6

Appearance - 5 | Aroma - 5.5 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 5.5

Limited barrel aged version of Bux Brown, Biermaekers’ standard dubbel; one of apparently only 650 bottles, randomly found at a Carrefour supermarket in Ghent. Very violent gusher, kept overflowing for minutes on end – making me lose about ¼ of the 75 cl bottle to the sink. Very thick and foamy, coarse, large-bubbled, yellowish pale beige head over a misty chestnut brown beer with glowing burgundy edges. Aroma of blue plum, caramel, soggy brown bread, blackberries, moldy old wood, damp forest floor, red wine vinegar, old walnut shells, banana peel and strong phenolic effects (spicy but rather medicinal as well, even a whiff of the dreaded ‘band aid’ effect). Very estery onset, ‘wild’ with impressions of pear, plum, medlar and blackberry, sweet in its core but with a deep sourish edge, hinting at bacterial infection, which would explain the gushing as well; medium carbonation still, walnutty and brown-bready malt core. Ongoing tartness and esteriness make for an ‘oud bruin’-like effect but in a somewhat ‘dirty’ and unorganized way, especially when this pronounced phenolic effect sets in; some toasty malt bitterness, earthy hops and ‘old’ woody tannins do add complexity to the finish, but the yeastiness remains too ‘wild’ and dirty. A bit of a mess, to be honest (and that is even ignoring the extreme gushing), showing signs of infection even if these – with some goodwill – can be interpreted as part of a non-deliberate ‘oud bruin’ profile; I do like the idea as such, so if this would be more professionally executed next time, I’d happily buy another bottle. Barrels are an ingredient Biermaekers still has to learn to master, clearly. Benefit of the doubt for me.