15/IV/21 - 33cl bottle form the brewery, shared @ home, BB: 10/IX/21 (2021-289)

Clear amber orange beer, big irregular aery head, unstable, falls down quickly, bit adhesive, leaving some lacing in the glass. Aroma: very funky, sourish impression, fruity notes, bit lemony. MF: ok carbon, medium body. Taste: bit malty, gentle acidity, quite fruity, some apricots and unripe peaches, juicy touch, nice acidity, very refreshing character, soft bitterness, some tannins maybe? Aftertaste: dry yet fruity finish, good bitterness, grapes, bit spicy, yeasty touch.

Paired nicely with a big pan of shakshuka!

New variation on Brouwbar’s strong blondes (after B17 in 2018 and SB32 in 2019), this time dry-hopped with Mosaic. Thick, snow white, cobweb-lacing, slowly opening, irregularly edged head on a misty deep ‘old gold’ coloured beer with almost ‘rusty’ tinge. Aroma of freshly cut red apple and Conference pear, white bread dough, Poire William, banana peel, leftover dough, kiwi, minerals. Fruity, sweetish onset, halfripe banana, ripe pear and apricot, nowhere cloying though, with soft carb and full, rounded, slick body; doughy, white-bready malts, something honeyish resounding and maintaining a generally sweet impression without it becoming too much, minerally side effects, soft floral hoppiness providing a grassy end bitterness and delicate kiwi- and jasmin-like retronasal aromas (the Mosaic speaking, though softly so). A bready-yeasty touch and warming gin-like alcohol linger in the finish. Accessible to the general Belgian palate even with the inclusion of a New World hop variety, because this variety performs a supporting role here rather than dominate the main stage; deliberately simple, easygoing, slim and slender, a tad more so than the two previous strong blondes Brouwbar produced in earlier years. Enjoyable enough.

The newest Brouwbar beer to date, a strong saison, or indeed a cross between a tripel (or strong blonde in general) and a saison, bottle from Brouwbar shared with Steve. Off-white, irregular, rather loose and thin, quickly dissipating head on a misty orange-blonde robe with brownish-amberish tinge. Aroma of peaches in ‘jenever’, rusk, apricot jam, cognac, red apple slices, dried orange peel, thyme, clove, dry biscuit, pear juice, subtle earthy hints of sawdust, bitter garden weeds and beetroot juice. Sweet onset, cleanly and slenderly fruity, red apple, ripe pear and apricot with a dash of fresh fig, slight sourish undertone, soft carbonation gracing a supple, slender body, definitely feeling lighter than the ABV would suggest; supple rusk- and bit dry cookie-like maltiness, very slight toasty edge, carrying mild phenolic notes (thyme, clove) as well as a florally aromatic hoppiness – providing less bitterness than, in the end, very pronounced, heating, brandy-like alcohol, making for an astringent effect in the finish. Elegantly sweetish, lean, supple and elegantly aromatized, typical Brouwbar house style in most aspects – but unfortunately the alcohol is not well hidden and for me too obtrusive in both nose and mouth; I think a ‘thicker’, more dense malt profile, paired with a more vivid carbonation, could do this beer well. I do think it will improve with age, though – no doubt I had this too young, curious as I was to taste it…

One of several new Brouwbar beers, a sour saison. Off-white, thick but uneven-bubbled and slowly breaking head on a cloudy peach blonde beer with somewhat bronze-ish tinge. Aroma of overripe pineapple, pear juice, dried flowers, soggy rusk, apple peel, dust, a whiff of strawberry, yoghurt, clove, bread crust, violets. Sweetish fruity onset but in a clean and slender way, hints of pear, pineapple and strawberry with a distant hint at guava, and indeed a refreshing, light and elegant sourish streak running throughout, gently lactic, reminiscent of sour berries but remaining subtle and mild, always subordinate to a sweeter main flavour; supple, medium carbonated mouthfeel – carbonation actually being on the soft side for a farmhouse ale. Soggy rusk- and bread-like malt body, graced by phenolic spicy accents towards the end (clove) and a soft, floral, slightly tropical-fruity hoppiness which provides only very light end bitterness; the sourish element as well as some breadiness linger in the end. Light-footed, almost ‘feminine’ summery little beer, graceful and easygoing, with all the parameters remaining light and ‘soft’: softly carbonated, softly sour and softly hop bitter, perhaps a bit too softly so in all those three aspects. I do get the general idea of creating a simple yet elegant quencher, though, and in that sense this brew qualifies.

The newest Brouwbar beer to date, released during the 'second lockdown' in the Covid-19 pandemic in Belgium; a kind of Hopfenweizen, using Hallertau Blanc, one of those German-bred hop varieties in New World style catering to the still relatively few (but quickly increasing) German brewers that tackle American craft beer styles; released in 2012, this hybrid of Cascade and Hüll Melon (or something very close to that) is typically marketed as a highly aromatic, fruity variety. Thanks to Steve for fetching the bottles at Brouwbar! Egg-white, mousy, medium thick, slowly dissipating and opening head on a cloudy apricot blonde beer with ochre-ish tinge. Delicate aroma of ripe peach, honeydew, camomile tea, drying lemon zest, jasmin blossom, lemongrass, damp straw, banana bread, biscuit, powder sugar, grass, clove and a touch of chewing gum. Sweetish, fruity onset, banana ester and cooked pear but in a rather restrained, streamlined way, softish in carbonation with a slick, bit soapy body; white-bready core, well-edged with a slight biscuity touch and a sourish wheatiness to it, aromatized by very fruity, delicate hoppiness from the Hallertau Blanc, bringing back the associations with white and yellow fruit retronasally. Some grassy bitterness lingers, along with that banana effect and slick, thinly biscuity maltiness. Well, this is Hopfenweizen indeed, but in a rather innovative way (as compared with the archetypical Hopfenweizen - see Schneider's TAP 5) by shifting the emphasis from hop bitterness - not traditionally present in Hefeweizen - to hop aroma, which in today's beer world offers sheer limitless possibilities. Could just as well pass for an American style wheat ale in my opinion, it has a lot more in common with those than with true Bavarian Hefeweizen, but a smooth, streamlined, elegant and delicate little beer nonetheless. I would not have minded a tad more actual bitterness, though. --- Beer merged from original tick of HW54 Hefeweizen on 20 Nov 2020 at 22:45 - Score: Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7. Original review text: The newest Brouwbar beer to date, released during the 'second lockdown' in the Covid-19 pandemic in Belgium; a kind of Hopfenweizen, using Hallertau Blanc, one of those German-bred hop varieties in New World style catering to the still relatively few (but quickly increasing) German brewers that tackle American craft beer styles; released in 2012, this hybrid of Cascade and Hüll Melon (or something very close to that) is typically marketed as a highly aromatic, fruity variety. Thanks to Steve for fetching the bottles at Brouwbar! Egg-white, mousy, medium thick, slowly dissipating and opening head on a cloudy apricot blonde beer with ochre-ish tinge. Delicate aroma of ripe peach, honeydew, camomile tea, drying lemon zest, jasmin blossom, lemongrass, damp straw, banana bread, biscuit, powder sugar, grass, clove and a touch of chewing gum. Sweetish, fruity onset, banana ester and cooked pear but in a rather restrained, streamlined way, softish in carbonation with a slick, bit soapy body; white-bready core, well-edged with a slight biscuity touch and a sourish wheatiness to it, aromatized by very fruity, delicate hoppiness from the Hallertau Blanc, bringing back the associations with white and yellow fruit retronasally. Some grassy bitterness lingers, along with that banana effect and slick, thinly biscuity maltiness. Well, this is Hopfenweizen indeed, but in a rather innovative way (as compared with the archetypical Hopfenweizen - see Schneider's TAP 5) by shifting the emphasis from hop bitterness - not traditionally present in Hefeweizen - to hop aroma, which in today's beer world offers sheer limitless possibilities. Could just as well pass for an American style wheat ale in my opinion, it has a lot more in common with those than with true Bavarian Hefeweizen, but a smooth, streamlined, elegant and delicate little beer nonetheless. I would not have minded a tad more actual bitterness, though.

One of Brouwbar's latest beers to date, a quadrupel intended as a winter warmer; rating from one of several bottles picked up at the brewpub. Medium thick, mousy, creamy, pale yellow-beige, dotty lacing, opening head on a dark chocolate brown beer with ruddy-burgundy, hazy glow. Aroma of caramel sauce and even caramel liqueur, almond, clove, ruby port, wood glue, camphor, paraffin even, gingerbread, rum-soaked raisins, bayleaf, rainwater, apple syrup, candi sugar. Sweet onset, candied figs and dates, sweet ripe apple, medium carb with full, bit glueishly smooth mouthfeel; candi sugar sweetness lingers all around but does not become overpowering anywhere, leaving enough room for a slick caramelly maltiness to pass through with a brown-bready core and pecan-nutty edges, feeling a tad resinous in the end. Phenolic effects turn out quite strong in the end, reminiscent of clove, dried ginger, camphor and even aniseed, before a mildly leafy hop bitter note and some background toastiness set in, pairing up with a rum-like alcohol glow, which does not, however, betray the considerable ABV in this beer. The candi sugariness, still present, sweetens up the tail, but in a non-cloying way. Impressive creation: I did not expect Brouwbar to come up with something as traditionally Belgian (and Dutch if you count the inventors of the term, the La Trappe monks) as a quad, but Benjamin pulled it off and achieved a warming, soothing, yet still supple and streamlined example, strangely fitting in the Brouwbar's house style. Still has a few sharpish (solventy) edges at this young age, but those will certainly decrease with age - fortunately I bought enough of these to cellar a few... Intense and restrained at the same time, good job for a first attempt at this highly exposed style.

One of two new Brouwbar beers created during the 'second lockdown' in Belgium, along with a quadrupel. Bottle from the brewery, cheers Benjamin! Medium thick, egg-white, irregularly membrane-lacing, creamy, slowly breaking but generally stable head on a warm peach blonde beer with orangey-brownish tinge. Rich and strong bouquet of ripe mango (from half a yard away), orange jam, lychee, overripe yellow kiwi, dough, gin, rosemary, passionfruit coulis, pink peppercorns, mandarin peel and a background whiff of herb cheese hinting at slight oxidation of the hops - but by no means disturbing in my opinion. Lively fruity onset, mango, ripe peach, guava and lychee, softly stinging and somewhat minerally carbonation, full and smooth body, bit 'fluffy'; doughy and sweet-biscuity malt 'soil' soaked in highly aromatic, 'sultry' tropical hoppiness, lots of mango juice, ripe papaja and guava, hints of melon and ripe tangerine, also providing a powdery bitter touch though softly so, while additional pepperiness grows from a gin-like alcohol glow, heating the throat a bit yet managing to stay aside for long enough not to disturb the workings of the hops. Very luscious and generously tropical, notably more so than earlier DIPAs made by Brouwbar - as usual with this brewery, all the preceding beers, though enjoyable enough for what they were, seem to be mere exercises in gradually achieving more and more character. The alcohol is perhaps just a tad too present and the hops seem to be a little bit oxidized, but these factors only help to establish that character and I can only appreciate that. Too bad that this one was created during a period when Brouwbar is necessarily closed - this deserves a second batch, served fresh from tap, when the catering business in Belgium is allowed to reopen. In this bottled form, though: among the better IPA embodiments made by Brouwbar so far.