What is "tripel"

Tripel \Trip"el\, n. (Min.) Same as Tripoli.

n. 1 A kind of strong pale ale from the Low Countries. 2 (context mineralogy uncountable English) tripoli

Tripel is a term used in the Low Countries to describe a strong ale. The term was notably used in 1956 by the Trappist brewery at Westmalle to rename the strongest beer in their range. A new stronger beer was widely copied by the breweries of Belgium, and in 1987 another Trappist brewery, Koningshoeven in the Netherlands, also expanded their range with La Trappe Tripel. The term is applied by a range of secular brewers to a strong ale in the style of Westmalle Tripel.