Category Archives: Belgium

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brasserie de Blaugies, Farmhouse Saison

Blaugies Cerises

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Brewery: Brasserie de Blaugies
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6%
Style: Belgian Saison
Other Notes: 2020 BXL BeerFest beer pack

Brewer Description: (from BXLBeerFest FB page) Saison with sweet cherry juice added.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.24
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.1

Intro: A 750ml corked and caged bottle from the 2020 BXL beer pack, with a best before date of end of 2024. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy orange amber colour with a big three finger off white head that had excellent retention and left lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Floral, cherry blossom, saison yeasty, pepper spice, citrusy, orange peel, with light cherry notes.
Taste: Cherry candy, cough medicine, lightly tart, yeasty, bready, wheat, saison like, peppery spice, citrus zest, bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: The cherry appears at the very beginning as candy like cough medicine, which I am actually fine with, but it disappears almost immediately to a yeasty, bready, saison with peppery spice, before finishing with a lasting bitterness. It was this middle and end flavour profile that was too yeasty, bitter, and a little weird. And sadly, the cherry just didn’t last very long.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Boon, Lambic - Fruit

Boon Oude Schaarbeekse Kriek

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Brewery: Brouwerij Boon
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Oude Kriek Boon with 250g/l “Schaarbeekse cherries” is a unique taste experience. These powerful cherries of Belgian origin, harvested in 2018, support the mellow and soft sourish flavour of the lambic with a very powerful, but balanced cherry expression.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.31
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, 2018 vintage, with a best before date of 3rd April 2039. Poured into a Boon stemmed glass.
Appearance: A nice hazy ruby red colour with a slightly more than two fingered pink head that had decent retention and eventually settled to a thin cap, while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Sweet and sour, cherry, lightly tart and some floral notes.
Taste: Good balance of sweet and sour cherry, tart, oak, and light funk.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: While the amount of funk is low, there is a good amount of cherry and a nice balance between sweet and sour flavours. Enjoyable, worth trying again.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Boon, Lambic - Fruit

Boon Kriek Mariage Parfait

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Brewery: Brouwerij Boon
Country: Belgium
ABV: 8%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: Oude Kriek – Kriek à l’Ancienne

Brewer Description: (from website) Kriek Mariage Parfait is an “Old Style Kriek” of exceptional excellence, brewed in Lembeek, the village that gave Lambic its name. It is unsweetened, unfiltered, unpasteurised and has no artificial flavours, preservatives or colourings added. “Old Style Kriek” or “Oude Kriek” is a protected E.U. appellation. 400 g of wild cherries per litre are fermented together with a strong Lambic of spontaneous fermentation and aged on 6,200 litre oak foeders (large wooden casks) for 6 to 8 months. Kriek Mariage Parfait is naturally clarified and referments in the bottle. After a maturation of 6 months in the bottle it is ready for tasting. The alcohol content of this Lambic beer is 8% by vol. Kriek Mariage Parfait has a high ageing potential, keep it by preference for more than two years in a cool and dark place. Pour slowly in 2 dry flute glasses without disturbing the yeast sediment in the bottle and enjoy this epitome of traditional Lambic brewing. Kriek Mariage Parfait has a clear deep reddish color lambic with a nice large pink head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma: tart cherry notes with some mild lambic funk, winy, well supported by its alcohol content. Taste: dominated by loads of fresh tart cherry notes with some mild barnyard and some vanilla notes, balanced against a backdrop of musky roasted oak. Body is full with good carbonation. Serve this beer with magret of duck, roast goose, seared foie gras, foie gras terrine, gamy pâtés, aged goat cheeses.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.04
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, 2018 vintage, with a best before date of 24th June 2039. Poured into a Boon stemmed glass.
Appearance: A cloudy cherry red colour, with a two fingered pinkish head that dissipated fairly quickly but settled to a thin cap, while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Cherry, oak, apple, and a touch vinous and funky.
Taste: Light sour, tart, cherry, dried cherry, vanilla, oak, funk, with some vinous notes.
Mouthfeel: Dry, light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Good cherry aroma and flavours with an interesting mix of oak, vanilla and funk.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Belgium, S.A. Bières de Chimay

Chimay Grande Réserve Vieillie en Barriques 2017 Rum Edition

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Brewery: S.A. Bières de Chimay
Country: Belgium
ABV: 10.5%
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale
Other Notes: 36% French oak, 42% American oak & 22% Rum

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The “Grande Réserve” barrel aged is an exceptional beer that benefits from triple fermentation and extended maturing in barrels. Unfiltered, unpasteurised, this beer has an incomparable rounded, wooden flavour.

(from website) On the eye, the beer boasts a deep brown robe with a bright glint. Its extremely fine and smooth foam also possesses a slight shade of cream. On the nose, notes of vanilla, marzipan and wood are equally predominant. On the palate, the woodiness cloaks the bread crust, roasting, rum aromas and empyreumatical notes. This edition boasts an excellent blend of the characters of Chimay Blue and Rum. A balance between roundness and power that will be appreciated at best between 6 months and 1 year after its bottling.

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

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, bottled on 10th August 2017, with a best before date of end of 2022. Poured into a Chimay goblet glass. I always thought of the Chimay Grande Réserve and thus also it’s barrel variants to be a Belgian Quad, but it appears most sites list it as a Belgian Strong Dark Ale, so that’s what I’m going to do. Not going to debate this or differentiate the styles as a simple search will show many threads.
Appearance: A slightly hazy dark amber brown colour with a half finger beige head that dissipated quickly to a replenishing ring around the glass, while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Light to moderately sweet, dark fruit, plum, prunes, oak, coconut, vanilla, with notes of rum.
Taste: Sweet malt, dark fruit, plum, prunes, grapes, fig, raisin, toasted oak, toasted bread, brown sugar, clove, vanilla, rum, light booziness.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied, with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Nice, complex and enjoyable, but not as good as the base beer in my opinion. I think it’s partly because rum is not one of my favoured liquors.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgian Quadrupel, Belgium, Brouwerij Alvinne

Alvinne Cuvée de Mortagne Sauternes

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Brewery: Brouwerij Alvinne
Country: Belgium
ABV: 12.8%
Style: Belgian Quadrupel
Other Notes: Traditional Ale. Sweet 4/5, Sour 0/5 & Bitter 2/5

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Sauternes barrel aged Quadrupel.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.78
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 330ml bottle, with a best before date of June 2023. Poured into a Chimay goblet glass.
Appearance: A hazy dark brown colour with a very thin beige head that disappeared immediately and no lacing.
Aroma: Sweet malt, slight vinous, red wine, grape, berries, apple, raisin, prunes, oak, with notes of caramel.
Taste: Sweet, candied dried fruit, prunes, raisin, grapes, oak, chocolate, caramel, and a light bitter herbal finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: It’s definitely a sipper with the booze and sweetness. Maybe a bit too sweet for me with lots of dark candied dried fruit and caramel. Still, the aroma and flavours were nicely complex with good barrel character.