On the European continent, beers with the highest alcohol content are called Triples. On the British Isles (and in the USA) the tradition is to call them Barley Wines. We generally consider a beer a Triple in Belgium when the alcohol content is 9 % alcohol by volume and higher. There are some “commercial” exceptions, I mean some beers are labeled Triple although they have not the required alcohol strength.

Why do we call them triples? When the brewster starts with three times the ‘normal’ amount of malt in her brew kettle, she starts with more starches, she has more sugars after boiling and will end up with more alcohol after fermentation.

The triples are considered the best and most complex beers. More historical facts about triples in the “Beer & Life” section.