Allagash Dubbel Reserve

First Brewed: 1995
Brewery Location: Portland, Maine, United States
ABV: 7.0%

History & Availability: Allagash is a Maine-based brewery dedicated to reproducing the Belgian styles of beer, which are often overlooked in America in favor of British and German ales. Their Reserve line is sold in corked 750mL bottles and bottle-conditioned like a fine wine, inducing an auxiliary fermentation within the bottle, often only seen with the micro-est of microbreweries, which is perhaps why they say that many of their beers improve with age, unlike the vast majority of macros. I personally hadn't heard of Allagash until I picked up this beer at the specialty shop, despite the fact that I'm actually originally from Portland, since they're such a small-yield brewery. Nevertheless I was able to pick this one up as far away as Hanover, so if you're in the New England area you may be able to find Allagash beers provided you check a few stores.

Appearance: The beer itself is a medium brown color, pretty much opaque, with the largest head I have ever seen in a beer. Maybe you looked at the picture and thought "wow you don't know how to pour a beer, huh?" WRONG. This beer just leaves an enormous head no matter how careful you are pouring. The retention is hilariously overbalanced as well. There's still a good two fingers of head ten minutes after I poured this beer. Truly amazing. I have never seen such a thing.

Smell: Now that's a malty smell. Hint of chocolate, but mostly just the sweet, sweet aroma of the Reinheitsgebot. This is how a beer should smell. Not a hint of any adverse or off-scents, just pure malty goodness in an aura surrounding the stein. It's like when you're playing baseball as a kid, your team's just had a great game, and you go out with your dad for a root beer float - it's exactly that sort of idyllic "this-is-exactly-what-I-need" sense of anticipation as I'm getting ready to taste the beer. I'm honestly amazed any smell at all is penetrating through this huge head but I'm glad it does.

Taste: A chorus of angels is singing in my head as I take my first sip. (Oh, wait, that's the Dartmouth 1965 Glee Club with the classic Men of Dartmouth that I queued up just for the occasion. Even so.) I can taste about seven different malts in this beer, each competing for the forefront and trying to push its flavor through, but it's brewed in such a balanced manner that nothing is lost in the shuffle. The hops take a back seat here for the better, although you can still feel just the right amount of bitterness to keep your tongue craving the malts. This certainly isn't one of your fancy fruit-infused foppish beers. This is a beer for a man who loves the taste of malt. And boy, do I love the taste of malt.

Mouthfeel: I think it was Dead Guy that I described as "Oh My God so smooth." I may have found a new champion. With the enormous head retention I was expecting perhaps a bit excessive carbonation but I feel only the amount strictly necessary to keep the beer light and active around the mouth. In addition to that, the beer is amazingly light-bodied given its color and there's essentially no alcohol feeling at all, which is truly something given that it's a full 7% ABV.

Drinkability: Superb. It's so light that you barely notice that you're 20oz through your 24oz mug. I am so glad this beer is bottled by more than a pint and a half, because I find myself wanting more and more. If there's a limit on this taste I certainly haven't reached it.

Overall verdict: A+. I am not giving this out lightly. You have to try this beer.