Fles 33cl thuis. IBU30. Tannine, fruitig, wat droog, rood fruittonen, bittertonen, vrij hoppig. (4-5-2022).

Flesje met Joep gedronken tijdens vakantie. Goudgeel troebel bier met flinke witte schuimkraag die snel terug trekt en uiteindelijk als een film blijft liggen. Weinig aroma; een beetje gist in de verte. Smaak en nasmaak is hoppig.

330ml swing-top bottle @ Slot Oostende, Goes. Pours unclear amber, off-white head. Aroma is herbal, though not especially rooibos, some light caramel malts. Taste is smooth with light caramelised malts, some interesting sorachi shades, some nuts, very distant rooibos tea, though not too prominent. Light body. Ok but all necessary elements seem a bit lacklustre.

Tea-flavored and Sorachi Ace-hopped tripel by Vermeersen, the former Halve Maan; swingtop bottle from the Gall & Gall in Hulst, located a few hundred yards from the brewery. Intricately and tightly 'Brugse kant'-lacing, yellowish eggshell-coloured, densely moussy, closed head over a clear, deep and warm, copper-tinged pure amber beer, misty and a bit 'rosy' with sediment. Aroma of banana milkshake, peanuts, powder sugar, glazed apple, red rooibos tea indeed but (sugared) rosehip tea as well, persimmon, fresh pineapple, curcuma, orange zest, ripe peach, biscuit, rosewater, egg yolk, cherry tomatoes, parsley which may be the Sorachi Ace - though the latter's typical dill-like features are a bit lost in the whole. Sweetish onset, banana ester, hints of freshly cut red apple, peach and pineapple, sourish undertone reinforced by spritzy, bit minerally carb; full, slick, somewhat resinous mouthfeel with a thin metallic edge to it, but feeling natural, possibly established by the added tea. Peanutty, caramelly maltiness, sweetish with bittering toasty edges, the bitterness in the end taken over by a firm dosis of rooty, leafy, spicy, eventually tonic water-like hoppiness; retronasal dried orange peel and subtle herbal notes, but I would not have identified it as Sorachi Ace if I hadn't known it was in here. The tea adds this kind of rosehip-like 'metallicness' and a soft herbal aroma which matches well with the hops. Ends bitter with lingering malt and residual sugary sweetness underneath, the bitterness highlighted by an afterglow of 'oude jenever'-like, eventually somewhat astringent and tiring alcohol. I am not a great fan of tea in general (even if rooibos is botanically speaking not even true tea) but admittedly its addition here has an embellishing effect on what is otherwise a classic sweet Belgian style 'edelbier', updated with a modern hop variety - but in a somewhat too subtle way. Sorachi Ace could do beautiful things to a beer like this if it had been applied a bit more generously and with more emphasis on aroma, but then its delicate structure is still detectable here so you won't hear me complain. Not a bad effort at all, quite delicate, aromatic and refreshing in spite of its hefty, boozy basic character.

Bottle shared with my brother while on holiday. Clear amber color, medium to full sized off-white head. Smell and taste malts, sweetish, light caramel, maybe a bit herbal / spicy indeed, quite bitter in the finish. Decent body and carbonation. Mwah.

Very resistant, thick head, with shards of lace over opaque amber-mossy beer. Spicy & yeasty nose, bit perfumey, red fruit or rosehips - no doubt the rooibos tea? Quite bitter, walnut peel, horsechestnut. Hint of blue cheese, from the Sorachi, probably. Wry, even astringent; rather well-bodied, well-carbonated feel. Somehow, I cannot really love it. Lots of good features, but they don’t seem to add up.