Dubbel

About This Beer

A dual-purpose batch: a 44 litre double on the BrewZilla 65L, enough volume for a competition entry plus a second keg set aside for blending with a wild sour that has been conditioning since early 2026. Autumn wanted something with weight and darkness rather than another pale ale.

Six weeks of healthy Abbaye slurry still in the fridge from the February Belgian Blonde, so the yeast chose itself.

The recipe leans traditional. Weyermann Pilsner as a clean neutral base, Munich I and Vienna for depth and body, Shepherds Delight and Toffee Malt for dark fruit and caramel, a touch of Light Chocolate for colour. Hopping deliberately minimal: Pacific Jade for clean bittering, Czech Saaz for earthy spice at 60 and 10 minutes, and the yeast and malt left to do the work.

The candi sugar

Two packets of D240 X-Dark at 10 minutes, carrying a significant part of the fermentable gravity alongside the base malt. True Belgian candi ferments fully clean, so all the colour and dried-fruit character comes from Maillard products formed during production rather than residual sweetness. It pairs naturally with Abbaye’s dried-fruit esters. The wort takes on a deep amber as it goes in.

Shepherds Delight at 3.3% of the grist adds cola, toasted and fruity dark notes without the bitterness risk that comes at higher rates. Toffee Malt at 2.9% brings honey and toffee sweetness and a mouthfeel benefit. Light Chocolate is under 1% and there purely for colour.

Brew day

Brewed 4 April 2026, a full double batch targeting 44 litres into the fermenter. Seventy-five minute boil, ran to plan.

Fermentation

Abbaye slurry pitched into the All Rounder 60L at 18.5°C. Healthy 2 cm krausen after 24 hours with the temperature risen to 19°C on its own.

Managed free rise from there: fridge target nudged upward to track the actual temperature as it climbed, cooling hysteresis tightened to prevent overshoot above 23°C. Abbaye expresses dark fruit esters most strongly between 20 and 23°C during active fermentation, and with OG a little under target maximising attenuation was the other goal. Higher temperatures inside that band serve both.

Once terminal was confirmed, held at 20 to 22°C for a two-day diacetyl rest, then cold crashed.

The result

Packaged 26 April. Two corny kegs split deliberately, one for the Euroclash entry and one set aside for blending with the wild sour. Three 1.25 L PET bottles round out the batch.

On tasting day the aroma leads with chocolate and ripe banana, the classic Abbaye signature, then toffee and a hint of dried fruit underneath. Flavour clean and malt-forward with the chocolate and toffee coming through clearly. Banana ester prominent but well integrated. Finish very smooth, no harsh edges, no faults.

Entered as Dubbel de la Vallée at Euroclash 2026 on 16 May, category 24B.

What’s next

A traditional Dubbel sits more comfortably a few points higher than this one landed. Next time either another 300 to 500 g of base malt or a third packet of candi sugar, to develop more body and dark fruit. A slightly higher mash around 66 to 66.5°C might add residual body without costing attenuation; Abbaye attenuates aggressively enough that there is probably headroom.