Westmalle Trappist Dubbel - Brouwerij Westmalle

Not Rated.
Westmalle Trappist DubbelWestmalle Trappist Dubbel

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2,285 Ratings

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Ratings: 2,285
Reviews: 1,132
rAvg: 4.17
pDev: 10.79%
Wants: 142
Gots: 219 | FT: 2
Brewed by:
Brouwerij Westmalle visit their website

Style | ABV
Dubbel |  7.00% ABV

Availability: Year-round

Notes/Commercial Description:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (3) | Events
Beer: Ratings & Reviews
Ratings: 2,285 | Reviews: 1,132 | Display Reviews Only:
Photo of GilGarp
4.38/5  rDev +5%

Poured from a 330ml bottle dated 09/05/08 which I believe would be May 9th in most of the world.

It's a deep dark brown color with very fine head and little lacing.

Aroma is rich with malt and yeast. It's so nice on the nose that I spend quite some time smelling it before I even go to taste.

The taste is equally complex with roasted malt and chocolate with raisins in the finish. Very interesting and enjoyable.

Mouthfeel is somewhat lacking in that it seems thin and rather lightly carbonated with more burn than a 7% beer should have.

Overall it's another great Belgian Trappist beer.

Photo of ZAP
3.13/5  rDev -24.9%

I had lofty expectations of this brew and I have to say I am unimpressed.

A-Dark brown, small tan head.

S-Light aroma of figs and fruit (apples, plums and pears)....not great but not bad on the nose.

T-Apples and pears, figs, raisins and a little alcohol spiciness...not a malty as expected.

M-Feels thin and watery....light side of medium bodied...low carbonation.

D-I wouldn't complain if someone bought me one of these but I much prefer the Westmalle Trippel

Photo of BullCityB
4.33/5  rDev +3.8%

Poured into a chalice, this Dubbel is a very deep red with a thick, slightly tan head.

The aroma is less fruity than many Dubbels I've had. The balance is nice, not all fruit, definitely some spice, and a little alcohol. None of the individual elements are really in control here.

The flavor and aroma are very similar. There's a nice fruitiness up front, not as intense as in some BSDAs, but still very noticeable. There's a slight sourness, in addition to the almost plumlike fruit, followed by a nice dash of spice and alcohol that slightly drys out the finish. The middle has a touch of caramel, which is a very nice addition. The flavor on the whole is quite complex and multifaceted.

The beer is solidly of medium body, but the dry spicy finish makes it drink as though it is slightly lighter. A little more head retention would have lent it more creaminess and probably boosted this up to a higher plane.

So far, so good with Westmalle. Both their Dubbel and the Tripel I had two nights ago have been top shelf beers. These monks know their craft exceptionally well.

Photo of ColForbinBC
4.2/5  rDev +0.7%

750ml bottle poured into a chalice; bottled on date of 7/3/07

Pours a muddy, deep brown with a small off-white head that disappeared rather quickly.

Sweet toasted malt, candied sugar, and fruity esters (mainly apples.) The smell really jumps out of the glass and really grabs you.

This is where its at. A near perfect example of the style. Sweetness from the fruits on the front and back end, and in the middle comes the yeast and bitterness of the hops. The hops are bittering and a bit on the spicy/grassy side. Very subtle, but a nice element.

Very smooth. Soft and pillowy. Perfect.

Well balanced and at 7%, it's an easy go.

Photo of BDIMike
3.55/5  rDev -14.9%


Photo of beeragent
4.25/5  rDev +1.9%

Poured into a chalice from a bottle. The beer pours a slightly hazy dark ruby, forming a 1/2 inch tan head with slight lacing. The aroma is a combination of dark fruit aromas, along with some sugar sweetness and a noticeable amount of alcohol. The taste starts with light sweet maltiness leading into dark fruit flavors and ending with a slight alcohol presence. Nice smooth mouthfeel. Full flavor, medium body, and not too high alcohol lead to a very drinkable dubble. Overall, not bad at all. I can see why this gets such great reviews. I'm not sure if this is the best dubble I've had, but its definitly near the top.

Photo of CrellMoset
4.13/5  rDev -1%

Poured from a bottle into an Ommegang chalice.

Appearance: A deep, rich-looking brown body with ruby highlights, a healthy one-finger head with decent retention. Thick carbonation.

Aroma: Sweet, toasty malt, some candy sugar, and some light, fruity esters from the yeast - granny smith apple skins, green grapes. Very pungent.

Taste: Very interesting, and a definite "progression beer." It starts off very sweet on the tip of the tongue - sweet, dark malts, some light bitter chocolate, and those tart, apple skin esters. As the sip progresses and warms in your mouth, the sweetness becomes more complex and fades a little - there's a dry, powdery yeast presence here, a mild noble hop bitterness, and a few pleasant, grassy and spicy notes. Very earthy and dry in the finish, with a warming and smooth alcohol presence.

Mouthfeel: Oh so Belgian. Very soft and smooth, with a huge, exploding "pillowy" feel - it practically melts in your mouth, but sort of in reverse, if that makes any sense. Excellent.

Drinkability: Very nice. This beer isn't as sweet as you'd imagine from the look of it, but it's not too bitter or tart either - very well balanced. It's only 7% abv, and there's nothing harsh of offensive about it all - just a really good, balanced, drinkable beer.

The original dubbel. Or, rather, from the maker of the original dubbel, so you have to assume it was probably pretty close, recipe-wise, to the original dubbel. One of the best dubbels, too - nothing bad here, and some of it is plain outstanding. Recommended.

Photo of Matty1918
4.03/5  rDev -3.4%

pours a dark amber with a nice creamy, fluffy off white head. Nice retention.

Aroma is of sweet toasted malts. Caramel, slight spice and fresh ripe fruit. Very nice aroma lots of character.

Taste has lots of carbonation in it at first. There's some cloves in the front with ripe fruit in there also. You can feel the alcohol..it's slight but it's there. Flavors are complex.

Mouthfeel is creamy with the alcohol being present. It's not overpowering but there.

I'd seek this dubbel out again. Very nice. A good way to end the night.

Photo of CNeilP09
4.45/5  rDev +6.7%

excellent dub from westmalle.
recently received 100 pt rating from draft magazine.
so i picked up the dubbel and tripel to revisit.
westmalle is a fine beer. not quite sure about the pt rating systems used by wine/spirit/beer magazines. take those ratings with a grain of salt. anyway, good beer though.

fluffy cottonish head. dissolved to a thin cover of bubbles. good carbonation keeps the beer moving. awesome malt flavors prancing around. good caramel and dark chocolate notes. some hoppiness bounces in and out. and good beer to sit and savor.
this beer almost has the viscosity of cool whip. that's the best way i can describe it. it has good body and it's fluffy. it feels like you're swallowing a mouth full of icing or cool whip or something.
anyway, i could certainly stand drinking a few of these in one sitting.

again, a beer to be savoured.

Photo of PeprSprYoFace
4.25/5  rDev +1.9%







Photo of julian
4.4/5  rDev +5.5%

Well this is my first review, and my first Dubbel so I honestly have no baseline for reviewing. Nevertheless, I will try to be as unbiased as possible and stay within the style guidelines for the benefit of others.

A: It pours a nice opaque dark brown color with slight orange hues. Head is frothy and thick at first but quickly dissipates leaving spotty lacing with a tiered like effect. Carbonation is not immediately apparent probably due to the darkness of this beer.

S: I'm still developing my ability to detect aromas, but there is a definite roasty, malty quality that immediately hits me. I detect some faint nutty aromas as well as a complex melody of "dark" fruits that I can't quite pinpoint yet. I'd like to say there are spicy smells but the maltiness overpowers it.

T: From what I know about the style I think this hits the nail on the head. The malty taste dominates my palette. There is a faint fruity taste of perhaps plum and fig with a roasty and slightly chocolately undertone. Carbonation is average and honestly is perfect for this beer.

M: This is a really nice beer. It is perfectly carbonated and rolls off the tongue with ease. It's a medium bodied beer and as I write this and drink it I am loving it more. This beer just has to be tasted!

D: Some have said this doesn't lend well to drinkability, but given this was from a 9.4fl oz bottle, it only gets better after each drink. There's just over 2 glasses worth (american pints) in this bottle and this is a great beer. It goes down very smooth. Not as smooth as a stout or porter but given it's level of carbonation, and the nice balance of malty sweetness it is dead on. I would not hesitate to buy this again. I will definitely be exploring this style further.

Photo of DoubleJ
4.47/5  rDev +7.2%


That's a nice dark ruby brown with orange hues the beer appears as. It has a pleasing aroma of assorted dark fruits with a little bit of cocoa. The taste, while not in your face, is very mellow and refreshing. Tastes just like the aroma, then add in a little bit of esters and pinch of peppery yeast. Very nicely balanced with the alcohol in disguise. Yep, another quality Trappist beer.

Photo of haz77
3.6/5  rDev -13.7%

A - Pours a deep chestnut colour with a firm couple of inches of light tan head. Very little carbonation to be seen. Head slowly drops to a finger thick cap over over minute or so.

S - Much more restrained than I was expecting and a little disappointing. Dark fruits, molasses, leather, tobacco, some alcohol spice.

T - This is more like it. Mild clove flavour leads to the middle before the dark fruit appears. Sweetness of the dark fruits swells from the middle onwards. Finish is lightly dry with a slight bitter chocolate edge.

M - Medium/full body, very creamy and smooth. Sharp carbonation at first, which quickly becomes softer.

D - Incredibly easy to drink. The taste/mouthfeel make up for the muted smell.

Photo of daythree16
4.03/5  rDev -3.4%

Pours a dark burgundy with a cream colored head.

The smell is very earthy and fruity and almost smells like grape juice. The taste is similar with a lot of dark fruit notes like grapes and figs.

The mouthfeel is very smooth but carbonated almost like a champagne. I would definitely have another.

Photo of BBM
4/5  rDev -4.1%

Poured a dark, deep brown with ruby highlights and a speckled beige head. Some sediment in the head as well. Aroma is not very prevalant, but is somewhat sweet.

Dark fruits and sweet molasses bring out the flavor, along with a hint of Belgian spices and red wine. It is a dubbel, to be sure, and is sufficiently complex and fulfilling. I didn't get that special feeling like I have with some other trappists, but that doesn't make this any less of a solid, enjoyable beer.

Photo of SkittleBrau82
4.38/5  rDev +5%

Damn good Dubbel!

Photo of BretSikkink
4.13/5  rDev -1%

Blood red-orange color, some highlighting. Dark tan head, bounces up quite high in the glass and retains for days. Lacing is minimal.

Aromas of sweet caramel malt, dark fruits, and a clove-like spicing. A bit weaker than I remembered in power, but the subtleties are nice.

More sweet malt-driven action in the flavor; toffee, caramel, fig, dark spices. Fusel alcohol presence is noticed but blends nicely with the spicing and is not a hindrance.

The mouthfeel is thick and viscous, but is whisked nicely off the tongue by the wonderful carbonation. Finish is a bit hot but quite complex and lovely.

Remarkable quality..seems to ooze gentility and patience. Get after it.

Photo of orangemoustache
4.22/5  rDev +1.2%

Pours dark with some red highlights and a puffy tan head that leaves lots of thick even lacing.The smell is tangy with red wine aromas.Tastes of malts,over ripened dark fruits and a hint of watered down prune,spices(cinnamon),the yeast was not as dominant as I had expected,I was very pleased with the abundance and subtlety of flavors.The body and mouthfeel are soft and frothy.A stellar Dubbel!

Photo of jdubjacket
4.1/5  rDev -1.7%

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass. Pours a deep, ruby red with a lot of carbonation. Some lacing but not a whole lot. Smells like brown sugar and dried fruit. Tastes very sweet and malty and finishes very dry. Due to the relatively low ABV, this beer is very drinkable. A very satisfying beer that I will definitely have to pick up more in the future.

Photo of Offa
4.65/5  rDev +11.5%





Photo of toreysan
4.53/5  rDev +8.6%

thanks again chefscott79.






Photo of Shadman
3.63/5  rDev -12.9%

Found this baby today and had to get right @ it.

Dark, but when held up to some light more of a dirty orange, like if someone poured cola into a glass of orange juice. Loads of carbonation and a tan head that receeds to a ring that stays forever.

not much initially aroma-wise, but as the beer warms some sweet rich maltiness really flows up to the nostrils.

Tast was complex to say the least. Lot's of stuff going on. Maltiness certainly up front, but a hard to discribe bitterness. Spiceness from the yeast very apparent towards the middle and lots of raisiny sweetness @ the end.

Mouthfeel was full, but the carbonation doesn't do much for me until it settled down a bit.

I liked it, but I can't see having more than 2 in a sitting.

Photo of scottg
4.15/5  rDev -0.5%

Bottle poured into a goblet glass.

Poured a light brown with a reddish hue and a small creamy head with nice lacing. Strong aroma of liquid yeast and fruit, cherry?. A sour fruit and caramel flavor up front with a smooth hoppy finish. Well carbonated, cleanses the mouth, would pair great with cheese. Easy drinking beer.

Photo of JBogan
4.18/5  rDev +0.2%

Poured a dark ruby/brown with a bit of a haze to it. Sturdy off white foam head leaving some but not a lot of lacing, and turning into a thin film which remained.

Roasted malts and some nuts present in the smell, with banana in there also.

Tasted of caramel, malts and maybe a bit of plum to go along with even a hint of bubble gum. Nice and complex, but yet not too "busy".

Mouthfeel was slightly on the thicker end of the scale, and not as sprightly as similar beers I've tried. Still pretty decent and smooth however.

I enjoyed this beer and found it drinkable. It's not quite up to the same level as some other Trappist beers, but it's pretty easy to find and not as expensive as some of those either. This one is certainly worth a try.

Photo of TheManiacalOne
4.1/5  rDev -1.7%

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a medium brown color, with a short but dense off-white head that fades very slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of dark fruits, caramel, brown sugar, spices, Belgian yeast and a touch of hops.

T: The taste is malty and complex with flavors of caramel, brown sugar, dark fruit, spices and Belgian yeast. There's a mild but complimentary hops presence that provides a good balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet and slightly bready.


D: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, good kick, good representation of style, this is a beer that will hold your interest and your taste buds for a long time making it a good beer to drink for an evening.

Westmalle Trappist Dubbel from Brouwerij Westmalle
93 out of 100 based on 2,285 ratings.