Alengrin
Ghent, Belgium 🇧🇪 MemberOptions
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Alengrin
updated a beer:
Winter Ale
brewed by De Circus Brouwerij
3 weeks ago
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Ru's Brew Lager from Aitutaki Brewing Co 3 weeks ago
Appearance - 5 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 4 | Texture - 4 | Overall - 5
Amber lager by a brewery in the Cook Islands, an independent island state in the South Pacific since 1965, referring to itself as a craft brewery - is there a place on earth where this 'craft beer' idea has not penetrated other than the Antarctic? Thanks tderoeck again for the country tick! Apparently producing a medium thick, snow white, open head when fresh, over a misty 'dark blonde', peachy robe, already brownish-tinged due to oxidation in my sample. Aroma of dried apricot and dried fig, palm sugar, lingonberries, bread crumbs. Oddly sourish onset, some basic peachy fruitiness, softly carbonated with thin body; sweetish cerealliness, apple juice-like effects on top due to oxidation while this sourish aspect continues, no bitterness worth mentioning. Smells better than it tastes, but obviously the precious sample - which someone at some point put in the kind of plastic tube one expects to find a urine sample in intended for medical purposes - was completely worn out, not just from the long and doubtlessly cumbersome voyage but also from having been opened multiple times by fellow country tickers. I can imagine this tasting quite nice even when opening a fresh bottle at a beach on the probably paradise-like island of Aitutaki, so by its sheer origins alone, this rather unpleasant sample managed to make me dream of a better place...
Appearance - 5 | Aroma - 4.5 | Flavor - 4.5 | Texture - 5 | Overall - 4.5
My second Tajik beer - I never thought I would ever get to this when I first began to write beer reviews two and a half decades ago - both thanks to tderoeck. This one must have had a thin, off-white head originally (but none was formed on my sample anymore), over a 'dirty' beige-ish blonde robe. Aroma of dusty grains, spoiled cucumber, old aspirine, hint of sourdough. Strangely sourish but with a sweeter grainy core, even a tad bready (the only pleasant aspect about this), with a honeyish accent and something floral in the finish, but no true hop bitterness to speak of. Thin, odd and smelling funny - but at least it tasted better than it smelled. By now I think really give up on this country as far as beer is concerned...
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Shiso Smokey from Dok Brewing Company 3 weeks ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8
Brown porter by Dok, but Dok would not be Dok without the application of something special - and I do not mean the rye malts (however 'untraditional' in porter) in this case, but the infusion with shiso, not just shiso (the Japanese basil-like herb), but smoked shiso, mind you. Medium thick, bit irregular, pale greyish beige, intricately membrane-lacing, slowly breaking head on an initially clear, very dark caramel brown robe, near black, but with burgundy glow, turning misty with sediment. Unusual aroma: somehow 'familiar' for a porter, but still dominated by this smoked shiso thing, which is hard to describe other than smoked tea-like - a little bit like lapsang souchong, but more herbal and more delicate; other impressions involve coffee grounds, roasted hazelnuts, dry caramel, freeze-dried chervil (probably just the shiso), unsmoked 'Schipperstabak', salmiak, fish sauce, fried shiitakes, hints of black radish peel, charcoal, dried blueberries, dried capers. Cleanish onset, some 'dried' fruitiness (dried blueberries again, perhaps dried fig) but in a non-sweet and non-estery way, softish carb, smooth oily mouthfeel. Something iron-like accompanies a slick dry-caramelly and thinly black-chocolatey maltiness, both without any sweetness worth mentioning, becoming increasingly 'toasted' until a cold black coffee bitterness fills the back of the mouth. The smoked shiso effect eventually turns out to be less prominent retronasally than orthonasally, though this smoked tea aspect obviously lurks in the finish, along with leafy hop bitterness and roasted malt bitterness; black-peppery, leathery and vaguely salmiak-like effects join in. The shiso adds a herbaceousness reminiscent of Japanese tea - but by being smoked, lost its ethereal aromatic properties (hovering somewhere in between mint, giant hyssop and basil), which can be considered a pity, because it is one of those mint-related plants with its own distinct aroma; the smoked thing does keep you on your guard, though, so this is, all things considered, a very entertaining 'autumn beer' (consumed in the midst of winter). One must admire Dok for remaining so incessibly creative and innovative, and I am not just saying that because I live in Ghent...
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Gueuze-Lambic from Brasserie Taymans Brouwerij 3 weeks ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7.5
In the wake of the craft beer movement, traditional lambic beers have experienced their own spectacular revival in this century - interest in this tradition has not just increased, it has exploded, and among the plethora of ramifications this has had (such as that intense trade in rare vintage bottles), the appearance of new producers is of particular interest. This one is not so much 'new' in the literal sense of the word: in fact there was a (francophone) Taymans brewery in Jette from 1906 to 1970 actually producing geuze and kriek, like so many breweries in and around Brussels in that time frame; the grandchildren of the last proprietor, Pierre Taymans, resurrected the company in 2023, making use of the warehouse which still stands (other parts of the brewery were sadly demolished). After launching a saison and a few other products to initiate sales, they now present their first geuze, the real goal of their whole project and the link with the past. Note the French 'gueuze' spelling and the fact that the word 'vieille' is handily skipped: surely this first bottling contains only one and two year old lambics, though I failed to find more details about the exact composition so far. The sampled bottle is the 593th of the second blend - which only makes me wonder what happened to the first blend, because it was only officially released in early December last year - frankly I doubt if that first blend was ever even marketed and I suspect it was just a test. Medium thick, moussey, egg-white head diminishing into eventually a waferthin ring over a hazy peach blonde robe with 'dirty'-orangey tinge. Aroma of unripe oranges, pickled apricots, damp earth (even manure at first - but that aspect fortunately fades quickly), stale lemon juice, old wet wood, unripe yellow plum, overripe cucumber, very old and oxidized rosé wine, unsugared fruit yoghurt, chlorine in the background - but very persistently so, even a varnish-like solventy touch, goat stable, sweat. Soft onset, very 'mals', even a tad sweetish (peachy), amidst impressions of autumn apples, unripe apricots and gooseberries; softly carbonated especially for a g(u)euze, with a smooth, soft bready core under ongoing fruity tartness and yoghurty lactic sourness - both aspects remaining remarkably soft and mellow. Both ripe and unripe stonefruit (plum, nectarine) in the finish, alongside light 'stable' funkiness, that somewhat obnoxious chlorine returning and an earthy yeastiness. Wood remains in the background (though certainly present) while whiffs of funkiness linger a bit. Very soft, both in acids and in carbonation - too soft for the intended style if you ask me, reminiscent of the first batch of De Bascule geuze in fact; even for a first attempt at something notoriously difficult, this should have had more spritziness, more tanginess, more depth, more dryness, more complexity, more 'wildness' - more guts, in short. Not there yet, even too sweet for what it intends to be - but it will be interesting to see how this project develops over time and with more old lambic at their disposal, surely the new Taymans crew will one day come up with a great geuze.
Alengrin
added a new beer
Gueuze-Lambic
by
Brasserie Taymans Brouwerij
3 weeks ago
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Suika Lambic from OWA Brewery 3 weeks ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
It has been quite a while since OWA came up with a new Japan-themed lambic but here it is: suika lambic, with 'suika' being Japanese for watermelon, a fruit originating from Africa but cultivated for centuries or even millennia elsewhere including East Asia. This lovely fruit is quite popular in Japan: splitting them with a wooden stick is a national game known as suikawari, and perhaps even more weirdly, it is Japan which came up with strange new shapes of watermelon (square being the best known). Made with De Troch lambic as usual. Thin, off-white, open ring of foam, quickly dissolving over a misty 'dirty' ochre-tinged golden blonde robe. Aroma of old leather, preserved grapefruits, dandelion juice, furniture polish, indeed a whiff of sweet watermelon fleetingly passing by, cucumber in vinegar, old wood, unripe peach, green gooseberries, lightly toasted pumpkin seeds, shrivelled wild apples, motherwort. Tart onset, wild apples, lots of green plums, some lemon juice and gooseberries, but not overly puckering, just sharp and dry; very active but fine-bubbled carbonation in a rounded, vinous body. Dry-cereally core under strong lactic sourness, very dry, paired with very tannic woodiness and that 'stubborn' bitter plant- or inedible nut-like aspect I always find in De Troch lambic (and will pull out of a blend with other lambics any time). Watermelon in the actual flavour remains unsurprisingly very subtle, but it does pop up every now and then in the overall "parcours", unveiling itself in volatile whiffs of juicy fruitiness. Long, dry, astringently woody, earthy and 'Bretty' finish - and the watermelon, watery and 'diluted' as it naturally is, cannot do anything about that. Granted, the fruit is at least recognisably present here and that is more than I was actually expecting - and I love watermelon so that was a lucky break - but I think another lambic than De Troch's would have been a better option: De Troch lambic, though in itself interesting enough, is just too bitter, astringent and tangy for something as delicate as watermelon, especially considering actual fruit was used here and no extracts. I wonder what this same recipe would have tasted like if it had been made with e.g. Lindemans or Girardin lambic... Still, an interesting one, daring as usual in this series, but closer to a hit than to a miss for me.
Alengrin
added a new beer
Suika Lambic
by
OWA Brewery
3 weeks ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8.5 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 8
One of three new geuzes blended specifically for the tenth anniversary of the 'reopening' of Villa Servais as a B&B; the villa as such dates from the mid-19th-century and was inhabited by (then) famed Belgian cellist Adrien-François Servais, hence the name. The couple operating the villa as a B&B (and tearoom) today already had a geuze produced for them by Boon five years ago, but this one is a different blend, containing lambics from much older casks (said to generate less sharp tannins), in different proportions of age. It was bottled in February 2024, considerably earlier than the two others in this miniseries, and actually intended to be opened only in June, because that is when the restorations of the villa will be ten years ago - so sorry Geert, but I could not wait any longer, curiosity got the better of me... Cork under very high pressure, rising from the bottle neck right after removal of the muselet, but no gushing. Rather thick and firm, egg-white, regular, densely moussey, well-retaining head initially supported by a column of champagne-like sparkling rushing through a warm deep golden robe with 'old golden' tinge, clear at first, turning misty and a bit ochre-tinged further on. Powerful aroma of freshly cut green apple, fresh wood sorrel leaf, unripe plum, old blankets, dusty attic, jute bags, dry old wood, a whiff of crémant extra brut, unripe lime, young birch leaves in spring, minerals, wet old leather. Spritzy onset, sharp cava-like effervescence bringing a wave of crystalline minerality, almost disrupting the flavours of green apple, unripe hard pear, lime and green plum, very dry, tart but nowhere sharply sour - rather 'mals' in fact, despite the high degree of effervescence accentuating sourness. Supple body, a smooth breadiness under this ongoing dry-green fruitiness, a glimpse of unripe apricot passing by, further dried by a deep but lively lactic acidity; a huge amount of minerality lingers at the back - even for a geuze - bringing an impression of sparkling spring water through lingering green unripe fruits, smooth breadiness and indeed soft woodiness, laced with these rustic Brettanomyces effects: old leather, old blanket, old attic. A deep old hop bitter note lurks below, clutching to the tongue's root, but it is this sparkly minerality and all-round smooth dryness that sets this apart - not just from its two contemporaries in this series, but also from the first Villa Servais geuze blended by Boon, which was indeed significantly more mellow in the wood department. Here the ancient barrels, in contrast with the relatively young barrels from the first Villa Servais, fill the bottle with the nobility and temperance of old age, perhaps contrasting with the temperament of stormy carbonation. Different from the original indeed - and a somewhat distinct one in general, even if it has Boon's house style written all over it.
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Thorlákur from Brouwerij de HopHemel 3 weeks ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7
Coffee flavoured barleywine in an already endless series of one-offs by Limburg's HopHemel, named after the Icelandic patron saint as a nod to the collaborating, Iceland-themed Puffin 'brewery'. Thanks tderoeck for sharing the can! Thin and open, pale yellowish beige, shred-lacing, dissolving head on a clear amber robe with beautiful deep copper glow - the exact colour I want to see in any kind of barleywine. Aroma of 'green' coffee beans rather than actual coffee, dry biscuit, caramel, (cheap) whisky, dry straw, old teabags, dried prunes, rusk, dried persimmon, white pepper. Cleanly fruity onset, smooth dried apple and persimmon with a touch of raisin, sweetish but nowhere sticky, softly carbonated with oily mouthfeel (actually feeling thinner than the ABV would suggest). Biscuity and rusk-like malty middle, a bit on the meagre side for the intended style, though; soft bitterness follows, initially established by this whiff of coffee - but the 'real' coffee aroma I was hoping for, sadly remains almost mute. Its bitterness fades quickly too, making room for a more 'peppery' and floral bitterness of hops, highlighted by warming, vaguely whisky-like but generally well-hidden alcohol. If you are going to do a coffee barleywine, then I think there should be a warm, aromatic coffee presence at least in the nose: the coffee is there, but in an all too subtle, too 'green' and raw kind of way, an aroma I have encountered in many other (non-stout) coffee-flavoured beers before - yet usually stronger (!). Not too bad, in all, but needs a lot more 'oomph' for a barleywine in general and certainly a coffee-flavoured one; another proof that a collab is sometimes - and in my personal experience even quite often - less than the sum of its parts, as both HopHemel and Puffin have produced more enduring barleywines than this one.