Alengrin
Ghent, Belgium 🇧🇪 MemberOptions
Activity
Alengrin
added a new beer
Cherry Wood Geuze
by
Brouwerij Oud Beersel
5 months ago
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Gurbet from BeerSelect 6 months ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 5.5 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 6
Blonde ale flavoured with juniper berry, developed for a Turkish dayshop in the Lammerstraat (running upwards from the Zuid quarter in Ghent), where half of the total shop window is currently dominated by a whole wall of bottles of just this beer. Bottle bought at said shop; the label does not mention the brewery, but the mention that it is brewed at exactly 9 km from the centre of Ghent says it all. Snow white, moussey, thick, frothy head on a misty golden robe with vague khaki tinge. Aroma of unripe apricot, field flowers, dry bread crust, some iron (confirmed by the 'hand test'), dried apple peel, celandine rather than actual juniper berry but this probably is just the juniper berry speaking, spoiled pumpkin, stale urine and sweat when warming up. Sweetish onset, a bit fruity (unripe apricot, apple peel) but generally clean at first, softishly carbonated with slick, smooth body; white-bready malts and soft floral hops, balanced, with not too much malt or other sweetness in the finish. The juniper berries add a vague and difficult-to-pinpoint herbaceousness, but remain subtle enough not to disturb me as I hate them in beer (or any other beverage for that matter). Unfortunately though, and possibly related to the juniper berry addition, the finish is marred by stale sweat- and urine-like off-flavours which only gain momentum as the beer warms up. Too bad, I really wanted to like this - but who knows, maybe the three Turkish gentlemen behind this beer soon realise that it needs more character as well as some tidying up - and that selecting another brewery to execute it may well be the answer to those issues.
Alengrin
added a new beer
Gurbet
by
BeerSelect
6 months ago
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Duivelsbier Wild from Brouwerij F. Boon 6 months ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7
The new blonde (or rather: amber coloured) follow-up to the classic dark Duivelsbier, originally a kind of strong faro and in any case a beer with a long history - so I guess this one can be said to have at least a pedigree. Steinie bottle from Streekproductencentrum Halle, shared with Craftmember. Thick, egg-white, stable, frothy, slowly opening head on an initially clear, deep orangey-golden robe with amber glow, misty with sediment. Rather weak aroma of indeed clear Brettanomyces but in a somewhat onedimensional way, horseblanket, old leather, damp straw, urine (stronger warming up), bitter honey, crackers, unsalted peanuts, dried dandelion leaves. Dry-fruity onset, very clean and quite straightforward for this kind of beer actually, hinting at persimmon, dried apricot and tamarillo but very vaguely so, low in sweetness with soft carb and smooth, if a tad fluffy mouthfeel. Bread-crusty, peanutty, cracker-ish slick 'amber maltiness', with gently but surely drying wild yeast, refraining itself from the complex funkiness I was hoping for, instead delivering just the basic, laboratory-grown Brett effects of horseblanket and urine - unmistakable, but a bit, well, meagre. Hop bitterness is floral, mellow and short-lived, so it too falls short in adding complexity, though I imagine it has been kept low deliberately; the finish thus ends with a thin amber maltiness and rather quickly fading, monotonous Brett effects. Very sleek and clean - way too much so, in fact, like a kind of baby Orval, or a wild ale for beginners... Who knows what more extended cellaring can do here, but in this relatively fresh form, the Brett - the only dominant player - should have been more complex and positioned against other elements. In this form, it feels a bit like a one-trick pony, but it has been very long since I had its original dark predecessor, maybe a comparison of both could be interesting.
Alengrin (11609) reviewed American Master from De Meester 6 months ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7
Bourbon-infused barleywine with an unmistakable nod to contemporary American politics, a creaton by De Meester, enjoying quite a lot of popularity among the somewhat more educated beer drinker in Belgium. Thick and frothy, sparsely lacing, beaten egg-white, pillowy and fluffy, remarkably stable head on a misty deep mahogany brown robe with purplish-burgundy glow, looking much more like a quadrupel than a barleywine. Strong aroma of blueberry crumble, freshly baked cupcakes, raisin bread, sweet and clearly vanilla-tinged bourbon indeed but not too overwhelming, toffee, even a whiff of milk chocolate, nougat (strong even!), amaretto, 'broodpudding', cookie dough ice cream, pear, clove. Sweet onset, brown sugar sprinkled over ripe pear, blueberry and raisin flavours with a dash of baked banana, soft carbonation with indeed rather vinous, very full mouthfeel; slick, 'heavy' toffee-, nougat- and croissant dough-like malts with a thin chocolatey edge and a touch of sweet (Brazil) nuttiness, but also a quite pronounced toastiness, reminiscent of a Scotch. More bitterness comes from leafy hops in the end, adding something earthy too, and of course the bourbon, which eventually cannot resist to display everything I find annoying about this liquor-infusing hype (other than it being a cheap shortcut for actual barrel ageing), namely by being too present, adding an astringent booziness to the root of the tongue and overpowering the other elements in the finish. Sweetness does, however, linger, almost cola-like at a certain point, but certainly nougat- and caramel-like. I guess in respecting brewer's intent, one could show the kindness to call this a dark barleywine, but to me it feels much more like a quadrupel or even a Scotch (albeit in the maltier, fruitier, yeastier Belgian way) - if this deserves to be called a barleywine, then that goes for Gulden Draak, Kasteelbier or Verboden Vrucht as well... Other than style discussions, though, I must admit that this is a surprising ale, packed with taste, but absolutely one for those with a sweet tooth; the sweetness even cloys a bit, and the overdose of wry bourbon cannot cannot prevent that, it seems. Needs a bit of downtuning in sweetness and especially in bourbon, but with some refinement this could admittedly become a truly good slow sipper. Shows potential, I guess is what one says in such cases.
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Viking Pale Ale from La Croix du Rat 6 months ago
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
The newest beer produced by this tiny microbrewery in Saint Cyprien, a medieval village in the French Dordogne region; allegedly inspired by Vikings, which would either suggest the use of 'northern' herbs or the use of an ancient Scandinavian farmhouse (kveik) yeast strain - but neither of these two seems applicable here. From a 75 cl bottle with crown cap donated by Hinke, cheers! Very thick and frothy, rocky, egg-white, lavishly lacing head on a cloudy peach blonde robe with deep beige tinge, turning all murky and more brownish-grey even in the end - clearly not filtered indeed. Aroma of orange pith, chamomile, soggy biscuit, young mugwort, grapefruit zest, bitter honey, clove, old bread crust, wormwood, raw turnip, drying grass, moist white pepper, tonic water. Fruity, estery onset, peach, pear and vague tamarillo, but only restrainedly sweetish; very fine-bubbled and therefore softish carbonation, fluffy mouthfeel. Full bready, lightly biscuity- and croissant-ish maltiness, quickly bittered by a very pronounced, 'raw', floral, wormwoody hoppiness stretching deep into the throat, with bitter herb-, white pepper- and citrus peel-like flavours mingling with very strongly bready yeastiness, in itself producing a whiff of clove-like phenolic spiciness. Ends quite earthy, a bit dusty even, but also very bread-juicy, spicy and hop bitter - almost as, or rather: exactly like, some or other Walloon blonde, with which it shares average strength as well... The connection with Vikings was even more obscure to me after tasting this, but this is no clean Anglo-Saxon pale ale either: given that the label only mentions 'pale ale' and that the brewer himself is an Irishman, I was expecting one here, but like some of his other creations, this is far more 'Belgian' in style than anything else. I personally can appreciate a super-earthy and bready Walloon style blonde from time to time though, so I am certainly not complaining...
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
APA à l'italienne, by one of Italy's great pioneers in artisanal brewing, having done so for three decades now; from bottle at Pane & Vino, an Italian restaurant in the Nederkouter in Ghent. Salute Jacqueline! Snow white, moussey, medium thick, stable, bit creamy head on a warm orangey golden robe with near-amberish tinge, misty with sediment. Aroma of lemon bread, orange peel, dried lemon thyme, biscuit, vague cheese rind, white pepper, green melon, Cape gooseberry. Crisp, sweetish onset, rounded and focused, clean with the orange, Cape gooseberry and green melon returning, medium in carbonation with slick, oily mouthfeel gliding down dangerously easily. While doing so, it leaves a trace of biscuity malts with a smooth cracker-ish edge, followed by citrusy, mildly peppery and floral hops, providing a bright orange peel- and lemon zest-like aroma and gentle yet confident, adequate bitterness. Supple, bright, colourful APA, very much to the point of what this style is all about - Baladin proving its keen sense of flavour and technique again, but also its deep connection with the earlier days of U.S. style craft brewing. Enjoyed it very much.
Alengrin (11609) reviewed Oester In De Hoek from Dok Brewing Company 6 months ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
The legendary oyster stout, probably more myth than truth, is one style particularity Dok had not tackled yet - until now, and rightly done by filtering the beer over actual oyster shells. Draught at their Welkom café. Medium thick, pale greyish beige, moussey, opening head on a jet black robe. Aroma of espresso powder, cold black coffee, burnt toast, black chocolate, soy sauce, roasted walnuts, charcoal, salmiak, black pepper, brown bread, dry caramel, whisky - but hardly any of the saltiness one would expect from the premise (justly so - if the shells are used as a filter bed, then they should not interfere with the flavour to begin with. Sweetish, rounded onset, dried fig, blackberry, raisin but less sugary, softly carbonated with a very full, oily body; a soy sauce note shows up early, but not in a very thoroughly umami-like way and not too emphatically salty either. Deep toasted brown-bready malts with caramelly edge, quickly shifting to full-blown roasted chicory bitterness, black coffee- and blackened toast-like, with a black pepper-like hoppiness for good measure, all tied together by whisky-like, warming alcohol which remains well in place. The soy sauce note continues, but does not dominate, while all the other flavours too remain in good balance. Potent, deliciously old school roasty imperial stout, basically - and to me one of the best brewed by Dok in quite a while.
Alengrin (11609) reviewed 1 + 1 from Dok Brewing Company 6 months ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7
Dok presenting a grisette again, the light-bodied blonde quencher of Walloon miners from bygone days - and to me one of the most useless 'style revivals' in modern craft beer, because it usually comes down to something either Belgian blonde- or saison-like with no specific set of distinctive features - and on top of that, who cares anyway, because nobody still alive today was already around when grisettes were an actual living tradition... Can from the Delhaize supermarket at the Sterre in Ghent. Irregular, frothy, very pillowy, cobweb-lacing, snow white head over a misty yellow blonde robe with greenish tinge. Aroma of freshly baked white bread, mown lawn, fresh lemongrass, lemonbalm, fresh chamomile, lemon zest, chalky touch, edible violet flowers, hints of wet sand and dry cracked limestone. Quite 'juicy' onset, low in sweetness but still 'green'-fruity, unripe peach, green pear, slightly sourish undertone from carbonation, harshening an otherwise soft, even slightly fluffy mouthfeel. Grainy pale maltiness with a soft white-bready core, under growing hop bitterness, floral, a bit rooty and zesty, bringing citrus pith-, slight lemongrass-, dandelion- and chamomile-like vibes. The hops then deposit a long, drying, quenching, rooty bitterness, which nonetheless remains mellowed by the malts. Utterly quenching summery beer, an ISA-like 'hopsapje' of sorts I guess - the fact that Dok itself uses this rather derogatory term in their own description of this creation on social media probably means they do not take it too seriously themselves. Not bad, in all, though there is no doubt in my mind that if we could bring back an obdurate grisette drinker from way back then with a time machine and serve him this, he would probably not even recognise it as a member of his preferred beer style...