Let’s try another Tripel. Yesterday I was a bit harsh for a beer from one of my favorite categories, The Tripel. So let’s try another Tripel, but this time from Corsendonk. Corsendonk Agnus – Tripel ís an Abbey beer. The Abbey brewed beer themselves in the 17th century. Today the Corsendonk beers are brewed under license elsewhere. The Agnus is brewed by Du Bocq in Purnode Belgium.

As you know life is hard. For this review I had to drink three bottles of the Corsendonk Agnus. I bought a couple of bottles a long time ago that were brewed in august 2006. I tried one of those earlier when it was around three years old, and this time I’m trying two, of the same batch, that are now six years old. Yes you can drink Tripels well past their dont-drink-or-you’ll-die-of-food-poisoning-date. Finally I also bought a new one that was brewed in february 2012. Following notes are for the aged ones:

Color: Orange. Gold with Copper

Nose: Fresh and refreshing. Peaches and lemons. Apricots, very fruity and estery. Lateron spicy and very balanced. Yeast and somewhat perfumed.

Taste: Fruity. Slightly bitter and hoppy. Velvety texture, very smooth. Very drinkable! Elegant, warming alcohol with peels from orange and red grapefruit.

The new bottle was full gold with nice cream foam. A lot of bubbles are surfacing, and no yeast visible. It’s fresher and more appetizing. Fruits are more in the range of apples, lemons, and hints of orange skin, than the estery peach and apricots in the aged bottles. Obviously the new one is far less complex and ‘lighter’ in style. Typical ‘beer’ finish, and aftertaste. Too young!

Well first of all, after the prolonged ageing period, the beer turned a lot darker, than the same batch at a younger age. Originally it was radiant gold, now it turned a lot more copper. The meaty part on the nose disappeared, but it gained a lot of fruity esters. With this it gained a lot of complexity. The three-year old one was more refreshing (more lemon), but this still is refreshing. It gained more depth, but it didn’t even change that much, tastewise. It is easily recognizable as a Corsendonk Tripel. Personally, I find six years of ageing a bit too long. I think it is at it’s best, around three years old. The new batch was, in comparison, very light and really easy to drink, with an aftertaste you only know of your standard beers. After seeing it’s potential I would recommend ageing your bottles for three years. But if you’re interested, longer can be quite fun too. Drinking this right after you bought it is a waste of your money. Put it in your cellar and be patient!

Points: 83

P.S. The cheese from Corsendonk is lovely too!