Candi Belgian Tripel

Candi: Belgian Style Tripel by Old Dominion Brewing Company

Trying a new brew tonight from a new brewery. The brew is from Old Dominion Brewing Company, which is part of Fordham and Dominion Brewing Company. Old Dominion Brewing started in 1989 and was created in Virginia. In 2007, Fordham Brewing and Old Dominion Brewing joined forces to create this joint brewing company. I have had a beer from Fordham Brewing Company, but I have yet to have one from Old Dominion Brewing Company. These two breweries can be found in Dover, Delaware. The beer I am trying tonight is Candi, which is a Belgian Style Tripel Ale. Candi has an alcohol by volume or ABV of 10% and an IBU of 20. Before talking about the appearance of the beer, I cannot help but notice the artwork of the Pin Up girl on the bottle. 

Appearance of Candi Tripel Ale

Appearance is something that you can be thrilled or not thrilled about when you see a beer. Some people are not fans of dark beers so when they see a black or a dark colored beer they tend to not want to drink the beer. Candi has a nice golden color to the appearance of this beer. The head or foam of the beer is thick and white. Head or foam of a beer is very important and can change the complexion of the beer. If you do not leave enough that can hurt the profile of the beer. If you are at a bar and you see little to no head on the beer that could mean the beer is flat or the bartender did not pour the beer correctly. Aroma of Candi is very interesting and a little bit of everything. The major aroma that I am picking up from the beer is typical for an aroma of a Tripel Ale. I smell a bubblegum aroma and a banana aroma, both are typical aromas for Tripel Ales. Where it gets interesting is picking up the subtle hint of cloves in the aroma. Makes me want to think of pumpkin pies. Another aroma that comes into play with this brew is a yeast aroma, which again is typical for a Tripel Ale.

Taste is where some can lose their desire to have the beer again, so time to see the taste appeal to Candi Belgian Tripel Ale. In the beginning, I picked a hop bitter taste which threw me for a loop because Candi is a Tripel. After the first profile, Candi came out to play flavor wise like a typical Tripel. When I think of this brew, Candi does a great job of bringing out the spiced profile in a Tripel and uses the cloves to success.   

Bottle and Beer of Candi Tripel Ale

When diving in deeper into the taste I could not help but notice some interesting finds as well. I think that you definitely notice the alcohol content when drinking this beer, just like you should when drinking Tripel Ales. There are subtle notes of pears in the flavor profiles, but you notice it more at the finish of the beer. In terms of finish I mean the lingering taste on the tongue. I also have a lingering finish note of bubblegum when drinking this ale. I think that when drinking this beer you should not be drinking it out of a pint glass like I am, because you are not going anywhere after. The ABV definitely shows its presences throughout drinking this Tripel. If you had two of these I think it would be safe to say you are not operating a vehicle. In terms of body and mouthfeel I think they did a nice job with this Tripel. Body of this beer is a medium body and the mouthfeel is smooth. If you are looking for a smooth Tripel Ale this might be one you try.

In terms of Tripel Ales, this is probably one of my favorites right now after having this for the first time tonight. Candi, hit all the notes of a Tripel Ale that I enjoy, while also maybe hitting the booze note as well. This is not your typical Tripel, but if you like Tripel Ales you might want to give Candi a chance. Old Dominion Brewing Company did a nice job with their take on a Belgian Style Tripel.  

Candi Profile