Belgian Ale - flavor description

[TimelessCynic]

So i made a duvel clone not having a real understanding of what a belgian ale is supposed to taste like. I am pleased with it. I used a lot of sugar and 1366 wyeast. It has a flavor that reminds me of the taste of blood. Like when you bite your lip by accident or have your gums bleed. I thought this flavor was an off flavor when i first tasted it. I'm drinking a pint of palm speciale belgian ale at bar now. And it has a very similar flavor. I guess i got something right. What is the 'blood' flavor usually described as?

 

[aarong]

It's described as metallic. This can come from your kettle if you brew in an aluminum pot that is not prepared. So if you used a new pot. Sometimes it can come from bottle caps.

 

[TimelessCynic]

Yes metallic. And i do brew with aluminium but never noticed this flavor in 20 batches. I think it is how a belgian should taste based on the belgian i just drank at the bar.

 

[sweetcell]

iron will also give your beer a blood-like taste.

metallic, or bloody, isn't a traditional belgian taste. pick up a duvel at the store if you can and compare. if it still tastes metallic or blood-like to you maybe that's just how you perceive belgian esters?

 

[LLBeanJ]

I can't think of any style in which a metallic flavor would be desirable. If I brewed a Belgian, or any other style for that matter, any noticeable metallic off-flavor would be considered a flaw.

Are you sure what you're tasting is not clove, rather than metallic?

 

[TimelessCynic]

The beer is good. I'm not great at making tasting notes. It isn't a sharp metallic taste. Just a faint note and a similarity to metallic. I'm gonna buy some more belgian ales and taste.

 

[IslandLizard]

(Excess) carbonation (carbonic acid) can give the illusion of metallic tastes too. People's tasting thresholds vary widely and once you've learned to recognize certain (off-)flavors, those thresholds seemingly plummet.

This maybe a personal experience, and I'm not sure if it can be proven, but beers with higher sulphate levels don't taste metallic to me.

 

[drainbamage]

I get that metallic taste from Palm as well, but it isn't typical of Belgian ales in general. Duvel in particular has a very clean taste.