La Trappe Witte

· by · in Beer, Reviews, Themed Weeks, Trappist Month. ·

La Trappe Witte Trappist BeerStyle: Witbier

ABV: 5.5%

La Trappe has the largest range of beers out of the Trappist group and they are some of the more widely available of the collection.The only Trappist beers from outside Belgium, these Dutch beers are world renowned. The Dubbel and Tripel in particular can be seen in bottle shops all across Britain and further afield, but today we’re looking at the Witte.

Each of the La Trappe labels are shaped like a wide, arched window with a point at the top. Beneath this point, at the top and in the centre of the label, is a sort of tab which holds the initial of the particular beer in a beautiful stylised font. It’s reminiscent of the initials at the beginning of an illuminated manuscript, the way the first letter is always magnificently decorated. The La Trappe beers use the first letter of the style as its logo, in a modern take on an medieval style type.

For the Witte, the tab on which the beautiful “W” sits is a royal blue. The field behind it, which makes up the window on this arched label, is a pale blue colour, marking it out from the rest of the La Trappe beers which have different coloured tabs featuring the initial letter of the style but all on a tan, beige field.

Beautiful calligraphy style script continues beneath the letter tab, with the words “La Trappe” written across the middle of the label in a medieval Gothic font. Of the Trappist beers, the La Trappe range has the most noticeable name on the bottle.

On the neck of the bottle, embossed in the glass, is the word “Trappist in the same Gothic font, beneath the Coat of Arms of the brewery. It’s a beautiful bottle.

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Visual: Avery pale golden colour, more yellow actually. A bubbly pure white head sits on top and dissipates after a minute or two, leaving a thin layer and minimal lacing.

Nose: Great aroma, with cream and citrussy notes beneath the main attraction – the spicy Trappist yeast. A little bready hint underneath those green, peppery spice smells.

Taste: Like a Czech lager with Belgian spicy yeast. Crisp malt followed by the mild spice of noble hops. Those hops compliment the spice of the yeast, giving it a peppery, gaseous flavour – like carbonated water. The subtle hop and malt notes come through just enough, though they are easily destroyed by the smallest bit of richer food. And most things are richer.

Mouthfeel: Extraordinarily refreshing. Very light and crisp. One criticism is that it is a little heavily carbonated. It slightly ruins what could be a very smooth beer, but as it is it’s fizzy and cool. Again, much like a lager.

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This beer has so much going for it, but it’s let down by a couple of things.

First of all, it looks a little like the colour has just been washed out of it. Granted, it’s a witbier, but it doesn’t look as attractive as it could. The aroma, and the flavour for that matter, are a little one-dimensional. Very basic, cereal then hops then yeast, not a lot to intertwine. Not very complex. Very subtle and, as I said, very easy to cover up.

The flavour is quick to disappear, but it is very nice in it’s subtle way. The main problem is the carbonation, which is too heavy for such a subtle flavour. It could have been a smooth, flavourful beer, but it’s all cut short by a fizzy texture and an overpowering gassy taste.

What it does it does well. It just doesn’t really do enough.

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3 responses to “La Trappe Witte”

  1. I haven’t tried this beer. I’m not even sure if it makes it to the US. So it’s hard for me to compare your notes vs. a typical Belgian white. But, higher than normal carbonation is a good trait in a Belgian White. It’s part of the “refreshing” nature and character of the style. Of course, this one could be inappropriately “fizzy.” I’ll have to see if I can find it here.

    • It was fizzier than witbiers I’ve had before, and for me it was a little over the top. It had a very gassy flavour too, which complimented the crispness of the beer, but covered up the nuances of orange and herbs. The spice element continued, albeit to a lesser extent, once the gas flavour came out, I think because the crisp dryness complimented it well. I’m 50/50 on it, pros and cons. Hope you manage to get hold of one to try yourself!

      • It sounds fairly inline with a wit beer. The higher CO2 may be more standard to Trappist than white beers. A standard American craft will be about 2.5 atmospheres while a Belgian white may be around 3. I know Chimay shoots for 5 atmospheres for their bottled beers.

        The La Trappe may be going for a higher than 3 level.

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