Review: New Belgium Rolle Bolle

Rolle Bolle is a Belgian style Pale Ale released by New Belgium Brewery out of Fort Collins, Colorado just in time for the summer. Three things are guaranteed in summer: People love BBQs, people love to go outdoors, people love to drink a cold beer, and there will always be mosquitos.. okay.. that's four things! A lighter Belgian Pale Ale than most that I'm used to, it is brewed with monk fruit and soursop.. so expect it to be a little sweet, a little yeasty and a whole lot of summertime fun!

Appearance: Knowing Belgian Pale Ales by heart, they look eerily like their North American cousins, but the flavour, not so much. It's a light straw golden yellow, almost light enough to be mistaken for a Molson 67 (hi-oh! How's that for a guyet?) One thing I really did notice was how thick the foam was, it was foamy right from the start, a really bright light snow-like fluffy head.

Aroma: A very lageresque pale ale in my opinion. It has a mild barley & straw aroma, light grassiness, lemon citrusness, your typical Belgian yeast that gives it that zing and a weird bitter/fruity aroma that I could only honestly expect to be monk fruit, cannot describe what that smell is, a weird bitterness yet lightly fruity.

Taste: Quite a sweet pale ale, starts off with a combination of a standard lager/pale ale, with a nice amount of fruity sweetness, followed by the bitterness that I'm thinking is the monk fruit or something. Slight oatiness in there (FARM BOY OVER HERE!) A very decent summertime pale ale, one I'd drink with friends.

Overall Thoughts: In no ways one of New Belgium's better beers, this is still a thirst quenching pale ale with fruity and tart notes that are great for a hot prairie day. I'd like to think that this beer was named after my dad, but Rollie wouldn't drink something like this, it ain't a Bud Light. 5.5% ABV, 30 IBU.

www.newbelgium.com/beer/detail.aspx?id=c110c131-1db6-4eac...