8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Draft at Snallygaster 2015. Thanks to solidfunk for getting the most expensive beer at the festival for all of us. Poured a cloudy, mostly deep ruby red color with a foamy pink head. Aroma was lots of tart cherry notes. Flavor was so mouth pucking it was hard to believe. Lots of tartness, wild funk notes. Almost too tart, but I’ll give it a bit of a pass, but be warned.

7.8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

On draft at Snallygaster 2015. Pours a murky red with a pink head. Aroma of tart cherry. Flavors of sour cherry and red grapes.

10

Super tart. Ace acid. Puckers my lips like a hooker. Loads of cherries. Super clean. Soft. Oh yeah.

8

Bottle at gent beer festival. Pours deep ruby, nose is cherry, grapes, funk, taste is very sour, dry, cherry, light solvent

8.5

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9

2011 draught at OEC SourFest, 8/15/15.
Deep, bright blood red cherry body has some darker violet notes and a small pink-flecked head that recedes to a ring rather quickly. Good clarity with some minimal haziness.
Sour cherries, of course, seem nicely woven in to the lambic acids and both strong lactic and malic acids are presented. After quite a bit of breathing and warming, there’s a very distinct, poignant note of almost red wine. Tough to nail down descriptively, perhaps intense cherry pit/cherry juice? It’s absolutely lovely and charming and adds just enough sweet/tart element to the already lush sourness and juiciness. Vanilla, cherry pulp, lime, band-aids, and fairly reserved funkiness all appear in some degree and no alcohol or flaws are noted. Very, very aromatic and sniffable.
Big cherry flavor is appropriately sour, well-attenuated and shows no sign of adulteration or cheap adjunct. Black pepper, malic acids and lactic acids all build on the palate, which has a tight carbonation and champagne-like mouthfeel. Some very minimal sugars help balance and fruit flavors mixed in nicely with the lambic character linger long on the finish. Quite sour, especially given the cherry addition, but right up my alley. Not as funky as the best Cantillon Krieks I’ve had, but certainly more flavorful, if somewhat less elegant than 3F Schaerbeekse Kriek. Whatever the case, this was in great condition and was absolutely delicious regardless of comparison.

7.6

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Poured from a 375 ml bottle with no date. Aroma is moderately cherry forward, but neither jammy or juice-like, rather sour fruit. Medium light barnyard notes with a bit of a hay character. Light oak and acidity with a hint of citrus. Opened with only a slight hiss. Pours a slightly murky dark red with some light brownish hues and a very thin, almost non existent, white head that recedes quickly. No lacing and faint legs. Flavor is fairly acidic like most Hanssens lambics with a slight citrus note. Moderate cherry character, but not sweet at all. Some light barnyard notes with a hint of tropical fruit. Medium light oak character. I really like that the cherry isnt jammy or candy like. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with medium carbonation. Low astringency and low alcohol warmth. Overall, I really like the cherry character of the beer but I find the acidity a bit too overpowering to really bring out the finer points of the lambic. As your palate adjusts to the acidity you get more yeast characte rand oak, but its still tough.

7.8

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

375 ml bottle into tulip glass; no bottle dating, but was recently released locally. No pop on the cork upon opening. Pours slightly hazy dark ruby red color with no head or lacing to speak of. Some light bubbles do appear on the sides of the glass eventually. Aromas of sour cherry, lemon, green apple, raisin, plum, red wine vinegar, leather, hay, straw, musty funk, brown sugar, toasted oak, light vanilla, and yeast/oak earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of sour cherry, fruity/funky/acidic yeast, oak barrel, and malt notes; with good strength. Taste of big sour cherry, lemon, green apple, raisin, plum, red wine vinegar, leather, hay, straw, musty funk, brown sugar, toasted oak, light vanilla, and yeast/oak earthiness. Large amount of acidic/tannic sourness on the finish; with lingering notes of sour cherry, lemon, green apple, raisin, plum, red wine vinegar, leather, hay, straw, musty funk, brown sugar, toasted oak, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Damn nice complexity, robustness, and balance of sour cherry, fruity/funky/acidic yeast, oak, and malt flavors; with a good malt/acidity balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Zero carbonation and medium bodied; with an acidic and lightly slick/syrupy mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish. Overall this is a very nice kriek lambic style. All around good robustness, complexity, and balance of sour cherry, fruity/funky/acidic yeast, oak, and malt flavors; and smooth to sip on with the moderately balanced acidity. Would have liked to see some carbonation to lighten up the mouthfeel a bit; but was still a very enjoyable offering.

6

Acetic