Monthly Archives: June 2021

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Lambic - non-Lambic Blends, Lervig Aktiebryggeri x Brouwerij Oud Beersel, Norway

Lervig x Oud Beersel Skogen

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Brewery: Lervig Aktiebryggeri x Brouwerij Oud Beersel
Country: Norway
ABV: 6%
Style: Lambic (non-Lambic Blends)
Other Notes: Norwegian forest ale & lambic blend. Adjunct – spruce shoots

Brewer Description: (from website) Once again we are collabing with our good friends at Oud Beersel, this time we wanted to bring some of the Norwegian nature into the beer. Norway is full of fjords and forests, Skogen meaning forest what a better way to do this than to add some fresh Spruce shoots (Granskud) to a farmhouse ale and we have blended it to Young Lambic from Gert, we then aged the whole beer on red Zinfindel barrels for 6 months.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.94
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 330ml can, with a best before date of 1st April 2024. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A clear golden colour with a one finger white head that had pretty good retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Funky, brett, tart, oak, lemon zest, candy, green apple, with light herbal and floral notes.
Taste: Tart, lightly sour, lemon zest, green apple, vinous rosé, toffee, funk, brett, herbal, and a light floral finish.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied, a little watery, with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: It felt a little watery at times for me, but otherwise, it had some interesting aroma and flavours.

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4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Quadrupel, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers

De Struise Rio Reserva St Emilion Wine & Kentucky Bourbon BA

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10.5%
Style: Belgian Quadrupel
Other Notes: 2012 vintage. Belgian Quadrupel Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Collaboration ale with brew master Ryohei Sugawara from Rio Brewing & Co Japan. Belgian dark golden blond quadrupel with an enormous potential of aromas and flavors, and added complexity due to oak barrel aging. First aging took place in St.-Emilion oak wine barrels from Tour Baladoz. Bourbon barrels from Kentucky were next due to their very special soft roast quality and noble vanilla flavors. Limited edition of 3000 cask strength bottles with medium carbonation.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.18
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml bottle, 2012 vintage, limited edition cask strength, bottled on 14th November 2016. Poured into a De Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: A brownish orange rusty colour with a big two finger beige head that had decent retention and eventually settled to a thin cap while leaving nice lacing.
Aroma: Sweet malt, dark fruit, plum, prunes, caramel, with light notes of bourbon, oak, vanilla and vinous.
Taste: Moderate sweetness, brown sugar, dark fruit, prunes, plum, caramel, toffee, bourbon, oak.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: An excellent sipper, with good complexity from the wine and bourbon barrels.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Quadrupel, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers

De Struise Vanilla Bourbon Dream

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 11%
Style: Belgian Quadrupel
Other Notes: 2013 vintage. A massive quad from Flanders aged in bourbon barrels with vanilla beans. Woodford Reserve BA

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Madagascar fresh Bourbon Vanilla Beans are superior, with flavor and aromatic qualities that make these beans the most popular and sought after vanilla variety. The flavor is rich, dark and creamy with an overwhelming sweet, buttery aroma. We added these fresh beans at a rate of 5 pieces a barrel and let age until we got to the Vanilla Bourbon Dream. Limited edition of 1000 cask strength bottles with medium carbonation.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.1
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 750ml bottle, 2013 vintage, limited edition cask strength, bottled on 21st June 2016. Poured into a De Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: Dark brown with a slight orange hue, almost dark rusty colour, with a thin half finger beige head that dissipated fairly quickly to a ring around the glass, while leaving only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Dark dried fruit, prunes, raisin, oak, bourbon, caramel, light booze.
Taste: Caramel, toffee, butterscotch, vanilla, bourbon, oak, with notes of dark fruit, raisin.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Aroma while not bad, was a little plain for me. But taste was much more interesting and enjoyable. A nice sipper.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers, Stout - Russian Imperial

De Struise Cuvée Delphine 2015 – aka Cuvée Oscar

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 13%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Other Notes: 2015 vintage. A massive stout from Flanders aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels. Black Albert aged on 4 Roses and Bulleit bourbon barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Oscar Wagner made his name in the beer world as a connoisseur and reviewer, who without compunction, always put his finger on the sore spot. This won him the respect and admiration of fellow beer geeks and brewers alike. In 2013, Oscar was diagnosed with the muscle debilitating disease ALS. “A death sentence,” he called it, but that didn’t keep him from living life to the fullest, even making a parachute jump last year. Oscar fought a valiant fight, but in the end, ALS took him at the young age of forty. Over the years, Oscar fell deeply in love with Cuvée Delphine, and the beer style it represents. As a tribute to this fine gentleman, we dedicate this special batch to him as Cuvée Oscar. Limited edition of 3000 cask strength bottles with medium carbonation.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.16
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 750ml bottle, 2015 vintage, limited edition cask strength Cuvée Oscar, bottled on 24th November 2016. Poured into a De Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: Dark brown to black in colour with pretty much no head and no lacing.
Aroma: Sweet, bourbon, caramel, oak, vanilla, boozy, with light chocolate notes.
Taste: Sweet, bourbon, oak, brown sugar, caramel, vanilla, chocolate, and licorice.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: A nice enjoyable sipper, although I prefer the original Cuvée Delphine more.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers

De Struise Pannepot Special Reserve Cask Strength Port BA

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10.1%
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale
Other Notes: 27 IBUs. Cask strength limited edition with medium carbonation

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Our barrel room is housing more barrels each year. As our team does not grow as quick as our barrel total, it is needless to say our barrel aged beers are also aging longer. This batch has 5 years of Port barrel aging. Enjoy!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.05
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 750ml bottle, 2011 vintage, cask strength limited edition, bottled on 15th November 2016. Poured into a De Struise tulip glass.
Appearance: Dark brown in colour with a very thin beige head that disappeared almost immediately, while leaving only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Dark fruit, plum, prune, raisin, dates, port, oak, strawberry, chocolate.
Taste: Light sweetness, dark fruit, plum, prune, raisin, port, mixed berries, slight booze, with notes of caramel and chocolate on the backend.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: It’s not the first time that De Struise has mentioned ‘medium carbonation’ when in actuality it is either soft or really close to no carbonation. In this case, while I would prefer more carbonation, the soft carbonation is not so bad. It’s a good sipper with lots of good port notes.