6.8

Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 6.5

The regular - and, in Belgium, almost obligatory - blonde in the range of Hopspot house beers, brewed at the site under the aegis of Van Steenberge, the brewery still strongly dominating the region; thanks to Meeki for sharing. Snow white, medium thick, lacing, opening head on a clear yellow-golden beer. Aroma of old potatoes, banana peel, leftover dough, sulphur (as in a freshly struck match), coriander seed, green pear, unripe peach. Sweet onset, quite some residual sugars, banana ester with side notes of red apple and ripe pear, perhaps vague pineapple; soft carb with smooth body. The honeyish effect of the residual sugars lies over a slick cereally pale maltiness, while something metallic sits at the edges; floral hops provide a light, late, volatile bitter accent, while sweet yellow fruitiness lingers. Very easygoing, standard Belgian blonde, almost like a first technically successful attempt by some hobby brewer - completely devoid of character, originality or even plain old 'oomph'. Utterly boring even to Belgian blonde standards, clearly one for the indiscriminating biking tourist floating by this place on a sunny afternoon.