David and his wife Megan stayed at our place on their way back to New York on the night of Ocotober 9th. We started the evening with the latest batch of home brew, an IPA that Matt and I brewed. We followed up with dinner and wine at Gran Gusto, an excellent Italian restaurant in our neighborhood. After dinner David and I broke into some of the beer that he'd brought from New Hampshire, as well as some of the beer that I had in the fridge.
1081. 6288 Stout
This is one of the beers that David brought down from New Hampshire.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Tuckerman Brewing Company
Alcohol: 5.90%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Stout, BJCP Style Guide
6288 Stout, named for the elevation of Mt. Washington, pours an opaque black color. It's topped by a brown, half-inch head that fades to a sudsy layer. The aroma is roasty with notes of chocolate and coffee, as well as hints of dates.
The flavor profile is similar to the aroma. A chocolate sweetness greets the palate, moves into a center with notes of dark fruit and a mild sharpness, and finishes with a roasty bitterness. 6288 stout is medium-bodied with moderate carbonation.
I thought that this was a decent stout. The balance between sweet malts and roasted malts was good.
1082. Kennebunkport Pumpkin Ale
We had this in the fridge. Jadyn and I picked it up at Trader Joe's.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Federal Jack's Brewpub
Alcohol: 4.70%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: Pumpkin Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a very pale orange. It's topped by a thick, off-white head. The aroma is pretty one-dimensional: pumpkin-pie spice overwhelming any hints of pumpkin. The flavor is much the same: heavy spicing, with a mild pumpkin undertone. This Pumpkin Ale is light-bodied. I thought this beer was disappointing. There was way too much spice, completely overwhelming any other characters.
1083. Boathouse Brown
David brought this one down from New Hampshire.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Sebago Brewing Company
Alcohol: 4.80%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Brown Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Boathouse Brown pours a clear brown, and is topped by a sudsy, brown head. The aroma is malty with notes of caramel, chocolate, and roasty accents.
The palate is malt heavy as well, though surprisingly well attenuated. Dark chocolate notes upfront move into dark fruit in the center, followed by a roasty bitterness in the finish.
I thought this was a very nice brown ale. It's malty, but not too sweet.
1084. De Dolle Oerbier Special Reserva 2005
I'd had this beer in my fridge for at least two years, perhaps longer. I originally picked this up at Downtown Wine & Spirits, but I don't remember when.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij De Dolle Brouwers
Year: 2005
Alcohol: 13.00%
Serving: Bottle, 330 mL
Style: Flanders Oud Bruin, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 4.3
De Dolle Oerbier Special Reserva pours a cloudy, brown color with orange tints at the edges. It's topped by a full, light-brown head that fades to a continuous film, leaving moderate lace. The aroma is dominated by two characters, acidity and a boozy, aged maltiness. The acidity is the more dominant of the two caracters, but when combined with the aged out malts give the impression of sour fruit. All overtly sweet, malty aromas have been aged out. There are notes of orange peel, alcohol, and a slight woody aroma.
This beer greets the tongue with a strong, acidic sourness, which mellows, but never disappears. All malt sweetness is attenuated and aged out, leaving the malt flavors, but none of their sweetness. This results in a mildly boozy impression, which melds well with the earthy and woody notes in the finish. This Oud Bruin feels surprisingly light on the palate. The mild carbonation, and relatively light body really accentuate the dryness of this beer.
I was very happy with this beer. I was expecting an aged, malt heavy brew, but instead got a nicely acidic and dry beer. Fantastic. I'll definitely pick up some more of these vintages if I see them.
1081. 6288 Stout
This is one of the beers that David brought down from New Hampshire.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Tuckerman Brewing Company
Alcohol: 5.90%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Stout, BJCP Style Guide
6288 Stout, named for the elevation of Mt. Washington, pours an opaque black color. It's topped by a brown, half-inch head that fades to a sudsy layer. The aroma is roasty with notes of chocolate and coffee, as well as hints of dates.
The flavor profile is similar to the aroma. A chocolate sweetness greets the palate, moves into a center with notes of dark fruit and a mild sharpness, and finishes with a roasty bitterness. 6288 stout is medium-bodied with moderate carbonation.
I thought that this was a decent stout. The balance between sweet malts and roasted malts was good.
1082. Kennebunkport Pumpkin Ale
We had this in the fridge. Jadyn and I picked it up at Trader Joe's.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Federal Jack's Brewpub
Alcohol: 4.70%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: Pumpkin Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a very pale orange. It's topped by a thick, off-white head. The aroma is pretty one-dimensional: pumpkin-pie spice overwhelming any hints of pumpkin. The flavor is much the same: heavy spicing, with a mild pumpkin undertone. This Pumpkin Ale is light-bodied. I thought this beer was disappointing. There was way too much spice, completely overwhelming any other characters.
1083. Boathouse Brown
David brought this one down from New Hampshire.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Sebago Brewing Company
Alcohol: 4.80%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Brown Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Boathouse Brown pours a clear brown, and is topped by a sudsy, brown head. The aroma is malty with notes of caramel, chocolate, and roasty accents.
The palate is malt heavy as well, though surprisingly well attenuated. Dark chocolate notes upfront move into dark fruit in the center, followed by a roasty bitterness in the finish.
I thought this was a very nice brown ale. It's malty, but not too sweet.
1084. De Dolle Oerbier Special Reserva 2005
I'd had this beer in my fridge for at least two years, perhaps longer. I originally picked this up at Downtown Wine & Spirits, but I don't remember when.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij De Dolle Brouwers
Year: 2005
Alcohol: 13.00%
Serving: Bottle, 330 mL
Style: Flanders Oud Bruin, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 4.3
De Dolle Oerbier Special Reserva pours a cloudy, brown color with orange tints at the edges. It's topped by a full, light-brown head that fades to a continuous film, leaving moderate lace. The aroma is dominated by two characters, acidity and a boozy, aged maltiness. The acidity is the more dominant of the two caracters, but when combined with the aged out malts give the impression of sour fruit. All overtly sweet, malty aromas have been aged out. There are notes of orange peel, alcohol, and a slight woody aroma.
This beer greets the tongue with a strong, acidic sourness, which mellows, but never disappears. All malt sweetness is attenuated and aged out, leaving the malt flavors, but none of their sweetness. This results in a mildly boozy impression, which melds well with the earthy and woody notes in the finish. This Oud Bruin feels surprisingly light on the palate. The mild carbonation, and relatively light body really accentuate the dryness of this beer.
I was very happy with this beer. I was expecting an aged, malt heavy brew, but instead got a nicely acidic and dry beer. Fantastic. I'll definitely pick up some more of these vintages if I see them.
Labels: American Brown Ale, American Stout, Flanders Oud Bruin, Pumpkin Ale
This is the final set of beers that I tasted at the 2009 Beer Advocate Extreme Beer Fest.
Overall I thought the fest was fun. Going with friends from lab was a different experience, more focused on drunkeness than times I've been with David and Win.
981. Cuvee de Castleton
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Captain Lawrence Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 8.00%
Style: American Wild Ale
Pours a cloudy, straw golden. The aroma is acidic and sour with a light graininess and citric hints. There's a nice sour backbone running throughout the beer with notes of citrus and grape fruitiness. The finish has a nice dry character.
982. Tröegs Mad Elf
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Tröegs Brewing Company
Alcohol: 11.00%
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a cloudy, dark amber. Topped by fizzy, soda-like carbonation. Sweet malts in the aroma: toffee and candi sugar. The taste is much like the aroma with a spicy alcohol in the finish.
983. Magic Hat Wild Ginger
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Magic Hat Brewing Company
Alcohol: 5.00%
Style: Herbed/Spiced Beer, BJCP Style Guide
Ginger was added to this beer once during primary fermentation and once after fermentation was complete. It poured a dark copper. The aroma was dominated by ginger. There were mild caramel malts before the spiciness of the ginger took over.
984. Rosso e Marrone
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Captain Lawrence Brewing Co.
Alcohol: ?
Style: Flanders Oud Bruin, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a cloudy, reddish amber. The aroma is acidic and hints at the sourness to come. There's a nice tart acidity throughout over a backbone of fruity characters.
985. Plead the 5th
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Dark Horse Brewing Company
Alcohol: 12.00%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout, BJCP Style Guide
Pours an opaque, dark black. The aroma is roast with notes of coffee. Dark roasted malts give a chocolate and fruity sweetness upfront, and a coffee bitterness in the finish.
986. Behemoth Blonde Barleywine
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Three Floyds Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 12.50%
Style: American Barleywine, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a clear copper. There are notes of citrus and fruit as well as caramel malts in the aroma. Caramel and raw sugar malt notes upfront, followed by a leafy and citric hop flavors in the finish. Overall the malts come through as only lightly sweet.
987. Samuel Adams Imperial White
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Boston Beer Company
Alcohol: 9.00%
Style: Witbier, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a hazy golden. Standard witbier aroma: coriander, orange peel, Belgian yeast. The flavor profile is much the same with a nice spiciness in the finish.
988. Scotty Karate Scottish Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Dark Horse Brewing Company
Alcohol: 9.75%
Style: Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a hazy, dark amber-brown. The aroma is malty: caramel, molasses. Malty throughout the palate. Notes of caramel, toffee, hints of chocolate, and a lightly bitter finish.
989. Dry-Hopped 2008 Double Bastard Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Stone Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 10.50%
Style: American Strong Ale
Double Bastard dry-hopped with Columbus and Amarillo hops. Pours a hazed copper. Sweet malts are evident in the aroma, as well as strong resiny hops. The flavors were similar. My notes were minimal because I was pretty drunk at that point.
Overall I thought the fest was fun. Going with friends from lab was a different experience, more focused on drunkeness than times I've been with David and Win.
981. Cuvee de Castleton
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Captain Lawrence Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 8.00%
Style: American Wild Ale
Pours a cloudy, straw golden. The aroma is acidic and sour with a light graininess and citric hints. There's a nice sour backbone running throughout the beer with notes of citrus and grape fruitiness. The finish has a nice dry character.
982. Tröegs Mad Elf
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Tröegs Brewing Company
Alcohol: 11.00%
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a cloudy, dark amber. Topped by fizzy, soda-like carbonation. Sweet malts in the aroma: toffee and candi sugar. The taste is much like the aroma with a spicy alcohol in the finish.
983. Magic Hat Wild Ginger
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Magic Hat Brewing Company
Alcohol: 5.00%
Style: Herbed/Spiced Beer, BJCP Style Guide
Ginger was added to this beer once during primary fermentation and once after fermentation was complete. It poured a dark copper. The aroma was dominated by ginger. There were mild caramel malts before the spiciness of the ginger took over.
984. Rosso e Marrone
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Captain Lawrence Brewing Co.
Alcohol: ?
Style: Flanders Oud Bruin, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a cloudy, reddish amber. The aroma is acidic and hints at the sourness to come. There's a nice tart acidity throughout over a backbone of fruity characters.
985. Plead the 5th
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Dark Horse Brewing Company
Alcohol: 12.00%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout, BJCP Style Guide
Pours an opaque, dark black. The aroma is roast with notes of coffee. Dark roasted malts give a chocolate and fruity sweetness upfront, and a coffee bitterness in the finish.
986. Behemoth Blonde Barleywine
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Three Floyds Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 12.50%
Style: American Barleywine, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a clear copper. There are notes of citrus and fruit as well as caramel malts in the aroma. Caramel and raw sugar malt notes upfront, followed by a leafy and citric hop flavors in the finish. Overall the malts come through as only lightly sweet.
987. Samuel Adams Imperial White
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Boston Beer Company
Alcohol: 9.00%
Style: Witbier, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a hazy golden. Standard witbier aroma: coriander, orange peel, Belgian yeast. The flavor profile is much the same with a nice spiciness in the finish.
988. Scotty Karate Scottish Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Dark Horse Brewing Company
Alcohol: 9.75%
Style: Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy, BJCP Style Guide
Pours a hazy, dark amber-brown. The aroma is malty: caramel, molasses. Malty throughout the palate. Notes of caramel, toffee, hints of chocolate, and a lightly bitter finish.
989. Dry-Hopped 2008 Double Bastard Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Stone Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 10.50%
Style: American Strong Ale
Double Bastard dry-hopped with Columbus and Amarillo hops. Pours a hazed copper. Sweet malts are evident in the aroma, as well as strong resiny hops. The flavors were similar. My notes were minimal because I was pretty drunk at that point.
Labels: American Barleywine, American Wild Ale, Beer Fests, Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Flanders Oud Bruin, Herbed/Spiced Beer, Russian Imperial Stout, Scotch Ale/Wee Heavy, Witbier
Day Five, Ghent: Deus, Trollekelder, Waterhuis aan de Bierkant
Published by Unknown on Tuesday, December 12, 2006 at 11:08 PM.
After De Hopduvel and dinner, if we had dinner after De Hopduvel and not sometime later in the evening, we went to Deus, which was in the Good Beer Guide. The entrance opens onto a room filled with seating. The bar is relatively secluded in the back. I got the impression that they were going for an upscale feel. We had one round before heading to the next bar.
544. Hanssens Oude Kriek
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Hanssens Artisanaal bvba
Alcohol: ?
Serving: Bottle
Style: Fruit Lambic, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.5): Pours a hazy red with a fizzy, pinkish-orange head that fades to a sparse ring.
Smell (4.0): Sweet cherries, acidic sourness and lambic funkiness. Swirling, like it does for most lambics, brings out the funk.
Taste (4.0): Intensely sour with sweet cherries that do little to cut the sourness in the center. The finish is earthy.
Mouthfeel (4.5): Light-bodied, low carbonation and intensely dry.
Drinkability (3.5): Definitely too tart to drink a lot of.
Overall (4.1)
545. Floreffe Prima Melior
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brasserie Lefèbvre SA
Alcohol: 8.00%
Serving: Bottle, 11.2 oz.
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (3.0): Pours a dark brown with ruby tints. A thin brown head fades quickly leaving no lace.
Smell (2.0): Sweet raisins and little else.
Taste (3.5): Sugary raisins upfront and through to the finish. The finish has light pepper and a bit of roasted bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Moderate carbonation, medium-bodied and lightly dry.
Drinkability (4.0): The dry finish bumped this up a notch.
Overall (3.2)
After leaving Deus we passed Ghent's red-light district on the way to Trollekelder, which means "Troll's Cellar." The front window had large trolls on display. The bar was two levels, we opted for the less crowded lower level, where we sat at a table right under the stairs down. Aside from us, there was only one other group downstairs. David spent much of the time trying to figure out what they were talking about.
The waiter seemed to be annoyed that it took us awhile to decide on beers and annoyed with us in general. On our way out, we left the money on the table, which the waiter made us go back downstairs and get when he saw us leaving.
546. La Trappe Blond
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven B.V.
Alcohol: 6.50%
Serving: Bottle
Style: Belgian Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (3.5): Pours a very lightly hazy golden-orange with a white head that thins to a persistent film.
Smell (3.5): Light Belgian yeast fruitiness with sour apple particularly noticeable. There's also some peppery notes.
Taste (4.0): Very light fruitiness upfront. The finish is a clean spiciness with a nice hoppy bitterness with some crisp graininess.
Mouthfeel (4.0): High carbonation, light-bodied, lightly dry finish.
Drinkability (4.0): Solidly drinkable, good hoppiness.
Overall (3.8)
547. Trollebier Bruin
This is a house beer that I know very little about. Without knowing the alcohol I can't really make a guess on style other than a Dubbel, a Dark Ale or a Strong Dark Ale.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: ?
Alcohol: ?
Serving: Tap
Style: ?
Appearance (4.5): Pours a cloudy, dark brown with a thick, whipped-cream, brown head that eventually fades to a thin film leaving thick lace.
Smell (4.0): Light, but I noticed dark fruit, light phenols, roasty malts and hops.
Taste (3.5): Dark fruit upfront with some cherry tartness. The finish is a mix of light roasty bitterness and hop bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Medium-bodied, low carbonation with a smooth texture.
Drinkability (4.5): Very drinkable with a nice bitterness for balance.
Overall (3.95)
548. Goudenband
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij Liefmans
Alcohol: 8.00%
Serving: Bottle
Style: Flanders Oud Bruin, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.0): Pours a clear ruby with a brown head that thins quickly.
Smell (4.0): Very malty: raisins, caramel and toffee, as well as a bit of a medicinal character.
Taste (4.0): Sweet with some cherry tartness, some toffee and some raisins.
Mouthfeel (3.5): Full-bodied and a little syrupy with low carbonation.
Drinkability (4.0): Pretty good, sweet with a little bit of sourness.
Overall (3.95)
549. Trollebier Blonde
My knowledge about this beer is pretty much the same as for the Bruin. I'm guessing it's a strong pale ale.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: ?
Alcohol: ?
Serving: Tap
Style: Belgian Strong Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.5): Pours a lightly hazy golden with a thick white head that has good retention and leaves thick lace.
Smell (3.5): Belgian yeast fruitiness and sour apples, light spice.
Taste (3.5): Some light sweet fruitiness with a little peppery spice and a good hop bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Light-bodied, low carbonation.
Drinkability (4.5): Nice drinkability thanks to the hops.
Overall (3.85)
After leaving Trollekelder we were fairly intoxicated, having been drinking for about twelve hours. We went to Waterhuis aan de Bierkant (Waterhouse on the Beerside) to finish the night out. The Waterhuis seemed to be one of the last bars open when we arrived, and as might be expected it was crowded. We ended up with a booth by a window where David promptly began trying to flip as many coasters as he could. Oddly this is written in my notes, "Lane wants to get jaw broken over a bet on coaster flipping."
We had two rounds before I was able to convince David that we'd had enough for the day.
550. Troubadour Obscura
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij De Musketiers
Alcohol: 8.50%
Serving: Bottle
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.0): Pours a lightly hazy ruby-brown with a thick brown head that thins to half an inch leaving heavy lace.
Smell (3.5): Light fruity aromas of raisins and cherries. Malty with some light caramel.
Taste (4.5): Sweet malts, a bit of caramel. Tart with a roasty bitterness. Nice.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Medium-bodied, moderate carbonation with a lightly dry finish.
Drinkability (4.0): Balanced!
Overall (4.1)
551. Gandavum Dry Hopping
This is the house beer for The Waterhuis.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: De Proefbrouwerij
Alcohol: 7.50%
Serving: Tap
Style: Belgian Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.0): Pours a lightly hazy golden with a thick whit ehead that fades to a thin film leaving heavy lace.
Smell (4.0): Peppery spice with light fruity notes and a good hop undertone.
Taste (4.5): Nice peppery notes throughout with light fruit and a substantial hop bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Moderate carbonation, light to medium-bodied.
Drinkability (4.5): Very drinkable, nicely balanced.
Overall (4.25)
552. Bière Du Boucanier Golden
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.
Alcohol: 11.00%
Serving: Bottle, 11.2 oz.
Style: Belgian Strong Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (3.5): Pours a hazy golden with a white head that fades to a film leaving a small amount of patchy lace.
Smell (3.5): Sour apple fruitiness with alcohol and peppery spice.
Taste (4.0): Very spicy, though sweet fruit is evident. The finish is grainy with a light bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Medium-bodied, high carbonation with a dry finish.
Drinkability (3.5): The alcohol is very evident, though not overpowering.
Overall (3.75)
544. Hanssens Oude Kriek
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Hanssens Artisanaal bvba
Alcohol: ?
Serving: Bottle
Style: Fruit Lambic, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.5): Pours a hazy red with a fizzy, pinkish-orange head that fades to a sparse ring.
Smell (4.0): Sweet cherries, acidic sourness and lambic funkiness. Swirling, like it does for most lambics, brings out the funk.
Taste (4.0): Intensely sour with sweet cherries that do little to cut the sourness in the center. The finish is earthy.
Mouthfeel (4.5): Light-bodied, low carbonation and intensely dry.
Drinkability (3.5): Definitely too tart to drink a lot of.
Overall (4.1)
545. Floreffe Prima Melior
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brasserie Lefèbvre SA
Alcohol: 8.00%
Serving: Bottle, 11.2 oz.
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (3.0): Pours a dark brown with ruby tints. A thin brown head fades quickly leaving no lace.
Smell (2.0): Sweet raisins and little else.
Taste (3.5): Sugary raisins upfront and through to the finish. The finish has light pepper and a bit of roasted bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Moderate carbonation, medium-bodied and lightly dry.
Drinkability (4.0): The dry finish bumped this up a notch.
Overall (3.2)
After leaving Deus we passed Ghent's red-light district on the way to Trollekelder, which means "Troll's Cellar." The front window had large trolls on display. The bar was two levels, we opted for the less crowded lower level, where we sat at a table right under the stairs down. Aside from us, there was only one other group downstairs. David spent much of the time trying to figure out what they were talking about.
The waiter seemed to be annoyed that it took us awhile to decide on beers and annoyed with us in general. On our way out, we left the money on the table, which the waiter made us go back downstairs and get when he saw us leaving.
546. La Trappe Blond
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven B.V.
Alcohol: 6.50%
Serving: Bottle
Style: Belgian Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (3.5): Pours a very lightly hazy golden-orange with a white head that thins to a persistent film.
Smell (3.5): Light Belgian yeast fruitiness with sour apple particularly noticeable. There's also some peppery notes.
Taste (4.0): Very light fruitiness upfront. The finish is a clean spiciness with a nice hoppy bitterness with some crisp graininess.
Mouthfeel (4.0): High carbonation, light-bodied, lightly dry finish.
Drinkability (4.0): Solidly drinkable, good hoppiness.
Overall (3.8)
547. Trollebier Bruin
This is a house beer that I know very little about. Without knowing the alcohol I can't really make a guess on style other than a Dubbel, a Dark Ale or a Strong Dark Ale.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: ?
Alcohol: ?
Serving: Tap
Style: ?
Appearance (4.5): Pours a cloudy, dark brown with a thick, whipped-cream, brown head that eventually fades to a thin film leaving thick lace.
Smell (4.0): Light, but I noticed dark fruit, light phenols, roasty malts and hops.
Taste (3.5): Dark fruit upfront with some cherry tartness. The finish is a mix of light roasty bitterness and hop bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Medium-bodied, low carbonation with a smooth texture.
Drinkability (4.5): Very drinkable with a nice bitterness for balance.
Overall (3.95)
548. Goudenband
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij Liefmans
Alcohol: 8.00%
Serving: Bottle
Style: Flanders Oud Bruin, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.0): Pours a clear ruby with a brown head that thins quickly.
Smell (4.0): Very malty: raisins, caramel and toffee, as well as a bit of a medicinal character.
Taste (4.0): Sweet with some cherry tartness, some toffee and some raisins.
Mouthfeel (3.5): Full-bodied and a little syrupy with low carbonation.
Drinkability (4.0): Pretty good, sweet with a little bit of sourness.
Overall (3.95)
549. Trollebier Blonde
My knowledge about this beer is pretty much the same as for the Bruin. I'm guessing it's a strong pale ale.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: ?
Alcohol: ?
Serving: Tap
Style: Belgian Strong Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.5): Pours a lightly hazy golden with a thick white head that has good retention and leaves thick lace.
Smell (3.5): Belgian yeast fruitiness and sour apples, light spice.
Taste (3.5): Some light sweet fruitiness with a little peppery spice and a good hop bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Light-bodied, low carbonation.
Drinkability (4.5): Nice drinkability thanks to the hops.
Overall (3.85)
After leaving Trollekelder we were fairly intoxicated, having been drinking for about twelve hours. We went to Waterhuis aan de Bierkant (Waterhouse on the Beerside) to finish the night out. The Waterhuis seemed to be one of the last bars open when we arrived, and as might be expected it was crowded. We ended up with a booth by a window where David promptly began trying to flip as many coasters as he could. Oddly this is written in my notes, "Lane wants to get jaw broken over a bet on coaster flipping."
We had two rounds before I was able to convince David that we'd had enough for the day.
550. Troubadour Obscura
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij De Musketiers
Alcohol: 8.50%
Serving: Bottle
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.0): Pours a lightly hazy ruby-brown with a thick brown head that thins to half an inch leaving heavy lace.
Smell (3.5): Light fruity aromas of raisins and cherries. Malty with some light caramel.
Taste (4.5): Sweet malts, a bit of caramel. Tart with a roasty bitterness. Nice.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Medium-bodied, moderate carbonation with a lightly dry finish.
Drinkability (4.0): Balanced!
Overall (4.1)
551. Gandavum Dry Hopping
This is the house beer for The Waterhuis.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: De Proefbrouwerij
Alcohol: 7.50%
Serving: Tap
Style: Belgian Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (4.0): Pours a lightly hazy golden with a thick whit ehead that fades to a thin film leaving heavy lace.
Smell (4.0): Peppery spice with light fruity notes and a good hop undertone.
Taste (4.5): Nice peppery notes throughout with light fruit and a substantial hop bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Moderate carbonation, light to medium-bodied.
Drinkability (4.5): Very drinkable, nicely balanced.
Overall (4.25)
552. Bière Du Boucanier Golden
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.
Alcohol: 11.00%
Serving: Bottle, 11.2 oz.
Style: Belgian Strong Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance (3.5): Pours a hazy golden with a white head that fades to a film leaving a small amount of patchy lace.
Smell (3.5): Sour apple fruitiness with alcohol and peppery spice.
Taste (4.0): Very spicy, though sweet fruit is evident. The finish is grainy with a light bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Medium-bodied, high carbonation with a dry finish.
Drinkability (3.5): The alcohol is very evident, though not overpowering.
Overall (3.75)
Labels: Belgian Pale Ale, Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Belgian Strong Pale Ale, Belgium 2006, Flanders Oud Bruin, Fruit Lambic, Lambic, Sour Beer, Travel
