Category Archives: Style

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Magpie Brewing Company, Sour Ale, South Korea

Magpie Juicybox – Blueberry & Yuja

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Brewery: Magpie Brewing Company
Country: South Korea
ABV: 4.5%
Style: Sour Ale
Other Notes: 5 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from can) Sour Ale w/ blueberry & yuja

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.99
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 500ml can, canned on 1st July 2019. Poured into a Holy Mountain tulip glass.
Appearance: A hazy candy red colour mixed with a bit of purple and an almost two finger pinkish head that dissipated quickly while leaving only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Juicy, blueberry, yoghurt, with light citrus notes in the background.
Taste: Lightly sour, juicy, blueberry, mixed berries, and citrusy yuzu (which I just found out is the same as Yuja).
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. The thickish sediment towards the end was not a good feeling though.
Overall: Very juicy and tasty. The berry and citrus flavours complemented each other and made for easy drinking. It may not be a complex beer, but minus the bottom of the bottle, I do enjoy drinking it.

5 - Excellent (must buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Lambic - Fruit

3 Fonteinen Intens Rood

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– aka 3 Fonteinen Intense Red Oude Kriek (ratebeer & beeradvocate)

Brewery: Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
Country: Belgium
ABV: 5.9%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)

Brewer Description: (from bottle in Dutch) 3 Fonteinen “Intens Rood” wordt bekomen door het macereren van hand-geplukte volle krieken op jonge traditionele lambik gedurende minstens zes maanden, in een verhouding van één kilo per liter. Daarna wordt de kriekenlambik geassembleerd met jonge lambik tot een intensiteit van min, 450 gram fruit per liter wordt bekomen. Na minstens zes maanden flesrijping onstaat een intense Oude Kriek die doet denken aan een rond pinot noir. Natuurlijk fruit, zonder toevoeging van sappen, siropen, of suikers. Ongefilterd en ongepasteuriseerd.

Deze specifieke botteling van Intens Rood heeft niet minder dan 7 maanden fruitmaceratie gekregen en heeft een finale fruitintensiteit van 480 gram krieken per liter.

(translated to English) 3 Fonteinen “Intense Red” is obtained by macerating full hand-picked cherries on young traditional lambic for at least six months, in a ratio of one kilo per liter. The cherry lambic is then assembled with young lambic until an intensity of minimum 450 grams of fruit per liter is obtained. After at least six months of bottle aging, an intense Oude Kriek is created that is reminiscent of a round pinot noir. Natural fruit, without the addition of juices, syrups, or sugars. Unfiltered and unpasteurized.

This specific bottling of Intense Red has received fruit maceration for no less than 7 months and has a final fruit intensity of 480 grams of cherries per liter.

My rating: 5
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.5
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 750ml corked and caged bottle, blend n°35, season 16/17, bottled on 21st June 2017, with a best before date of 26th October 2037. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A very nice clear ruby red colour with a one finger pinkish head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Light tartness and light funk, cherry and oak.
Taste: As you’d expect from the aroma, sour, tart, cherry, cherry pie, oak and a splash of lemon.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Very nice intense cherry flavours. It was not as sweet as I remember it to be, but actually, the good amount of tart and sourness was a good balance to the cherry pie and oak notes.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, BrewDog, Scotland, Stout - Imperial

BrewDog Dog F

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Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
ABV: 17.5%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: 10th Anniversary Imperial Stout

Brewer Description: (from bottle & box) Dog F is very special. Before you is our liquid anniversary marking 10 years of brewing. A Decade of Dog. To celebrate, we have done what we do best – brew an incredible beer and barrel-age it to the edge of existence. Dog F is a 17.5% imperial stout brewed with copious dark malts, pure cacao and coffee, balanced on a knife-edge of Habanero chili. Our hottest Dog to date also has layers of resonance from months spent in Cognac barrels. This beer will age with grace or be the centre of the party right now – it’s your call. Thank you for being part of our Decade of Dog. But you know we have a long way to go yet…

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.39
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.3

Intro: A 330ml boxed bottle, batch 170226, with a best before date of 1st April 2027. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Dark brown in colour with a thin beige head that dissipated quickly while leaving some sparse lacing.
Aroma: Light roast, cacao, dark chocolate, caramel, coffee, toffee, light boozy (maybe cognac), and a touch of herbal chili.
Taste: Chili spice, cognac booze, caramel, toffee, light roast, with touches of chocolate and hints of coffee.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, chili bite, full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Smooth, chili spice forward. Cognac booze is there, but less than I expected considering this is 17.5% abv. The spiciness balanced the caramel and toffee sweetness. Although there was less roast and chocolate for an Imperial Stout, it wasn’t as boozy as I thought it would be, and the spiciness was prominent, but very good.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Lambic - Fruit

3 Fonteinen Oude Kriekenlambik

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Brewery: Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
Country: Belgium
ABV: 5.4%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: Oude Kriek but bottle fermentation did not occur

Brewer Description: (from bottle) (in French) 3 Fonteinen Oude Kriek est le résultat de la macération de griottes cueillis à la main dans du lambic traditionnel, pendant au moins quatre mois. La fermentation en bouteille n’a pas eu lieu… Du fruit naturel, sans jus, sirops ou sucres ajoutés. Non-filtré et non-pasteurisé.

(in Dutch) Deze kriekenlambik heft niet minder dan zes volle maanden fruitmaceratie gehad. Serveertips: in een Bourgogne wijnglas en op keldertemperatuur. Laat gerust rondwalsen in het glas om de aroma’s volop vrij te laten. Op uw gezondheid!

(translated to English) 3 Fonteinen Oude Kriek is the result of maceration of hand-picked sour cherries in traditional lambic for at least four months. The bottled fermentation did not take place … Natural fruit, without juice, syrups or added sugars. Unfiltered and unpasteurized.

This cherry lambic has had no less than six full months of fruit maceration. Serving tips: in a Burgundy wine glass and at cellar temperature. Feel free to roll around in the glass to fully release the aromas. Cheers!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.34
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, blend n°32, season 16/17, bottled on 24th May 2017, with a best before date of 26th October 2037. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A deep ruby reddish purple colour with a thin pinkish head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Tart, cherry, jammy, vanilla, cherry pie, with hints of marzipan.
Taste: Light sourness, tart, cherry, oak, with a touch of lemon juice.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Nice and enjoyable cherry notes, especially in the aroma which were dessert like and jammy. I think I’m leaning towards preferring more carbonation though.

5 - Excellent (must buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Lambic - Fruit

3 Fonteinen Oude Kriek Honing

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Brewery: Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
Country: Belgium
ABV: 7.1%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: Oude kriek with honey

Brewer Description: (from bottle) (in French) 3 Fonteinen Oude Kriek est le résultat de la macération de griottes cueillis à la main dans du lambic traditionnel, pendant au moins quatre mois et avec fermentation en bouteille. Du fruit naturel, sans jus, sirops ou sucres ajoutés. Non-filtré et non-pasteurisé.

(in Dutch) Deze specifieke Oude Kriek heeft bijna 6 maanden gemacereerd op volle krieken. De finale fruitintensiteit is 370 gram fruit per liter afgewerkte fruitlambik. Tijdens de assemblage werd lokale honing toegevoegd.

(translated to English) 3 Fonteinen Oude Kriek is the result of maceration of hand-picked sour cherries in traditional lambic for at least four months and with fermentation in the bottle. Natural fruit, without juice, syrups or added sugars. Unfiltered and unpasteurized.

This specific Oude Kriek has macerated almost 6 months on full cherries. The final fruit intensity is 370 grams of fruit per liter of finished fruit lambic. Local honey was added during blending.

My rating: 5
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.5
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, blend n°58, season 17/18, bottled on 17th May 2018, with a best before date of 26th October 2038. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A very nice clear ruby red colour with a half finger slightly pinkish head that dissipated that dissipated quickly and left only sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Lightly tart, cherry, oak and hints of marzipan.
Taste: Lightly sour, tart, cherry, oak, cherry pie, soft honey sweetness, with hints of lemon and a touch of cinnamon.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: I preferred this version with honey over the original. Not sure I really got any honey in the aroma and taste, but there was a definite sweetness that wasn’t in the original, that brought out the fruitiness and cherries and made it very enjoyable.