Tag Archives: ba

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, USA, Westbrook Brewing Co.

Westbrook Joie

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Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 7%
Style: Belgian Saison

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Mixed fermentation saison style ale aged 1 year in Sauternes barrels.

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

Intro: A 1 pint 9.4 fl. oz. bottle, bottled on 18th November 2016. Poured into a Holy Mountain tulip glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden colour with a just over two finger white head that had decent retention but left only sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Sweet Sauternes wine, ice wine, white grape, tangy lime, lemon, oak and light funk.
Taste: Much like the aroma, taste was sweet Sauternes wine, ice wine, white grape, tangy and tart lime, lemon, oak, apple skin and light funk.
Mouthfeel: Dry, light to medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: I’m surprised how well the Sauternes barrel comes through so strongly. However this naturally meant that this was on the borderline of being too sweet for me. The lime and lemon tanginess was probably just enough to balance this sweetness. But this definitely did grow on me, and I liked it more and more.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Flanders Oud Bruin, USA, Westbrook Brewing Co.

Westbrook Bourbon Barrel-Aged Oud Bruin

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Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 8%
Style: Belgian Flanders Oud Bruin
Other Notes: Barrel Room Reserve Series

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Sour brown ale aged 2 years in bourbon barrels.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.78
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 22 fl. oz. bomber, bottled on 21st October 2015. Poured into a Holy Mountain tulip glass.
Appearance: Deep dark brown in colour with a one and a half finger tanned head that had decent retention but eventually settled to a thin layer while leaving only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Tart, vinous, dark malty, caramel, toffee, oak, vanilla, blackcurrant, mixed berries and cherry.
Taste: Sour, tart, blackcurrant, cherry, mixed berries, light bourbon, toffee, oak, and vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation, although maybe slightly too acidic.
Overall: Interesting nice flavours, although maybe slightly too acidic for me. Aroma was also too toffee, oak and vanilla strong which overpowered the tart fruitiness that I prefer.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, USA, Westbrook Brewing Co., Wild Ale

Westbrook Leopold

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Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 5%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Sour Ale aged in sauternes wine casks with apricots and peaches added

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Leopold is an adventurous hawk who visited us in the brewery for a few days last winter. In his honor we brewed this sour blonde ale and aged it in sauternes wine casks for 12 months, then refermented it on peaches and apricots.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.94
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 750ml bottle, bottled on 29th April 2016. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: It was a clear golden orange colour with a half finger white head that had decent retention but left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Tart, light funk, apricot, peach and oak.
Taste: Sour, tart, acidic, apricot, peach, oak, and a splash of vinegar.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation, perhaps a touch too acidic though.
Overall: Despite the acidity, aroma and flavours were still nice.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brasserie Cantillon, Lambic - Fruit

Cantillon Saint Lamvinus Grand Cru

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Brewery: Brasserie Cantillon
Country: Belgium
ABV: 5.5% (Untappd and BeerAdvocate), Unknown (RateBeer and lambic.info) [not sure who is correct]
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: Merlot grapes

Brewer Description: (from lambic.info) Cantillon Saint Lamvinus Grand Cru is an experimental bottling done by the brewery consisting of two barrels of three year old lambic with Merlot grapes added, blended with one barrel of one year old lambic.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.15
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml corked and capped bottle at the brewery, 2019 cork. Poured into a Cantillon stemmed tasting glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy reddish purple colour with a thin pinkish head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Red grape, cherry, oak and red wine.
Taste: Red grape, red wine, oak with vinous notes.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Nice aroma and flavours with good vinous notes. However, I prefer the regular Saint Lamvinus over this Grand Cru version.

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

3 Fonteinen Speling van het Lot VIII.ii: Schaarbeekse on a Toast (Medium) – Blended & Alive

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Brewery: Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6.7%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: This Schaarbeekse On A Toast has macerated for 265 days (over 8.5 months) on a fresh 1,000 liter medium toasted French oak barrel, in a proportion of 1 kilo of Schaarbeekse cherries per liter of lambic. After the maceration, the fruit lambic was blended with young lambic for a continued fermentation in the bottle. The total fruit intensity is 39.70%, i.e. 397 grams of fruit per liter of bottled Schaarbeekse Kriek. 100% 3 Fonteinen lambic. Number of bottles – 1279

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen “Speling van het Lot” (Twist of Fate) is a series of small batch experimental brews, barrel maturations, fruit macerations and/or blends. This 8th version features the maceration of Schaarbeekse cherries on charred/toasted barrels. The noblest of sour cherries have been sourced in the gardens of and hand-picked by more than 50 families around Brussels. This Schaarbeekse On A Toast has macerated for 265 days (over 8.5 months) on a fresh 1,000 liter medium toasted French oak barrel, in a proportion of 1 kilo of Schaarbeekse cherries per liter of lambic. After the maceration, the fruit lambic was blended with young lambic for a continued fermentation in the bottle. The total fruit intensity is 39.70%, i.e. 397 grams of fruit per liter of bottled Schaarbeekse Kriek. 100% 3 Fonteinen lambic.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.36
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.3

Intro: A 750ml corked and caged bottle at 3 Fonteinen lambik-O-droom, blend n°47, season 17/18, bottled on 4th April 2018, with a best before date of 26th October 2038. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen ballon glass.
Appearance: A clear ruby red colour with a one finger pink head that dissipated fairly quickly and left only sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Tart, cherry, oak and light vanilla.
Taste: Sour, tart, cherry, oak, light funk, vanilla and almond, maybe even hints of cinnamon.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Very nice aroma with balanced flavours.