Atomium Premier Grand Cru
A strong blonde ale brewed with six different grains.
3.4
158 reviews
Ertvelde, Belgium
Community reviews
From notes. First reviewed 11/21/2011. Served on tap in a chalice at Hopleaf.
My pour is a hazy copper color with a few flashes of amber. A medium sea foam rocky head rests on top, fading over the course of a few minutes while still leaving a bit of lace behind.
The aroma is dominated by the aromatic Belgian yeast, sweet bready malts, and some cherry and grape fruitiness.
The flavor starts out with sweet bready pale malt with a hint of honey. Pears, cherries, and white grapes provide a fairly strong fruit presence that blend with an aggressively spicy Belgian yeast strain. The end has a bit of ethyl alcohol and some light grassy hops. The finish has a lingering sweetness to it.
Unfortunately, the feel is a bit syrupy. The carbonation feels like it should be up to the task of washing away any sticky residue, but it doesn’t quite do that. This also creates a bit of a heavy sensation, pushing the body to the full side of medium.
This is a beer I have had a few times, and it just never really impressed me. With all of the great Belgian beers out there, it is tough to justify giving this one another look.
12 oz bottle. Pours a golden honey with a hint of opacity and a thick, frothy head. Hoppy nose. Taste is mild. Slight bitter, almost cereal-y. Dry aftertaste that lingers for just a wee bit. Decent. I could drink these all day on a blustery day.
Aroma is reminiscent of camomile and camphor. not the most appealing scents, but the smell is definitely present. the beer has a head that just wont go away. coarse bubbles and a constant release of carbonation. creamy and offwhite head that lasts the length of the entire beer. there is a definite taste of banana in this beer, a little yeasty and flavors of caramel in the body. almost clove like too. the beer is a bit thin for my liking. i wish the flavors lasted a bit longer, or that it was at least a little more dense. overall the beer is exceptionally smooth. it has some awesome qualities that would attract anybody looking for a session beer. for its intense style, its easy to drink and tastes very good. i like this beer.
The first time I drank this beer me and my girl friend looked at each other and smiled in tandom. The bottle poors a larger head than I wanted at first but I quickly understood why when I took my first gulp and was pleasantly surprised buy the carmel flavor it added to the malty, sweet, banana, six grain ale. This beer kept on giving to the last drop. Thank you Atomium for giving me my new favorite beer.
Bottle; poured a dull orange/amber color with a smallish off white head. Aroma of sugar, dough, caramel, fruit, orange and more sugar. Flavor was solid, but a bit boring. Some decent sugar notes, but a little bland by Belgian standards. Just ok.
Bottle: Orangish straw, clear, light carbonation, huge fizzy off-white head, sparce lacing. Big pale bready nose, yeasty, some faint floral notes. Yeasty on the tongue, soft breadiness, not cloying at all (thankfully), with some pale floral flavors. As it warms, I am getting some soft buttered popcorn on the nose. Body and mouthfeel are fairly moderate. Finishes with a mild sweetness, a litlte graininess, and just an overall pale breadiness. Pretty boring overall.
bottle at azwine 8/16/11
immediately after opening this stubby bottle foam was creeping out of the top until it was poured... but even then it still tried to escape. it has a pale orange appearance with a soft wispy white head which seems to want to cling to the inside of the glass.
it smells a whole lot like champagne in its yeastiness... along with notes of cooked lemon skin, dust, orange juice and pilsner malt.
the flavor is akin to a mimosa... albeit a cheaply made one... kinda like the ones on the ’all you can eat’ breakfast/champagne/caviar buffets in las vegas. wow, tangent! also, it tastes like fermented instant orange juice, straw, dusty grain and spice from the yeast. it is medium bodied and crisp yet the carbonation is foamy and rather sudsy on the tongue. 6/3/6/3/13/3.1-
Clear golden color/ frothy off white head. Big earthy light fruit aromas with some pils malt, candi sugar. Light bodied with a smooth mouthfeel. Pils malt, dry hay flavors with sweet light pit fruits, candi sugar, spicy yeast--good
Bottle from Malt & Vine. Pours hazy light gold with a frothy off-white head. Aromas of cooked light stone fruits. Med body. Flavor is a bit earthy, with arguably coriander, and some yeast/spice. Mostly dry. Finishes definitely more bitter than not, and there’s a persistent earthy/yeast display. Quite nice.
Pours a medium light orange with a foamy head on tap at the Hopleaf in Chicago. Arm a is banana and lime. Flavor adds coriander and pear, and something a little sour. Pretty good.
On the menu at Avec in Chicago. I was really excited about this beer but it just didn’t come through. Pours a nice gold with medium head into an Atomium glass. For a Belgian, I felt that the hops overpowered the typically malty, yeasty flavors of the ale. Glad I tried it, but won’t do it again.
Spicy and peppery nose. Light to moderate sweetness, lightly bitter taste, worn lots of pepper, some flowers and herbs and light lemon. Nice.
330ml bottle, purchased at Sun Devil Liquors, Mesa, AZ. The pour is golden, with nice white head, and lots of carbonation. Looks beautiful in the glass, but unfrotunately this is the high point. Really not much going on in the way of aroma or taste. Taste is smooth, refreshing and crisp, some malt. Finish characterized by a lingering bitter aftertaste. This ale tastes more like a non-descript lower abv blonde, than a bold strong ale. Disappointing at best.
Golden pour. Sweet aroma of malt, yeast and honey. Flavor is yeasty, sweet, apples. Pretty good stuff.
Good looking Golden ale, with a head that stays around for a while. Fruity nose with many matching flavors. Honey citrus like taste with
flavors of lemons, lite coriander and apples. Yeasty. Sweet and mildy
tart clean finish. A lively beer and very flavorful. But, there are many great strong Bel. ales that are equally as good and better.
Golden color with a tall lasting creamy head. Strong aromatics, full nectar, excellent carbonation. Rich and malty with a balanced acidic backbone.
11.2 oz brown bottle. Label call it ’ Atomium Premier Grand Cru".
It pours a honey gold with a bright white and big and fluffy head. The ehad sticks for a while and leave some nice lacing.
The smell here is luscious and intriguing. Tons of yeasty spice just assaults the senses. There is also a huge fruity smell, almost tutti frutti with a bit of orange and coriander. This is a 6 grain ale and it has a nice sweet breadiness under all of the yeast mayhem.
The taste is big and fruity, they were really going balls out with the fruit here. There is some subtle spiciness and a thick malt backing but it is mainly just fruit salad in flavor. Definitely a unique and interesting Belgian Pale.
This one is another solid brew from this brewery, I have always seen it and finally bought it and now love it.
Serving type: bottle
Reviewed on: 08-03-2010 23:45:23
Some interesting fruit like flavors going on. A little tarter than I expected. Good but wasn’t loving it. Serving: Bottle
Poured from 12 oz bottle while watching Stephen Strasburg pitch against the White Sox. Aroma is very interesting, somewhere between a Belgian Ale and a Hefeweizen, there’s the hint of banana and clove along with that pronounced Belgian yeast aroma. Appearance is a vibrant amber with a frothy head. Taste is rather carbonated, but I’m getting the banana and clove along with other light-colored fruits, somewhat sour aftertaste. Pretty interesting stuff!
From the bottle, pours a clear yellow-orange with a thick white bubbly head, visible carbonation. Aroma is sweetly malty, some banana, some wild yeast. Flavor is rather mild, sweet malts, some banana, citrus peel, a hint of alcohol. Very smooth beer, I’d drink it again.
Bottle at Cafe Bruges in Carlisle, PA. Malty, citrus aroma. Golden body with tall fluffy head. Flavor is filled with belgian malts, orange, wheat with a smooth sweetness, maybe honey, cinnamon aftertaste. Tasty.
Pours hazy orange, small head with nice lacing. Aromas of belgian malt, orange peel, coriander pretty strong, with a backbone of nice breadiness and citric fruitiness. Taste is somewhat sweet, a hint of acid, with a clean, spicy finish. Quite good grand cru.
Pale straw yellow pour with a thin white head. Cereal and grain aroma with slight caramel notes. Slightly sweet caramel malt. Nutty and cereal flavors. Dry hoppy finish. Corn flakes aftertaste.
Bottle. Pours a hazy bronze body with an off white head that’s mildly explosive probably shouldn’t have used a pint for this. Has that lush tart and sweet grainy grand cru yeast tones that is reminiscent of the abbey des rocs, very nice with mild sour apples and and bread y spiced cinnamon tones. Sweet with apple and then quickly drying with spices and a mild warming. More bread and spicy yeast tones, and a mild lingering sweetness that almost has a menthol like aeration. Nice ale.
Had a bottle at Vintage in Philly. Pours a hazy amber with a very large white head. Head is rocky and long lasting, nice lacing. Aroma is of citrus and yeast, taste is tart. Medium body that has a nice sweet finish. Taste was consistent throughout the warmup.
Orange coloured beer with a nice, fluffy white head. Waw, very complex, fresh aroma. Taste is a bit disappointing, very thin body. A bit acidic, yeasty, sweet, ... but not even one flavour stands out. But nevertheless quite drinkable.There’s a lot of contrast between the great aroma and the disappointing flavour. (Bottle 33cl)
bottle with expiry date 2006, hazy yellow/beige colour with white head. Smell: very fruity, wood. Taste: very yeasty, fruity, apples, old carpet smell, oaky. Nice but not very special one!
Ultra lively golden straw yellow with a sudsy large moderately dissipating white head. Aroma of toasted malt, apple, fruit and light yeast. Taste of fruit, alcohol, malt and mild spicy yeast. Palate is lively and it’s a bit sticky. Not a huge fan of Belgian blondes as they tend to be a bit ho-hum and not as complex as every other Belgian style.
nose of huge citrus and yeast with light phenols. flavor of sticky nearly overpowering yeast and plenty of fruits: orange, tangerine and nearly pineapple. heavy mouthfeel is very interesting. not overly boozy but you know its strong. a big and wonderful beer.
On tap at The HopLeaf, Chicago. Pouras an Amber orange. Aromas of yeast, spice, bananas & cloves. Sort of a Belgian hefe. Taste was yeasty, spicy, clovey. Pretty good