Flathead Lake Brewing Company is set to release its latest seasonal tomorrow, Saturday, April 21, and it’s a tasty little number you’ll want to explore.  Even better, with this release you’ll have an opportunity to try three distinctly different Belgian style ales at both FLBC locations.

Dirty Ginger is a Belgian Golden Strong Ale with a twist.  Brewer Tim Jacoby added a bit of de-bittered black malt, fresh ginger, and lemongrass to create a beer with subtle spicy aroma and complex, well blended flavors. The ginger is present, but doesn’t overwhelm and the lemongrass comes through as a slight citrus flavor in the finish. Spicy Belgian yeast flavors along with some fruitiness are front and center and it has a surprisingly full mouthfeel.   Other ingredients are pilsner, wheat, Munich, and black malts, oats, and sugar. The hops are Goldings, providing only 13 IBUs, and it weighs in at 8.6% abv. FLBC of Missoula graciously provided Ryan and I a preview sample and it officially goes on tap tomorrow.

FLBC also has its Belgian Triple on tap, a more classic version of a Belgian strong ale (shown at the right). As we noted in this writeup, it is extremely smooth and delicious from the first sip, with traditional spicy Belgian yeast flavors, a touch of candy sweetness, no noticeable hop presence, and a slight underlying alcohol presence. The color and medium-light body disguise the powerful amount of alcohol (9.4%), so keep that in mind.

Available year-round, FLBC’s Saison is a Belgian farmhouse style ale brewed with coriander and orange peel (shown below).  At 5.4% abv, it is the lightest and most crisp of the three Belgians. Flavors of grain, grass and light malt mix with fruity spice and lead to a dry finish.

Try all three and explore the differences in these great Belgian styles.