De Dolle Brouwers of the West Flanders province of Esen - highly regarded producers of the finest Belgian brews - are concise in describing their beer,

Dulle Teve means Mad Bitch, but the US goverment does not like the name, so we said TRIPEL.

The brewer's website, lit up like a carnival with a dizzying array of scrolling label artwork, says little else of the beer, save its alcohol content and its inability to stand up to aging.

The statement had me wondering if the brewer was being cheeky by taking a stab at the government, or if the translation is simply blunt, no-frills; I mean, De Dolle means "The Mad Brewers" and the beer is called "Mad Bitch" - perhaps there's some room for playful animosity? The directions to the brewery made clear, however, that there are massive cultural barriers complimentary to our language differences.

ESEN, where to find? Very easy indeed, Esen is located on latitude 02°52'' E and on longitude 51° 02N. Arriving by plane, you fly over the brewery, if landing in Brussels (BRU). Then you buy a 1/200.000° scale map and look in the North of Belgium near Diksmuide. We advise you not to take the word Esen in the mouth, to avoid people sending you to Essen, near Antwerp. Esen is a small village (1937 inhabitants) and the train station doesn't function any more. Busses are passing three times a day. Local people may stop for hitch-hikers if you are standing in the middle of the road.

Yes, very easy to find indeed, for a CIA operative. So... buy a tiny map, head North of Belgium, stand in the middle of the road, and look for this sign:

I may need a couple of geography lessons to find this place, but I still won't be able to figure out the hitch-hiker comment (are they serious or not?). Honestly, I think the subway system I ride to work has more inhabitants than the village of Esen, but by God these people have got a leg up over the competition if they're putting out beer like this.

Speaking of Geography...

I would love to one day visit Belgium, Flanders, and the surround, but the above notes remind me that (along with my financial inability to meet the task) I'm ill prepared for a thoughtful expedition to Europe, never mind these more remote regions. While I can eventually find my way via directions, maps, and gadgetry, I'm not entirely sure where to begin.

I envy those who take an agenda on vacation - a list of activities, event reservations, and to-do's - as I tend to play my experiences by ear, at least for the most part. I can't shake the general mindset that the more I plan for events and experiences, the more I'm missing out on what could have been.

A part of me insists, though, that the 'research' performed for this site best become the grounds for a great beer pilgrimage; and while I think American beer has a lot to offer in terms of breaking tradition, I am continually fascinated by Belgian beers. The beer-grimage would be nothing without a trek to Belgium, but I don't want to appear like the uninformed naive American I really am!

De Dolle has only been around since 1980 - which would be well-seasoned as a craft brewer in America, but is actually rather young by Belgian standards. No, you need not remind me that Anheuser Busch has been active since the mid-to-late 1800's. Let me assure you, AB has never put out an ale comparable to this. In fact, few American brewers have ever produced a product as unique as Dulle Teve.

Since Belgium is the historically dominant producer of unique and outstanding beers (don't forget the Trappists), I presume I am peeking through a keyhole at the grand mosaic of Belgian brew. I don't know if the relatively few beers I have sampled are even worthy against the thousands I have never heard of.

I'm always preaching about my desire to acquire Westvleteren 12, but what unknown pleasures am I overlooking in building my wishlist? I truly believe this Dulle Teve is something special - at least compared to all of the other beers I've tried, but I may never know how it scales against other selections in the greatest beer country in the world.

Experience

My wife and I bought a pair of small Dulle Teve 10's several months ago. As per usual we knew nothing of the brewer, but were looking for something new. The evilly perched 'mad bitch' on the label probably grabbed our attention at the time. We sampled one at our first tasting event; it was one of my favorites, so I took the second from the fridge for this review. The Mad Bitch foamed aggressively when poured into a standard tulip, but the generous, fluffy head subsided almost as quickly as it was formed.

The color is inviting- a deep orangey-amber body with yellow highlights. A web of sticky lacing slowly travels the curvature of the glass wall in amoeba-like masses under the warm glow of their golden-honey sun. Specks of yeast and protein sediment swirl around the glass and freeze in almost gelatinous suspension. Brilliant, provocative. The nose is sweet like candy with a hint of fruit or citrus, but not sharp or acidic in the least. The sweet molasses malt is strong on the palette at first sip, with a tingling carbonation scouring the tip of the tongue, but is swept over by a bitterness that bathes the remainder.

The lingering bitter on the back end makes my mouth water - a sensation as if I had placed an orange or lemon peel under my tongue. Malty, full, thick, and sticky this is an incredible, sweet and fulfilling treat. The finish sticks around forever - several minutes after each sip, and is a powerful mask for the warming high-alcohol content. The flavor hides the alcohol well, but the steep 10% sneaks up pretty quickly. I have had an easy time spending a half hour with a single glass.

Final Thoughts

Time to peel back the curtain once again: I have been pressured from my brother-in-law (a fellow beer geek) to get my act together and post something new. I explained to him that it takes inspirational beer to motivate me, time and money are short, and (at least for now) I'm trying not to repeat brewers.

I approached Dulle Teve like many others, thinking, "maybe I'll write about this one." As soon as I took my first sip, the review came naturally. I have probably sampled a dozen new and different beers since I posted my last review, but the Mad Bitch was exactly the inspiration I needed.

The tasting notes are written in current tense because they are the real-time observations I wrote as I sampled the brew, an approach I hadn't taken in my previous reviews (despite recurring past/present tense inconsistencies). Why the candid tangent? There's just not much else to say about this beer- in a word: incredible.

Belgium - 10.0% ABV

De Dolle Brouwers [website]

Tripel