Now here's a fascinating one: a raw beer, to my knowledge only the second in Belgium (Brabant tried it to a very limited extent last year), made by Alvinne in collaboration with Nogne O - so no doubt inspired by the raw beer traditions that still survive in Norway (among other northern and eastern European countries) to this day. Not boiling the wort seems to have been much more widespread in past ages and it is safe to say that beer in the very first stages of its long existence was by definition always 'raw', but today such unboiled beers are living fossils, surviving only in the sheltering and protective context of ancient style farmhouse brewing in northern countries. This Naakte Elf was made using juniper-infused mashwater and lingonberries - ingredients very reminiscent of nordic traditions indeed. Regularly shaped, medium thick, eggshell-white, bit creamy head, slowly breaking in the middle but depositing a beautifully intricate, 'Brugse kant'-like lacing pattern on the glass; equally hazy, bright and deep amber-hued orange robe with tiny 'grains' at the bottom of the glass, possibly leftovers of the lingonberry seeds? Turns all cloudy and darker amber with sediment added. Indeed 'different' aroma, though after thousands of boiled beers, it's hard to describe what it is exactly that makes it different; generally, I get impressions of lingonberry flesh or even ripe cranberries, black radish, kefir, soggy cigarette tobacco, spiced rye bread (sigtebrod), dust, subtle smoked bacon from a distance, very old dried lemon peel, 'paprika chips', pumice, French mushroom paste spread on brown bread and indeed a vague background hint of 'moss green' juniper, but very subtle; the DMS I was dreading - a substance I am extremely sensitive to and is, at best, eliminated during boiling of the wort - remains remarkably absent. From what I read (in Garshol's work about the subject among others), DMS indeed is not necessarily an issue in raw beer for various technical reasons, though more scientific research in this area seems needed. Sour onset, with clear acidity from the lingonberries mixed with more 'sedate' natural tartness; the lingonberries provide pronounced wryness as well, as is to be expected from this fruit. Carbonation remains soft. After the initial lingonberry acidity and astringency, stretching all the way to the back but seemingly decreasing a little bit in intensity, more of the beer's natural esters (apricot- and medlar-like in this instance) and more of a soft, almost vaguely sweetish bready maltiness come to the foreground. Astringency remains, as said, however strong till deep into the finish, where the smoked meat factor sets in, albeit in a subtle, volatile way; sour fruit still dominates the finish, where earthy yeasty aspects appear as well. Hops remain near-absent; they have been added only for their conserving properties (contrary to traditional raw ales - but then those are not usually bottled and distributed). All the way at the back, a fructose sweetishness from the berries pops up, almost as in forest fruit jam, but it remains feeble and disappears again as quickly as it came. Not sure about this one: it is definitely a weird beer in many respects and the smoky aspect, though not overdone, clashes a bit with the tart and astringent fruitiness of the berries. In its base, however, this is a fascinating brew, I've actually been waiting quite a long time before touching it - but now that I finally did open it, I can gladly say that it is another testimony of Alvinne's great mastery of sour beers 'the hard way' rather than simple kettle souring and the like. In its general make-up, this beer fits in Alvinne's current range, which has opened up and diversified even more than before, and now encompasses things of astonishing beauty. The clashing flavours in this particular one are easily forgiven - and I end up feeling a bit frustrated that I seem to be unable to express in words how this being 'raw' makes it different from a 'boiled' ale, I guess I'll just have to learn more about the subject and find more raw beers to sample...

Tap at Foeders, 17th October 18. Pours a pretty pink copper colour. Aroma is berry, red currant. Taste is tart, grape skin, medicinal, herbal character, tart, fizzy finish, very complex and interesting to drink.

27 September 2018. Birthday Antwerp Pub Crawl - cheers to Anke! At Beerlovers Bar.
My first Sahti rating. Pours hazy dark orange with a thinning, frothy, off-white head; irregular lacing. Aroma of unripe orange & apricot, wheat, oak, vinegar, funk, green apple, sourdough. Taste is light fruity sweet, orange & apricot, and medium to heavy sour, both fruity & funky, unripe oranges, some juniper berries & wheat; basic bready maltiness with notes of sherry & oak. Very dry, tart, faintly grassy hoppy finish, lingering unripe fruit & wheat. Medium body, slick texture, lively carbonation. Nice experience, and a nice beer, though not entirely my style.

Sampled @ Borefts Beer Festival, Day 2. Unclear orange. Bright orange. Tart sour light fruity notes though. Slightly astringent but somehow pleasant. Fruity notes. Peach. Apricot. Decent 6-3-7-3-14.

Pours light pink reddish, small head. Smell is mostly Smoky, bit DMS ( and twigs) but not troublesome. And of course this is style typical. Misses the banana yeasty Ness, since it's been fermented with morpheus rather than the typical yeast. Berries give a fresh character to it. And create a mild fruityness. Taste is sharp, tart, smokey subtone that builds up a bit, but never turns like real Rauchbier. Berries give the freshness the beer does need. Rather high Carbo. Very excited for a Belgian brewery making styles like this!

Draught Pinkish-cream head over glowing rosy-orange beer, clouded. Fruity nose, berries, red fruit, but also phenols, smoked, tarr, frying oil, pine (OK, Wacholder). Sourish, sour (red) berries, very faintly smoked in the flavour, ever so slightly mineral, nutty. Bit wry, acidburning, low carbonation, light to medium bodied. I'm really pleasantly surprised with this, can't help loving it, even if I doubt that it could be called traditional Sahti.

Rund säuerlicher, intensiv fruchtiger Beginn. Rund, sehr erfrischend, Pfirsich. 10/11/12/12//12

0,15l from tap at BXLBeerfest. amber cloudy color, small white head. smells musty, earthy, bit citric, flowery, marzipan, light vinegar. very nice smell. full body, soft carbonation, slick mouthfeel. tastes of vinegar, marzipan, brown sugar, earthy, peppery, citric, bit nutty. finishes sour and then sweet from the brown sugar with notes of some citrus and marzipan. I quite like this one 8, 4, 7 3, 16

Sampled @ BXL Beerfest 2018. A hazy orange golden beer with a small off-white head. Aroma of tart orange fruits, brett. Taste of tart grapes, wood, orange fruits, some vinegar.