Review: Gulden Draak

Lately I've been trying to drink as many beers that I'm not familiar with as possible, that's why I had Old Speckled Hen just the other day.

Being partly Belgian French, I love trying Belgian beers as often as possible, this review is of Gulden Draak, which translates from Dutch to English as, if you couldn't guess (judging by the label), Golden Dragon. This Triple Ale is 10.5% ABV so it's going to get you a bit buzzed if you don't be careful.

When I first saw Gulden Draak, I thought it was in a ceramic bottle. In reality, it comes in a regular glass bottle with a white plastic label over top of it, not sure why.. possibly to distinguish itself over other brands.

Appearance: Dark brown colour, the head is very carbonated for a few seconds, but settles, and the head is not going anywhere - nice light caramel colour. Very hazy red/brown hue to the beer.
Aroma: Malty, sweet yeast, reminiscent of what you would expect out of a strong Belgian ale, but not overpowering at all.
Taste: I can compare this to Trois Pistoles, it's very strong in flavour, sweet, malty, has a bit of a bitterness to it, and ends off with a taste that reminds me of wet dog.. yuck, and a bit acidic on the tongue. Either than that, it's pretty good, just what I expected from a strong triple style Belgian ale.. at 10.5% ABV!
Value: $3.50 Canadian for a 330mL bottle. Not bad at all considering the high alcohol content. I love Belgian ales so I would buy this again.

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4 comments:

Shaun M Wheeler said...

Four years ago, Gulden Draak replaced Guinness as my favourite beer. Glad to see someone else giving it a little respect.

If you haven't tried any of Brouwerij Van Steenberge's other beers, I can enthusiastically recommend Piraat.

Cody Lobreau said...

Augustijn Blond will be one of the next on my list, it's a bit pricey at $10 for a 750mL bottle. It's a tasty beer, and I've seen it at the LC millions of times, but no clue why I never tried it, glad I finally did!

Kinthelt said...

I really like Gulden Draak. I can't wait for winter when it will be a good "warm up" drink.

Cody Lobreau said...

If Muskoka's stout somehow makes a return to Manitoba, that is what will be *my* choice for the warm up drink this winter, but the MLCC seems to hate Muskoka right now, so that's doubtful