4.6

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 4 | Flavor - 4 | Texture - 4 | Overall - 5.5

Kerstbier Festival. Clear golden beer with a white lacing. Aroma of intense grainy malt and cereals. Taste of dry grainy malt, cereals, straw.

6.5

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Bottle. Small head with short duration. Color is dark brown. Aroma and taste are roast malt, nuts, hops, caramel and has a nice bitter finish.

6

Metallisch

7

Sehr hopfig-würzig, geht etwas in Richtung White IPA, süss und stark

7.3

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

The newest Kerel beer to date, from the familiar pharmaceutical bottle; apparently a blonde ale containing rye malt and honey, intended as a sparkle of light in this gloomiest time of the year - a bit of an odd choice as traditionally, most Belgian brewers opt for a Scotch or quadrupel to warm the winter days, but admittedly original as a concept (though nowhere new or unique - see e.g. Verhaeghe's Noël-Christmas-Weihnacht, also a blonde of medium strength and dating back decades). Moussy, firm, medium thick, egg-white, regularly shaped, closed and stable head on a clear (all the way - so apparently filtered), warm and pure 'old golden' beer with lots of lively sparkling everywhere. Aroma of freshly baked biscuits and bread crust, dried apple peel, hay and field flowers (the chestnut honey I suppose), moist white pepper, unripe pear, something very lightly soapy, dust, dry cereals, vague note of green banana. Crisp, cleanish onset, some smooth 'basic' fruitiness of apple peel and unripe peach, touch green banana again, sweetish but not quite, with minerally effects from all this lively effervescence; slick, somewhat oily mouthfeel, a slickness possibly explained by the rye, which also adds a deeper 'bread-crustiness' and mild spiciness to an otherwise straightforward yet pure pale malt sweetishness. Honey is noticeable as a retronasal floral presence but only subtly so, while in the end quite a long-lasting, white-peppery and even somewhat wormwoody bitterness builds - hops of course, but given that the IBU is only 8, they come out much more outspoken than one would expect for some reason (I am guessing elements in the brewing water, like magnesium or carbonate, play a part here). Still a (very) thin trace of malty-bready and, who knows, honey-derived sweetishness lingers too. Basically a Belgian blonde with a few minor twists - or indeed a Belgian style honey beer, which is, again, somewhat of an odd choice for this time of the year; I would associate a beer like this more with spring than with winter. Very clean, almost industrial-feeling, but admittedly balanced and highly drinkable, if not adding much to the existing Kerel range...

7

Spannend, gefällt mir gut diese Bitter- und Fruchtnoten, dazu was Undefinierbares.

8

Gefällt, sehr ausgewogen

7

Säuerlich-würziges Saison

7.4

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Opalescent pale yellow colour, large dense snow-white head; aroma of grainy, some citrusy, fruity and yeasty notes; taste is the same with some hoppy notes; not bad at all

6.4

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

33cl bottle from Delhaize Chazal in Brussels. F: thin, white, quick gone. C: gold, light hazy. A: citrus, floral, pears, banana. T: medium malty base, citrus, banana, pears, bit spicy, decent bitterness, soft carbonation, ok not bad, enjoyed yet nothing special here.