Pepper, malty, fruity

Double IPA by this progressive brewery in the Alsace part of France, with updated label depicting the Mona Lisa giving us the middle finger, and apparently updated ABV as well, rising from 8% to 8.5% - but still the same beer, I presume, so I will park my rating here. Thick and foamy, thickly cobweb-lacing, egg-white, very moussy and creamy head heavily resting on an initially crystal clear, orangey amber-tinged 'old golden' beer with minute dots of dead yeast everywhere - but so minute that they do not interfere with the visual appreciation; turns misty and more deeply orange with sediment. Classic West Coast DIPA aroma of pink grapefruit, toasted 'Bicky Burger' onions, pink peppercorns, rusk, crumbled Tuc cookies, old cheese rind, wormwood, toasted peanuts, dried orange zest, notes of powdered spices (ginger, paprika, cumin even) and jute. Clean, sleek onset, hints of persimmon and fried red bell pepper, low in sweetness but rounded and full, with medium to slightly minerally-fizzy carbonation and full, oily mouthfeel; slick peanutty and rusk-like malts, sweetish and biscuity but with clear toasty edge compensating the sweetness, adequately bittered by a grapefruity, oniony, bit piney and wormwoody hoppiness, adding long-lasting if not too agressive bitterness, remaining well in touch with the 'biscuitiness' and toastiness of the malts. Grapefruit peel and dry toasted onion abound, but a slight trace of malt sweet caramelliness sits underneath and a very well-positioned afterglow of gin-like alcohol ties all the flavours together without interfering with them. Excellent interpretation of an old school West Coast DIPA, clean, well-structured and powerful enough; the aroma alone is nostalgic enough to evoke memories of me trying to master American IPAs two decades ago. Granted, I stumbled upon this inviting bottle well past its prime (half a year beyond its 'best before' date) and some cheesiness has set in by now, but it has held its flavours remarkably well - proving my old point that West Coast style IPAs really need not be that fresh, at least not to my personal taste and not at this level of alcohol strength. Does not feel worn out at all, in fact this beer feels as vivid as ever, though I am sure that in fresh condition, it can only have been even better. Another rock-solid French offering - and even if the Alsace was once a 'beery' region in several ways, not many traditional beers hail from this part of the world, so a skilled 'Americanized' craft brewery feels really welcome there. Pleasantly surprised by France - three times in a row. Now, my beloved southern neighbours, take the next level and throw your ancient knowledge of viniculture onto this beer hype, no one can foresee what effect that would have. Whenever this happens, it could well turn France into one of the most exciting beer countries in the world.

Pastry stout from this craft brewery in northeastern France, beginning to make a name for itself at home and abroad; flavoured with cocoa nibs, vanilla and coffee, a classic combo that cannot do much wrong, I suppose. Thick, pale greyish beige, plaster-like lacing, moussy, stable head on a very dark chocolate brown beer, in fact as good as black, with thin hazy mahogany edges; relatively large protein flakes appear in the end, floating around. Aroma of toffee, latté macchiato, hazelnut paste, 'Koetjesreep' and some actual milk chocolate, Nutroma coffee cream, actual vanilla beans, real cocoa nibs (not completely overpowered by the dark malts here as is usually the case, but actually distinguishable), chewing gum, milk powder, hints of black pepper, bayleaf and brown bread dough. Spritzy onset, quite sharply carbonated for the style with minerally effects; sweet but not cloying, hinting at candied fig, glazed pear and old raisins, with a slight sourish edge. Supple body, bit creamy even in spite of the carbonation, toffeeish and brown-bready maltiness with a roasty edge but subtly so, clearly flavoured with bitter cocoa nibs and aromatic retronasal coffee, the latter elegantly accentuating the bitterness - even though thrue mouth-filling roasted bitterness is never fully achieved. A light meaty accent pops up in the end, probably from the protein flakes, while vanilla - though certainly noticeable - remains a bit understated; ends with coffee, bitter chocolate and peppery hop bitter flavours, all working well with the sweeter toffeeish malt base and keeping each other in balance. Pleasant dry stout with a twist, in a way - I get the 'breakfast' idea here (thank you Founders for launching that idea in the first place, years ago), but I tend to associate that with more granola-like aromas which this one does not have. That said, this is, in all respects, a fine stout, well-constructed and well-balanced, from a part of Europe not traditionally known for stouts...

Fles gekregen van Nick en Marjan op vakantie, geprobeerd met LiekevdV. Het is een goudgeel bier met een medium witte schuimkraag. Het heeft een hoppige geur met tonen van grapefruit en ananas. De smaak is hoppig en harsig met een bittere afdronk.

23/VII/22 - 33cl can from Geers (Oostakker), shared @ Ardenne Holiday, BB: 4/IX/23 (2022-916)

Cloudy orange beer, big irregular white head, unstable, falls down quickly, non adhesive. Aroma: a bit chemical, fruity touch, floral notes, some citrus. MF: ok carbon, medium body. Taste: gentle bitterness, a bit soapy, herbal, fruity notes, a bit malty. Aftertaste: a bit watery, bitter touch, soapy, some tropical fruits, ok, not great.

Opalescent golden colour, minimal creamy white head; aroma and taste of orange, orange peel, grainy, some floral honey-like and minimal hoppy notes; not bad

Clear reddish amber colour, medium sized creamy ecru head; aroma and taste of toasted rye bread, roasted nuts, some plum jam and burnt sugar notes; good one

Decent summer sipper. Pretty clasically style. Maybe stands out a little due to the funk. Monk paris