revisiting...especially since the Brewpub is only about a block away from me.

Serving type: on-tap

04-21-2013 13:44:27 | More by Louis_Toschner

CDW

Maryland

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

04-20-2013 13:38:50 | More by CDW

Kuromaru

Virginia

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

04-20-2013 00:50:28 | More by Kuromaru