Donker geel bier met schuim. Smaak is neutraal bitter en kruidig. licht zoet. Gedronken op terras kasteel Terborgh.

Well-known Dutch lager, like the other Alfas brewed with their own spring water. Relatively stable, snow white head on a pure golden coloured, cristal clear beer; nose gets floral Saaz hops, a bit of hay, grains and sweetish malts, taste malty, sweetish in onset, towards the end mildly hoppy, and what surprised me the most, was the fact that in spite of it being bottom-fermented, pale and a lager, the alcohol was hardly noticeable. I am a bit surprised by the negative reviews here, but I had it over ten years ago and it may have declined in quality since then, so I guess it’s time to re-rate it. alcohol ondanks de hoge dosis, de ondergisting en de bleke kleur amper merkbaar, zelfs niet in de afdronk

Very typical, I would almost say ’classic’ Dutch pale bock, a spring tradition. Snow white, dense, finely textured head, quite stable, colour a cristal-clear orangey blonde, approaching amber. Nose gets sweetish malts (caramel) and floral hops with hints of vanilla, wild flowers, orange liqueur, candi syrup and honey, so a fresh kind of ’spring sweetness’ prevails. Taste soft maltiness and a gentle candi-like and even sugary sweetness, however not really sticky, hint of honey, mild carbonation, finishing in floral, very subtle aromatic hops without really turning bitter - which would not be desirable in this particular style anyway. Fresh, very decent and very true to its style, whether you like lenteboks or not.

Alfa’s pilsener trying to reach the level of a Bohemian urtyp but getting nowhere near, although I would prefer this over most other Dutch standard lagers. Shows an irregular, dense, creamy white foam which slowly dissolves and a pale golden blonde, cristal clear colour; pure but weak aroma of lightly sweetish pilsener malt, raw grains, straw-like hops and minerals (the spring water shining through). Taste clear and light maltiness, clearly mineral-like (the purity of a kind of ’mountain stream’ effect I appreciate in a good ’pils’ comes nearby at times), in the finish dryer, a bit cheesy, with a mild, but spicy, short hop bitterishness. Better than average in my opinion - at least as far as Dutch ’pils’ concerns, but I would not consider that a great achievement, all in all.

Autumn bock of bottom fermentation, like the German version of the genre. Light beige, refined, creamy and stable foam on a clear copper, almost amber beer with a brownish hue, clearly paler than the top-fermented Dutch boks and in that respect again more akin to a German bottom-femented one (the brewery’s proximity to Germany has resulted in a German influence in some of their other beers, too). Nose gets caramel and nuts from malt, perhaps a hint of wheat, honey, orange peel, straw, liquorice, and some kind of vague, suggested woodiness. Tastes smoothly malty, some nuttiness, some caramel, lightly sweet but nowhere cloying, in the end drying up with a very subtle hop bitterness (as is custom in this style) and just a whiff of warming alcohol. Nothing too complex but nevertheless a more than decent bokbier, and I do like the fact that it is made in the German tradition, something rarely seen in Dutch boks.

30cl. Sweetish brown brew. Easy to drink, sweetish malty brew, slightly sticky with a nice grainy finish. Not too bitter, a bit sticky. Nice.

Deep golden color. Sweetish honeyish and toffeish aroma with some flowery and grassy notes.