New version of Brouwbar’s B03 Blond, this one dubbed “sterk blond” (strong blonde) instead of just “blond” – even if it is only an insignificant 0.3% stronger… Anyway, thanks Benjamin for the – still unlabelled – bottle! Eggshell-white, bit thinnish and slowly dissipating, irregularly lacing head nevertheless remaining stable around the edge, over a misty deep orangey (almost amberish) peach blonde beer. Fragrant, sweet aroma of warm apple cake, ripe pineapple, dried mango, strawberry jam, cantaloupe melon, brandy, marmalade, biscuit, white port, freshly baked bread, cinnamon. Sweet onset, teeming with sweet, ripe fruits, ripe nectarine, Doyenné pear, cantaloupe melon, peach, softly carbonated, rounded, bit vinous, eventually ‘fluffy’ body; lovely sweet biscuity middle with a delicate honeyish and sugar water-like sweetness on top, lovely breadiness in the end (yeast) with some spicy phenols (cloves and a dash of cinnamon) and a pronounced, cognac-like alcohol glow accentuating the sweetness. Hops, however, remain limited to a subtle floral bitterish touch. Feels a bit boozier than the original B03 (in spite of the ABV being close to the same) but in all, this is a different beer altogether, with more emphasis on fruity-yeasty sweetness – very expressive in this case, to the point where it becomes almost Belgian style barleywine-like. Enjoyed it a lot – and so did the girlfriend, so this will be the first one on my list next time I visit this lovely brewpub.

Second and improved edition of Brouwbar’s original NEIPA, differently hopped and a tad darker, so it got a new number, is presented as a new beer at Brouwbar and I therefore had to grant it its own entry here; tasted at Brouwbar (from tap). Medium thick, egg-white, cobweb-lacing, stable head slowly ‘breaking’ in the middle, over a cloudy peach blonde beer with beige-ish tinge. Aroma of ripe pineapple, mango juice, canned peaches, sweetbread, granadilla, mandarin flesh, meringue. Cleanly fruity onset, peachy with strong ripe pineapple and more subtle mango, lime and passionfruit notes, minerally aspects at the sides with lively, bit sharpish carbonation; fluffy, tad powdery mouthfeel, quite typically NEIPA I would argue. Soft bread-pulpy and very lightly nutty malt sweet base under a very aromatically hoppy finish, offering a basket of tropical citrus fruits, mango, yellow kiwi and passionfruit, while at the same time remaining very soft in bitterness. Bready and minerally aspects linger in the background. Since this one will essentially replace the first version, I was unable to compare the two, but from memory it seems this one is even more aromatic and certainly a bit fuller in the malt department than the original – so in that sense certainly an improvement indeed and to me among the best New England style IPAs brewed on Belgian soil so far. Congrats to Benjamin and Jolien for this one!

Brouwbar at last tackling the prestigious imperial stout style, but naming it “KS” (from the Dutch translation ‘keizerlijke stout’) instead of the expected “IS” in order to avoid any connection with ISIS apparently… Draught at Brouwbar. Densely creamy, pale greyish beige, very regularly shaped, thinnish and slowly opening head over a black beer with thin, hazy burgundy edges. Aroma of maple syrup, fudge, milk chocolate bars, gravy (quite outspoken), ruby port, chocolate-coated peanuts, damp forest floor and mouldy tree leaves, cola, elderberry syrup, blueberry jam, lots of damp earth with even a volatile hint of manure. Very sweet onset, sugary even, blackberry jam and candied date, a tad sticky even also due to the soft carbonation; light sourish undertone but much stronger, gravy-like umami presence. Full and thick caramelly and bit nutty malt body, milk-chocolatey even, leading to a warming finish with outspoken, yet not too astringent rum-like alcohol, while the caramelly sweetness lingers. The roasted bitterness which should typify a stout and certainly a strong one, remains very, very limited: in all, this is much more an imperial porter than an imperial stout. Still, very enjoyable beer nonetheless, with a distinct character, yet still bearing Brouwbar’s typical profile of cleanness and accessibility. Will certainly revisit, too.