Having an occasional Tripel is a real treat for me. Feeling in the mood, I picked up a bottle of the Flying Fish Exit 4 which is labeled by them as an “Americal Trippel” (and yes, I spelled it right). At 9.7% ABV, not only can you feel this brew afterward but the taste is quite memorable as well.

I started off pouring the 12 oz bottle of the Exit 4 into my snifter glass (brand new, in fact). The pour was really marvelous and looked awesome in the sunlight. Vibrate hues of orange shined in this cloudy golden brew. There was an absolute minimal white head for no longer than ten seconds until it dissipated into an ever so thin ring around the glass.

The nose of this was really fun and the snifter definitely enhanced the volatiles. Immediately the nose was really sweet and then spicy at the end. Swedish Fish, banana and peach dominated the upfront sweet side. The backbone came together which a nice spice of clove. Really well played out in a nice overall complexion of flavors.

I wasn’t disappointed in the taste at all, though it did take a bit of getting used to (I’ll explain). Up front, I was hit with sweet malt and yeast. The mouthful was light to medium in body with a small share of carbonation. The mouthful had hints of smoked wood and dried orange peel. The finish had a bitter bite to it. It tasted like dried and crushed hops. Far more bitter than I was expecting but it added another level of complexity to the beer that I love. After getting used to the quick transition of flavors, I found this one to be more than enjoyable.

At almost 10% ABV, this isn’t something to mess around with. While I wouldn’t drink this as a session beer, it has its place. Due to the complexity of the beer (sweetness, bitter and fruity esters) this would go great with a number of cheeses. A delicious find in the Tripel-style brew and definitely worth sampling.

Overall: 8.5/10