Enjoyin the little things

My tax return finally came in!  Just in time, as I was down to my final 12 dollars.  Now I can pay rent and enjoy some of the finer things in life.  Good Beer!  I have decided to allow myself this little pleasure every time I have a good day of climbing.  Fortunately, I had a great day yesterday and allowed myself an Allagash Tripel Reserve.  I have decided to feature an amateur review of all of the interesting beers that I drink from here on.  I must stress the "amateur" aspect of these reviews, but I hope you will find them mildly interesting and informative. 
First, why did I get to enjoy this brew yesterday?  I went out to Dayton with Rami and Drolet for a redemption day and had a great time.  I was able to knock out Lord of the Dance (8a) after significant effort, and I managed to not pump off 300 (7c)!  Lord of the Dance is definitely one of the best (and hardest) climbs that I've ever done.  The sandstone is some of the finest around and it features some really unique features and movement.  300 is probably the juggiest 7c I've ever done, but it is still difficult due to the funky movement.  Drolet also made a quick ascent of Capoeira (7c+).  Well done!  He also was very close to doing 300, but ran out of energy at the end of the day due to his refusal to try conventional beta.  He is definitely going to get it next time, though!  Rami just hated his life the whole time and decided to quit rock climbing forever (don't worry, that didn't last long, he went to HP40 today).  I know he wasn't really psyched to do anything at Dayton, so a big thanks to him for driving us out there and letting us climb things that we wanted to do! 
Allagash Tripel Reserve:
Gen. Info.:  Allagash is a brewing company out of Portland, ME.  They have an amazing variety of Belgian-style beers that I am very excited to sample.  The Tripel is a style of beer that generally uses three times the amount of malt than a typical Trappist "Simple" (hence the name Tripel).  These beers are high gravity (generally between 8 and 12 percent ABV) but this is masked quite well by the light body, sweet finish, and even balance of malts and hops.  This beer cellars nicely and should be stored between 50 and 54 degrees.  It should be served in a Tulip Glass, chilled between 40 and 50 degrees.
The Experience:  I popped the cork of the 750mL bottle that contained Batch #163 of the Tripel Reserve with satisfaction.  I poured it slowly into the glass so as not to disturb the yeast on bottom.  Despite the slow pour, the head was frothy and dense (2 fingers worth).  The head was slow to dissapate and left lacing on the glass as it was consumed.  The beer's color is a cloudy, light gold.  I primarily smelled the sweetness of fruit, but there were subtle spice aromas as well.  I found the taste to be fairly complex, with mild yeasty tones and the hint of spice (clove?).  But the prominent character of the beer comes from the sweetness of passion fruit and the smoothness of honey.  Despite the sweetness, there is a smooth finish and an easy drinkability.  The 9.0% ABV is barely noticeable, so be careful with this one!  Overall, a soothing and refreshing beer after a hard day.  Price: 8.49 per 750mL bottle.  Rating:  7.5/10

Review Preview:

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Also, I can't wait to try the Allagash Curieux.  It is the same as the Tripel, but aged for 8 weeks in Jim Beam barrels!