Borran's Beer Review: Almost 5 Year Old Orval!
Hey everyone!
Today, I'm reviewing a Belgian Pale Ale called Orval from the brewery Brasserie d'Orval. If there’s a classic brewers’ beer, it would have to be Orval. If you love beer, this is a must-try!
I have stored this beer for almost 5 years in my cellar. Why? Just to do an experiment! As the beer is bottle conditioned its flavor can evolve over the years with aging.
Brewery facts:
- The brewery was founded in 1931 within the walls of the Abbaye Notre-Dame d'Orval in the Gaume region of Belgium.
- Orval was the first Trappist beer to be sold nationally around Belgium.
- It was first made in 1931, and has a complex and unusual flavor and aroma produced by a unique strain of yeast: Brettanomyces bruxellensis.
- As with other Trappist breweries, the beer is sold in order to financially support the monastery and some other good causes.
- The brewery is normally closed to the public, but opens its doors for two days each year.
- There are presently 32 workers.
- Production output: 72,000 hL.
Their beers:
Orval
Petit Orval, a patersbier only served at the brewery.
Orval Vert, Orval Beer (with less alcohol), drunk by the monks of the Orval abbey.
Appearance: yellow-orange color, with a big foamy white head.
Smell: dried fruit, yeast acid, spicy, fruity.
Mouthfeel: medium body, high carbonation.
Taste: quite sour and dry, spicy, yeasty, earthy flavors.
Verdict: My experiment was to notice the difference between a young and old Orval. The last time I drank this beer it was quite young, this time I pushed to the limit and stored it for almost 5 years. I must say I liked the fresher one more, because it tasted more like a "Normal Belgian Pale Ale". This 5 year old Orval tasted almost like a sour beer, probably because the Brett yeast is continuing to ferment in the bottle a little bit. Perhaps a Orval stored for 2-3 years is the best?
I want to make one thing clear. Belgian Pale Ale/Sour beers is not one of my favorite beer styles. That's why I'm only giving it a mediocre rating. If you like these kind of beers you'll probably love this one! My rating: 3.25 out of 5.
Orval:
| Brewery | Brasserie d'Orval |
| Country | Villers-devant-Orval, part of Florenville, Belgium |
| Style | Pale Ale - Belgian |
| Alcohol | 6,2% |
| IBU | 36 |
| Score | 3.25/5 |
Camera: Nikon Coolpix P900/Nikkor 83X Wide Optical Zoom 4.3-357mm f/2.8-6.5.
Please drink responsibly!
I hope you enjoyed my post! Thanks for stopping by!
!Beer 1 cheers
Posted using Partiko Android
Thanks mate! :)
You got a 41.07% upvote from @ocdb courtesy of @borran! :)
@ocdb is a non-profit bidbot for whitelisted Steemians, current min bid is 1.5 SBD and max bid is 10 SBD and the equivalent amount in STEEM.
Check our website https://thegoodwhales.io/ for the whitelist, queue and delegation info. Join our Discord channel for more information.
If you like what @ocd does, consider voting for ocd-witness through SteemConnect or on the Steemit Witnesses page. :)