Folle des Bois

Fruit beer by this to me hitherto unknown Normandic brewery, active since 2012; steinie bottle shared by Hinke, cheers! Plastery lacing, off-pinkish-white, foamy, thick head on an initially clear purple-tinged ruddy-bronze beer, turning hazy with sediment. Aroma of raspberry coulis and indeed actual ripe raspberries (in a sweet way but convincingly ‘real’ even though purée was used), cassis (the blackcurrant purée), red berry cookies, crumble, rosehip, raisins, caramel, bread crust, red apple. Prickly carbonation in the onset but not too harshly so, very fruity with more sweetness than sourness but still with a clear lively-sour fruity edge, ripe red raspberry and cassis both very recognisable; bready and lightly biscuity to caramelly malt core through which the fruitiness persists, like a crumble of dried berries. Some bitter tannic effects at the back as well as a late, light and brief hop bitter element; this restrained sweet-sourness from the fruit clings naturally to this bitter element, so that bitter, sweet and sour are tied together perfectly in the finish. I was dreading a ‘rouge’ or other sickly sweet ‘ladies’ beer’ (as Belgians tend to say), but what we got here, was quite a decent and ‘genuine’, credible ale drenched in fruit – purée rather than real fruit, but at least not extracts or added sugar. Much better than expected.

33cl bottle from Beerwulf webshop. F: thin, bit tan, quick gone. C: red coppery, hazy. A: sweet red berries, bit cherries, mellow fruity, sugar touch, bit white sugar. T: medium malty base, red berries, bit cherries, raspberries touch, bit sour fruity even, soft carbonation, ok, drinkable.

Bottle from Terre de Boissons Calais and drunk at home. Clear deep red colour lasting pink head. Sweet red cherry and raspberry strawberry aroma. Some sweetness in mouth. It's inoffensive and not as sweet as some of these beers. Artificial fruit. Fruit syrup. Base beer seems fine. It's fine. Drinkable enough

Bottled@PBF XI. Red colour, small pink head. Aroma is berries, some sweet raisins, mild syrup. Flavour is rhubarb, red berries and some wooden notes.

33cl bottle @PBF XI. Poured reddish brown color with a thin white head. Raspberry aroma, cherry sourness. Flavor has blackberries, tartness, cherries. Nice crispness, balancing tartness.