We featured this beer back in April 2014, and looking at those notes I described it as the new addition to the ‘Gulden Draak’ label after the classic stood alone for 25 years. The label has changed, even the Gulden Draak glass has changed, but the beer remains the same. And that’s a good thing I reckon.
It pours lighter in colour than your standard Belgian quad (the opposite of the Gulden Draak Dark Tripel), and has an aroma full of sweet malt, light dried fruits and spice.
The flavour pretty much follows suit. There is a big early sweetness of caramel malt, and fruit like banana, pear and some citrus. Maybe even a little hint of honey. But it doesn’t stay that sweet, with some bitterness and a little spiciness from the yeast helping to balance that out on the finish which is long and lasting.
Van Steenberge have made a few more beers (with a couple of the newest to come later this year), but this remains a firm favourite.
And to save you looking back at the old notes, the ‘9000’ reference in the name is quite simply the post code of Ghent. The city is home to the Van Steenberge brewery, and the ‘golden dragon’ sits proudly on top of the city belfry. History is undecided if this was a prize from a past war won, or simply an item commissioned for the city. Personally, I like the former version when looking at this from a canal-side bar.
A big Belgian Quad aged in red wine barrels, then transferred to Sauternes white wine barrels for a further year
A bold, strong dark ale edging toward a quadrupel style beer
by L’Abbaye Notre-Dame de Scourmont
The classic strong dark Trappist ale from the Chimay Trappist Monastery
An interesting Belgian Quad that has a little bit of imperial stout about it
A Boreft Festival beer from last year, this is a Belgian style quadruple with South American Tonka Beans
De Molen's 'Beautiful & Ruthless' is part quadruple part imperial stout
A delicious bourbon barrel aged quadrupel, made for De Molens Boreft Festival
by Brouwerij Emelisse/Slot-Oostende
The winter seasonal from Emelisse is an ABT/quadrupel. Each year they add a different ingredient - for 2015 they've added English liquorice
The quadrupel/ABT beer from the newest Trappist Monastery from Austria.
A beer dedicated to the original brewmaster, the Gulden Draak Quadrupel has been aged in whiskey barrels
An award winning quad that kick-started the commercial brewing careers of two twin brothers
Formerly known as 'Kasteel Winter', this quadruple stands alone from the traditional Belgian Christmas beers relying on Belgian chocolate and coffee, rather than herbs and spices
The crown in the Kasteel beer range is their Cuvee du Chateau
An oaked Belgian quadrupel from Brasserie des Legends
A rich and boozy quadrupel, featuring Alvinne's Morpheus house yeast
by Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven
The top of the tree from Dutch Trappist Monastery
A big-hitting Belgian quadrupel is the introduction to this Belgian brewing collective
by Brasserie Artisinale Millevertus
A big, rich and smooth Belgian quadrupel style, just the thing for a cool night by the fireplace
More like a traditional quadrupel than the Pannepot; brewed for the Dutch market.
One of the best Belgian beers you'll ever taste - so much flavour it's impossible to describe.
A Belgian quadruped brewed with Costa Rican coffee beans
Voted Belgium's 'Best Hobby Beer 2011', no in full-blown production
The grandfather of Trappist strong dark ales - does it get any better than this?
The showpiece quadrupel of the St Bernardus Brewery - as close to Westvleteren 12 as you can get without the real thing.
A bigBelgian Quad from one of Belgium's old family breweries - what's not to like!
The newest addition to the beer portfolio from the only active brewery still inside the city walls of Bruges.
The sister-beer to Pannepot, this quadrupel was first made for the Danish market
A dark blond quadrupel that has been aged in both St Emilion wine barrels and Kentucky Bourbon barrels
A delicious dark quadruple aged for three years in Woodford Reserve Bourbon barrels
A big Belgian quadruped aged in Woodford Reserve bourbon barrels for two years
A big mouthful of flavour with this fiery quadruple, brewed in the La Trappe Monastery by one of Belgium's leading female brewers.
by Brasserie du l'Abbeye du Val-Dieu
A big, tasty quadrupel from the Val-Dieu abbey brewery
A delicious Belgian quadruped, aged in oak barrels with the addition of some port wine
by Trappistenbrouwerij De Kievit
Th second beer from the second Dutch Trappist Monastery is a rich Belgian quad of 10%
A fruity malt backbone, a spicy hop bite and a hint of vanilla
The newest beer for the Augustijn label - a rich, smooth balance of roasted malt and sweet stone fruits
A very drinkable tripel style Grand Cru from Van Steenberge
A classic Belgian dubbel brewed by Brouwerij Van Steenberge
A special Tripel brewed by Van Steenberge for an annual gourmet degustation
The unique dark tripel from Brouwerij Van Steenberge, named after the 'Golden Dragon' of Gent.
The Brewmaster is Gulden Draak's classic dark tripel aged in various whiskey barrels
A beer dedicated to the original brewmaster, the Gulden Draak Quadrupel has been aged in whiskey barrels
Really this is more a cross between a Belgian Quadrupel and an Imperial Stout
The classic Gulden Draak has had smoked malt added to it
A tasty beer somewhere between a Belgian Dubbel style and a Belgian Strong Dark Ale
A classic strong pale ale from one of Belgium's old family breweries.
A variation on the acclaimed Piraat strong blond ale, this time with four different hops added at three separate times during the beer-making process
