Review: Duvel (Belgian Pale Ale)

Review: Duvel by Cody La Bière
I love Belgian ales, strong ones, light ones, citrusy ones, hoppy ones. I can appreciate a Belgian Triple or Pale Ale.. damn... I love Belgian beer.

Duvel is a beer I've had several times back in my younger days, but apparently I haven't drank it in quite some time. Not only that, I haven't reviewed it before. Hey, it's time to review Duvel!

When one thinks of Belgian beer, Duvel is always one of the first things to come up on a beer aficionado's list, along with Chimay and a few others.

Appearance: One thing I love about Belgian beers is their unique styled Stubby bottles, always a great appearance. The beer pours a pale straw blonde, quite hazy, golden, and with just off white foam.. boy is there a lot of foam! This beer looks to be a Belgian Pale Ale, like something like Unibroue's La Fin du Monde.

Aroma: A bit of a sweet champagne aroma off the bat, as well as a bit of lemon citrus notes. Slightly fruity apple/pear scent.

Taste: If you're familiar with Belgian Pale Ales, then you will be familiar with the taste of the Duvel. It's a bit sweet, slightly sour. Slightly champagne taste to it, a bit of pear, corriander (not much), and a Belgian yeasty zing. Not that strong for a Belgian Pale Ale.

Overall Thoughts: Overall, it's a good beer. If you like a nice Belgian ale, you will enjoy this. However, this is pretty light in flavour compared to my favourite Belgian-style Pale Ale, Unibroue's La Fin du Monde as Duvel is much lighter in flavour than La Fin. That being said, if you're looking to get a friend into Belgian ales, this could be a great stepping stone - but I would not recommend this to friends who are accustomed to lagers right away. The bottle is 330mL with an ABV of 8.5% and costs $3.37 in Manitoba before taxes.

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