Local beer. Are you a fan of some of your local or state made beer? I am, and I think it’s important to try some of your local products. I’m lucky enough to get a lot of Three Floyds selections, but I’m also into trying other brews. This particular beer hails from Oaken Barrel, which is in Greenwood, IN (at least I believe that it where this beer is bottled). Like I said, some of the local stuff is very good…and other stuff is not so good. I’d like to start this review by stating that this beer was not exactly an epiphany to me.
The Pour: Some beers hold promise by how they look in the glass. I thought Epiphany was a lovely blond color. It was strange that this ale did not have much head retention, simply because Belgian beers are known for their fluffy, white heads. That was a bit of a detraction from the beer. The body was slowly active, also something uncommon for a Belgian style beer.
The Nose: Sweet fruity aromas dominated the nose of Epiphany. It seemed like a nice, fruity ale was in my future. Some noticeable powdery yeast strain was present, along with a ciderish quality. There was not much malt aroma to the beer, which is arguably typical of Belgians.
The Taste: Thin. Belgian beers tend to be fairly well attenuated (thinned down) because of the candy sugar used to replace malt. In most Belgians, the lightness in body is hardly noticeable because of the flavor and carbonation. However, this beer was simply too thin. Some of the powdery yeast did come through in the beer, which was nice. There was also a sweet cider-like juiciness to Epiphany, a nice touch, and a hint of grains on the finish. I have to say that the finish absolutely ruined the beer for me. I personally thought that there was a fairly prominent cooked vegetable quality on the end, and that was all she wrote in terms of redeeming the beer.
Overall, I would try this beer again. Who knows, I could have gotten hold of a bad bottle. At this point, though, there is very little to commend this beer to our readers. As I always say, only you can taste the beer and see what you think about it. If you want a better version, try Dark Horse Sapient Trip.
Mike’s Rating:
Overall Satisfaction: 
Among other American Versions of Triples:
Among Belgian Triples: 
