Best Sours?
- Thread starter McMalty
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I think Duchess and Faro taste HORRIBLE!!!
Monks Cafe is a decent, affordable, entry level sour beer
Leipzeiger Gose is a light, quite sour, great on a hot day beer. possibly my favorite.
Lindemans Cuvee Rene is extremely vinegary and good
Hanssens Olde Gueze is insanely salty, good, and unique
BFM makes many good sours.
Russain River makes many good sours, but they don't distribute to my state
Flemish red is my favorite variety of sour beer.
Monks Cafe is a decent, affordable, entry level sour beer
Leipzeiger Gose is a light, quite sour, great on a hot day beer. possibly my favorite.
Lindemans Cuvee Rene is extremely vinegary and good
Hanssens Olde Gueze is insanely salty, good, and unique
BFM makes many good sours.
Russain River makes many good sours, but they don't distribute to my state
Flemish red is my favorite variety of sour beer.
Maybe I got a poorly stored bottle, but I'm drinking one right now, and it's not good. It smells like Fat Tire (which is not my favorite beer). It tastes like Fat Tire with a bit more roast/chocolate. I get very little (no) sour component, and there is a VERY metallic finish (like pennies and aluminum foil - VERY strong!). I'll try it again if I find it on tap, but I can't call this a good beer.
I do like all of Russian River's sour series as well as New Belgium's La Folie and Unplugged Sour Brown from New Glarus.
dcHokie
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Yuri, I wasn't impressed with Clutch either. Pretty muddled, I didn't want to finish the bottle.
dwarven_stout
Well-Known Member
Yeah. I had Clutch and Kick on tap in the same night, and did not care for either. New Belgium has done far better, and I felt like they really dropped the ball on these two.
dcHokie
Well-Known Member
Agree with most that 3 fonteine, cantillon, and Russian River are amazing.
I know a thing or two about Supplication.
That is a really, really cool photo
user 84304
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Had the pleasure of splitting a bottle of Cantillon Lou Pepe - Framboise 2007 on Friday with some beer-friends at my LHBS. Needless to say, the best framboise I've ever tasted....ever. Sincerely, they make some of, if not the best in the world. Forget Lindeman's...bunch of garbage those things are.
ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
I enjoy lambic/gueuze and oud bruins. I can't get into the Flanders reds too much. Petrus oud bruin -- which is really a red -- is as much as I enjoy. I do not like Duchess or Monk's Cafe. Both are too vinegary and taste too much like balsamic vinegar. I also did not enjoy La Folie. Obviously to each his or her own.
I bought two bottles and drank one. Honestly I was a bit disappointed given the quality of the other sours in the Lips of Faith series from NB (huge fan of La Folie, La Terrior, and the Kriek). Buddy and I just brewed a 30 gallon batch of stout to sour that we are aging in an oak barrel so I've been seeking out any sour stouts I can find. The Madrugada Obscura from Jolly Pumpkin is by far my favorite so far, it blows Clutch out of the water. Not to say Clutch is a bad beer, but I had high expectations.
-kap
If you want to try an RR beer and you like La Folie I highly suggest Beatification. In my opinion it's the most sour beer I've had from RR. Basically it only has one characteristic, citrusy sour. Consecration is actually my favorite from RR, but it's not nearly as tart as La Folie if that is what you are looking for.
-kap
dwarven_stout
Well-Known Member
Seriously? La Folie varies a bit by year, and is a different kind of sour than Consecration, but I definitely felt like Consecration is more sour in absolute terms. I haven't had this year's La Folie though... maybe I should get one of each and test the pH. :rockin:
bovineblitz
Well-Known Member
Ithaca Brute is fantastic. Le Bleu might even be better.
The reviews of Clutch, and Kick for that matter, are what worries me when buying an unknown sour. It only had hints of sour to me, but from some of the reviews you wouldn't know it. Comparing it to a well known style gives a point of reference at least. Relating which RR sours are in the same general class as other well known sours like an Eric's Ale or La Folie is helpful. I was already planning on getting Beatification and Consecration, so it is good to hear they do have some tartness.
The one dimensional aspect of Beatification that you refer to is not what I look for, but is worth a try. I like La Folie for the complexity along with the powerful acetic character. Regarding La Folie vintages, it does vary, but much less than it used to, and much less than some of the early years from what I hear. I think it is on year round release now. It has been flowing continuously at my local bar for a year.
I had a Flanders Red, Cuvee des Jacobins Rouge, on draught that was good. Not super sour, but well balanced and no off flavors. It was similar to Duchesse, but without all the cloying sweetness and a bit more acid/tartness. Worth a try if it shows up at your local bar. It used to be rebranded as an Ommegang, but is being marketed as a true Belgian now.
bovineblitz
Well-Known Member
I find Duchesse to be waaaaaaaaay too sweet for me. It makes me feel a bit queasy, kind of like a flavored vodka or something. All that sugar bothers me.
Yes, I was disappointed with Duchesse. The Cuvee des Jacobins has none of the sweetness, but a similar flavor and more of it. Very drinkable while still having some sour kick. I need to try it again to confirm, but I thought it was a very well made Flanders.
How does Rodenbach Grand Cru compare to La Folie? I read La Folie is a bastard child of Grand Cru from a keg the head brewer brought with him. I will have to see if a neighboring state imports Rodenbach.
Festina Peche vs. Eric's Ale?
Sorry for all the NB comparison requests, but my state government protects me from any dangerous small batch stuff. We get some true Belgian imports, but I can never remember the names, and they aren't the famous ones. Must be a loophole, or campaign contribution, that lets those slip through.
I've been saving a 2009 and 2010 La Folie. Next time I pick up a 2011 La Folie, I'm going to invite some beer snob buddies over to vertical them. I'll report back to this thread.
They are both excellent beers. The difference to my pallet is that the La Folie has some real maltyness to it (it's a brown and I get that crystal flavor), while the Grand Cru has more of a sugary or cidery sweetness on the back end. Both are tart, but to me the La Folie is a bit more lactic while the Grand Cru is a sweet fruity tartness.
-kap
The 2011 was only in pasteurized 220z bombers. The kegs are supposedly live, or so I hear. There is a definite taste difference. If you can find a bar with it on tap that will let you uncork the other bottles, you could even compare keg vs. pasteurized.
La Folie seems to be a continuous release now, so the vintages may be a thing of the past. I hear they will still do a yearly bottling, in live 750ml's again, but the kegs will be blended/filled throughout the year. This is a result of the giant foeders they are now using instead of barrels.
