hazy brownish dark amber colour, huge, fluffy head which lasts for minutes; aroma of berries, burnt sugar, slight anise and maybe licorice, as well as earthy-yeasty notes; taste has the same notes with burnt bitterness; good one!

Many thanks to Erzengel for this 75cl bottle. BB 10/2014. A clear reddish golden beer with a small off-white head. Aroam of mild sweet cherries, cinnamon, dry fruits, some wood. Taste of mild sweet cherries, touch of tart cherries, some vinegar, wood, nice!

Bière étrange cette Crombé Zottegemse Grand Cru. Ne me demandez pas ce qu'elle a de Grand...par contre ce n'est pas forcément un bon cru. A tester pour une expérience atypique, mais cela en reste là. Robe dorée foncée (EBC aux alentours de 24) parfaitement limpide, une effervescence marquée avec de très fines bulles permettant à une mousse blanche de 2 cm de se développer. Le nez surprend de base. Assimilable à une sour ale sur le citron et vinaigre. L'attaque porte elle même une présence acide avec des arômes de caramel, d'épices et d'orange. Très étrange. La deuxième bouche est âpre et aigrelette, toujours sur les mêmes arômes, les épices en plus prégnantes. L'impression de Brett n'est pas loin. L'arrière bouche est linéaire avec une ampleur acceptable. La troisième bouche s'adoucit légèrement avec un caramel plus présent pour laisser place à un final acide et astringent. L'alcool ne se sent absolument pas (8,4 % Abv). Voici donc un nouvel OBNI (objet brassicole non identifié).

6,2 ABV. 33cl bottle from Belgiuminabox.com. Perfekcyjna slimakowa i wystajacy czop piany poza brzegi kieliszka Corsendonk. Mgliste o barwie jasno miedziano-herbacianej. Zapach suszonych moreli. W smaku lekkie nieco zbozowe, pszypomina nieco niemieckiego kellerbiera. Owoce jablka i gruszki. Glownie puree z gruszek. Fajne w starym klasycznym stylu tradycyjne lekkie belgijskie piwo, z zabytkowa stylistyczna etykieta.

Oud Zottegems with bottle refermentation, an old regional ’specialty’ beer owned by Crombé (the original brewery, which had to cease activities around 2000 after two centuries of brewing, due to environmental issues if my memory doesn’t fail me) but, like the other Crombé beers now, made at Strubbe. Contrary to the original version, this seems to be a newer addition to the range created after Crombé had long stopped brewing themselves. From a 75 cl bottle but seems to exist in 33 cl as well. Lightly lacing, moussy, off-white, irregular head, breaking in the middle, over a golden blonde beer with warm peachy hue, originally more or less clear (yet with a very diffuse ’fog’ of yeast bits throughout), nicely equally hazy with sediment. Aroma of peach, banana (but no bubblegum), rainwater, raw cauliflower, old bread, pear peel, something iron-ish, clove-like phenols, melting powder sugar, sweaty grains, dried field flowers. Fruity taste with hints of banana and peach as well as sourish, vague pineapple- and gooseberry-like accents but fairly ’clean’ and not overly estery, some lingering white candi syrup sweetness, medium carbonation, light and thinnish mouthfeel with a metallic ’sound’ to it somewhere, more so than usual for a Belgian blonde but still subtle enough not to disturb me too much. Pleasantly bready malt sweetish middle, mildly but effectively bittering finish with floral and earthy hops, but more strongly, clove-like phenols show up; something chalky lingers as well. Bit thin and metallic, but certainly not unpleasant for a (very) old-fashioned regional Belgian blonde. I remember the original Crombé version of the regular Oud Zottegems to be a tad more ’expressive’ in flavour, though, but honestly it is difficult to compare by memory as I had the Strubbe version after that only once and that too was years ago. I cannot help but sympathise a bit with this extremely ’retro’ Belgian beers being kept alive till this day, but this obviously has nothing to do with the frolics of the present-day craft beer movement - this is as classically Belgian as it gets. Works fine for me, all things considered.

31st October 2009
1993 Vintage Bottle at DHVL with Ian and Mes. Clear amber beer, cream colour head. Light palate. Caramelised oxidised malt. Dry citrus. Minerally dry finish. Passable for it’s age.

Appearance: Light red, clear, some white head.
Aroma: Strong cherry.
Taste: Quite a bit of cherry, slightly sour, tart. Lasting fruity aftertaste. Not bad.
Bought: Trade with tderoeck - thanks!, 330 ml
Info: 9/12-2016, 69/100, BB: 22/10-2025

330 ml. Bottle @ Dulle Griet. No BBF. Hazy orange, looks old, little carbonation or head. Nose smells like murky stale water, fish guts, band aid, mouldy orange peel, ditch water. Dirty water taste & body, ditch water, fish guts yeast, orange peel, sugar, mouldy orange peel, band aid. Pretty rubbish & poor beer.

Sample at SBWF 2016. Almost clear reddish/amber with a small head. Sweet with cherries, funk, some vinegar and light wood. Medium sour and with a rather soft body.

Oranjegeel bier met stevig schuim. Smaak is fris licht zuur fruitig met iets van rozijnen en bessen