Fall not only brings cozy sweaters and cooler weather, it’s also the season for big, bold, complex beers. With its inviting golden hue, our Belgian Tripel is a perfect way to welcome the season. The Freighter Series is all about big ales, and our Tripel is a classic example, clocking in at 8.6% ABV and 30 IBU.

Combining Pilsner and toasty, caramelly malts (Admiral Maltings Admiral Pilsner, Admiral Maltings Clipper Oats, and Belgian Candi Sugar) with European hops (English Kent Goldings and Styrian Aurora) and Abbey Ale yeast creates a simple yet complex base for a truly elegant beer. But do you know the history behind this well-loved style?

What is a Belgian Tripel?

A Belgian Tripel is a pale, dry, strong, somewhat spicy Trappist Ale, and is the hoppiest of the classic Belgian beers. Light in color and effervescent with a clean, malty backbone, it offers a rich bouquet of fruity esters, peppery phenols, and balanced bitterness for a spicy-sweet, fruity drink that belies its high alcohol content. This is a beer that’s meant to be slowly savored next to a crackling fire.

“Belgian beers derive much of their flavor from the yeast, ranging from estery to phenolic, while maintaining a delicate balance with malt-sweetness and hop-bitterness,” says brewer Paul Liszewski. “It is a wonderful beer with loads of flavor and character. Between each sip, you can admire the clarity; the persistent, creamy head and wonderful lacing that coats the inside of the glass. Tripels are smooth and easy to drink, and you’ll often forget that these beers are typically in the 9% range.”

History of the Belgian Tripel

Despite its rich history, the Belgian Tripel style is less than 90 years old. As with many Belgian beers, it was developed by monks who slowly refined the recipe over decades before it was released to the drinking public. The original Tripel was created at Westmalle in 1936, with the modern recipe developed in 1954 by Brother Thomas Sas; per his explicit instructions, it has never been altered since. 

Until the Tripel came along, Belgium’s beers tended to be barley-based, darker in color with a thicker body, like the Tripel’s amber and brown siblings, the Dubbel and Quadrupel. The Tripel, by contrast, is light in both color and character: pale straw or light gold and highly carbonated. While all of these beers pack a punch, the names don’t necessarily refer to strength; instead, they refers to the brewing process, describing relative gravity. 

Since breweries in Belgium at the time were taxed not by the amount of beer produced, but by the size of their mash tuns, many brewers packed small tuns tightly with grain, then steeped and drained them repeatedly to draw successively weaker worts off the same mash. Combining the first two worts in the kettle produced the “double” style: a higher-gravity, and ultimately stronger, beer (with two times the sugar of the single). Brewers began to experiment with triple-strength beer in the early 1930s, and Westmalle developed what is now known as the standard Tripel when the monks built a higher-capacity brewery. 

To the fruity, slightly spicy, yeast-forward profile typical of Belgian beers they added a hefty dose of hops, balancing the rich, aromatic sweetness with a pronounced herbal bitterness. This style also helped popularize the method of secondary fermentation in the bottle. Many of the Tripels that followed in its stead have tended towards sweet, spicy, and easy-drinking over hoppy and herbal, but East Brother’s Tripel is a modern interpretation of the original profile.

The East Brother Belgian Tripel: A Modern Classic

“East Brother Beer Co. focuses on classic styles brewed with precision,” says Liszewski. “Rather than chasing new trends, we want you to enjoy a well-crafted example of these tried-and-true styles.”

Our Tripel offers a subtle, malty sweetness with honey and citrus notes and a big floral nose; spicy clove and black pepper meets herbaceous, perfumed hops, all balanced by yeast-forward flavors that conjure freshly baked banana bread. This sophisticated tasting experience leaves sweet, spicy, and bitter notes dancing about your palate—but don’t take our word for it. It’s on draft in the taproom and available in 16-oz cans, sixtels, and kegs.