Three Philosophers by Ommegang

Three Philosophers. Belgian-style quadruple. Ommegang. Cooperstown, New York.

Winter 2010/11.

My review on RateBeer:

3.5 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 2/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
AHTOH (30) - San Diego, California, USA - JAN 23, 2011

12 ounce bottle (2010 vintage [packaged on 3/21/10, best by 3/21/15]). Poured into Ommegang chalice.

APPEARANCE: Pours dark caramel tone of mahogany/brown. Off-white head settles rapidly, leaving only trace amounts of thin foam film atop portions of surface. Plenty of sediment all throughout, which is dark straw color and about the size of salt grains. Inexistent lacing. Effervescence appears slow; perhaps slowed down by the viscosity and sediment.

AROMA: Heavy caramel malt sweetness, some soy sauce, subtle dried tart cherry, faint hint of kriek. Complex aroma, though the soy sauce like scent was detrimental to overall aroma. Subtle alcohol on nose.

TASTE: Thankfully zero soy sauce in the taste; unlike aroma. Huge caramel malt on the palate, especially concentrated on front of palate. Faint graininess on mid palate, though largely masked by alcohol. Unfortunately, some of the subtleties of the cherry/kriek, which seem to appear most prominently on back of palate, are masked by the slight alcohol warmth on the back of palate/finish. All factors combined, this beer is like a ‘caramel-covered cherry dipped in brandy’ of the beer world.

MOUTH FEEL: Full bodied. Velvety smooth. Somewhat viscous. Mild carbonation. Some alcohol warmth. Dry finish. Almost like a fine port.

OVERALL: Wonderfully complex Belgian-style quad. Only negative aspect is the subtle soy sauce in the aroma. Excellent dessert beer for slow-slipping; would pair terrifically with cheese or chocolate. Definitely let this one warm up a bit. Thankfully the sediment is hardly noticeable on taste/mouth feel (ie, because from appearance it seemed this would be a “chewy” beer). Best served on rare occasion, rather than frequently.