Tuesday, August 4, 2009

I'm in the mood for something old and fruity!























I'm having an ECHT KRIEKENBIER from the lovely small family brewery of Verhaeghe. For the most part, this little brewery supplies oud bruin and pilsners to the locals in Vichte, Belgium. They do a variety of oud bruins and flemish sour ales. Echt Kriekenbier is a West-Flemish red-brown ale matured in oak casks, with 150g of cherries added. Cherries add some sweetness to the beer--oud bruins are traditionally pretty sour. I love them, but this is a beer for a palate that has been around the block, beer-wise, a few times. I wouldn't give this to someone you were trying to convert to better beer from, say, Coors Light. It is light in body, mildly effervescent, tart and sour like a dark-cherry extremely complex jolly rancher, and a beautiful dark cherry red color. I actually have cherries in my fridge right now that are the same color. Served cold, it's really refreshing, and now that warm summer weather is finally here, why not ditch the lemony American wheat beers for a day or two and go sour?

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