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Add this to your long term beer shopping list….
I will usually get a bottle of Delirium Tremens beer around Christmas because people see the elephant and fancy heavy bottle and see it as a good gift for the beer fan and I enjoy it each time. But this sour quad has me intrigued even more.
At the beginning of the month this was posted….
First and foremost, great idea. Whenever I dip my toe back into Belgian beers, I am quickly reminded how great they are. Heck, even Unibroue Canadian brewed Belgian-styled beers are great.
My second thought and one that I mulled over here and there in between the initial post and now is maybe there should be months for under appreciated styles and your IPAs and Stouts can have their one day since they don’t really need any stumping for.
There could be an English Milds and bitters month. A lambic and gueuze month. Just to name to that I would like to see. But there could be a Canadian beer month or Japanese beer month.
Let’s start with Belgium first. Each weekend, buy one or two for yourself and treat someone else in your beer orbit to one as well.
Brouwerij Lindemans has reached a really major milestone and has a new beer made for the special occasion.
“To celebrate our 200 years of existence, we present to you our exclusive anniversary Cuvée: Oude Gueuze Anniversary Blend 2022 “Cuvée Francisca”. After a spontaneous fermentation, this 4-year-old lambic and young lambic aged in oak moths refine in bottles for 12 months.”
The brewery continues, “…the ancient Cuvée Francisca unveils a flavor of agrum and oak as well as notes of vanilla, combined with a sherry aroma and a refreshing acidity. An ancient dry, complex and perfectly balanced gueze.”
Two things for you to do…
Check HERE for locations. And if nothing else, make the 25th your reminder to pop open a bottle of Cantillon.
You still have most of this month to plan a trip to the OG beer garden of Los Angeles. Below is what should tempt you.
“The month of May is very special for the Stuffed Sandwich. The Stuffed Sandwich opened in May of 1976 – 45 years ago.
We always celebrate with Belgium Beers on draft.”
Here is this month’s selection:
BROUWERIJ ST. BERNARDUS – WATOU, BELGIUM
ST. BERNARDUS WIT ‘2020’
Traditional Belgian White Ale developed and brewed in collaboration with the Legendary Master Brewer Pierre Celis (known for the original white ale recipe- Hoegaarden White) wheaty, apple-like tartness with notes of coriander & orange, very refreshing
BRASSERIE ST. FEUILLIEN – LE ROEULX,HAINAUT, BELGIUM
ST. FEUILLIEN BLONDE – ‘2020’
Belgian Blonde Ale brewed with spices & citrus, nice mix of Belgian yeast, malt and coriander, slight bitterness on the finish
BROUWERIJ BOSTEELS – BUGGENHOUT, EAST FLANDERS, BELGIUM
KWAK PAUWEL AMBER ALE ‘2020’
Belgian Strong Ale with a nice taste of caramel, malt and dried fruit; has some sweetness with a hint of vinegar on the finish
BRASSERIE D’ACHOUFFE – ACHOUFFE, BELGIUM
LA CHOUFFE GOLDEN ALE ‘2021’
Belgian Golden Ale an unfiltered blonde ale brewed with coriander & invert sugar syrup; hints of fruit, spices, sugar and caramel
SCOURMONT ABBEY TRAPPIST BIERES DE CHIMAY – BAILEUX, BELGIUM
CHIMAY PREMIERE RED ‘2019’
Belgian Red (Dubbel) Ale brewed by monks at their monastery; nice blend of dried fruit, candy & caramel; slightly sweet/slightly tart
BROUWERIJ DE HALVE MAAN – BRUGES, WEST FLANDERS, BELGIUM
STRAFFE HENDRIK BRUGS TRIPEL ‘ 2020’
Belgian Tripel brewed in the city of Bruges since 1856. Top fermented and is still brewed according to the original recipe all these years later; has taste of spices, cloves, coriander, ginger and black pepper, semi-bitter finish
BRASSERIE DUPONT – TOURPET, BELGIUM
DUPONE AVEC LES BONS VOEUX ‘2020’
Belgian Saison brewed for the holidays – Bons Voeux means Good Wishes; higher alcohol for a Saison than most saisons, hints of apples, spicy and floral
BROUWERIJ VAN STEENBERGE NV, ERTVELDE, BELGIUM
MONK’S CAFE FLEMISH SOUR ALE ‘2020’
Belgian Sour Flemish Ale – it’s a blend of young and older beers, taste of wine, dried fruit, berries and caramel; has a sweet/sour finish
BROUWERIJ DE BRABANDERE NV – BAVIKHOVE, BELGIUM
PETRUS AGED RED ALE (SOUR CHERRY) ‘2019’
Belgian Red Ale aged in oak foeders; the base is a double brown ale 15% Petrus Pale Ale is added to provide a dry character andslight sour flavor, fresh cherries are added towards the end ofbrewing; nice blend of sweet and sour
Coming Next:
June: LA County Beers on Draft!
July: Summer Beers on Draft!!
August: Sweet and Sour Beers on Draft!!!
I went straight up the ladder you 10 since Trappistes Rochefort does not have a 9 which is my favorite number.
10 – pours a dark amber red color. The head just doesn’t diminish. I watched as it took many minutes to flatten down. Yeast esters on the nose headlined by banana. Not so much spice though that I would expect. Quite bready and sweet. A dessert quality to it. A “wet” beer but not viscous.
Might as well start big right. Heading into the new DefCon series from Faction Brewing at #1, the Belgian Quadruple. It pours a dark cola color and the candi sugar is the first dominant aroma and taste that I get. It has a syrupy sweetness to it. I start picturing it as a float with salted caramel ice cream to balance the flavors. There is a bit of spice layered underneath which adds a nice counterpoint. As it warms up, the flavors flatten a bit and the whole works well. Looking forward to trying the other numbers in the series b
A Belgian alert! Faction Brewing has sent some DEFCON SoCal’s way…
DEFCON 1: Belgian Quadruple – 9.5% ABV
DEFCON 2: Belgian Tripel – 7.4% ABV
DEFCON 5: Belgian Table Beer – 4.2% ABV
Now we just have to wait and see what 3 and 4 are style-wise..
Consider this your one-week warning to stock up on Orval because…
…this should be a beer that all beer geeks have at least once a year and the 21st is as good a date as any.
If you thought the world of Belgian beer was easy to peg, well, You have to look for more than just the Trappist seal. Jeff at the Beervana Blog has compiled a helpful list that I know I will check back to in 2020.
Look at the rundown, right HERE.