BEER OF THE DAY – FRIDAY

Goddess on the mountain top
Burning like a silver flame
The summit of beauty and love
And Venus was her name

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Friday.  So named for the lovely, beautiful bitchin’ chick known all the world over as Venus, Friday is quite simply the best day of the week.  Whether you consider this the 7th day of the week, as many had in the past, or the last day of your work-week, as many of us do today, Friday is a day that’s meant for drinking.  As we’ve done all week, it’s time to come up with a beer that’s befitting Venus that comes from a style that most of us don’t stock in our stores on a daily basis.  If Bananarama can come up with a whole song dedicated to the Goddess of love, I’m sure we can come up with a tasty beverage.

I’ll apologize ahead of time for this.  I’ve been searching for a good hour to come up with a beer that fits in well with love, affection, beauty, sex, seduction, enticement, bondage (Just kidding), and desire.  I’ve come up with a few, but overall the list is boring.  Plus, the styles are nothing out of the ordinary.  With that in mind I’m changing things up a bit here because I’m slightly pissed at Venus and I’m now picking a beer based solely on the antithesis of everything that Venus stands for.  Sorry Venus, I’m picking De Dolle’s Dulle Teve for your day.  You’ll love the beer, but I understand your animosity toward me for the rest of my days.  Welcome to the club.

As many of you probably know, Dulle Teve translates to “Mad Bitch”, appropriate considering that De Dolle are known as the mad brewers.  I’m sure that Venus was just a lovely Goddesses and certainly doesn’t deserve to be mocked on this site.  She was also really hot, at least that’s what Botticelli thought when he painted her being birthed from a bivalve.  Nonetheless, I’d imagine she’d be pleased to be associated with this amazing Belgian Tripel as it packs a punch but leaves you yearning for more.  Tell me the Goddess of love and sexual desire wouldn’t want that!

Tripels intrigue me.  They’re lighter in color than both a Double and a Quad, yet pack nearly as much punch as a Quad and tend to leave an even greater alcohol burn.  De Dolle’s version clocks in at 10% ABV, which is pretty standard for these types of offerings.  Sweetness usually comes through pretty strong, but I love the bitter dryness in the finish that generally accompanies the best Tripels.  If you can’t find the Dulle Teve, there’s plenty of other great examples out there including Maredsous 10, La Trappe, and a pretty cool domestic version in Victory’s Golden Monkey (Not my favorite beer, but worth a try if you like the brewery).

I know I didn’t follow my own rules in the exercise that I made up for myself.  In the end though, we’re both thinking about Tripels now and that’s never a bad thing.  One note – Tripels can be strong and Tripels can be sweet.  If you and your significant other both imbibe in a few Tripels, you may end up in a precarious situation where you’ll be praising Venus in mid-coitus.  Not sure if that’s a warning or a challenge to some of you, but figured I’d throw it out there.  Enjoy!

Come on back tomorrow and again on Sunday as we wrap up the rest of the week with The Day of Saturn and the Day of the Sun.  Once we’re through with the week I’ll post a little recap so you can get your shopping list together for the following week.  Until tomorrow…