Spalter Edel-Export Dunkel

Spalter Edel-Export Dunkel
0,5l
5,5%

You might remember my start of a series about the brews of one of Germanies last communally owned city brewery in Spalt. I have another baby from this charming small brewery, a dark Export.
For those of you not familiar with that beer: Here is a small article about it.

Anyways I do like dark roasted beers and I like the beer from Spalt so I hope that this might be nice. I apologize for the darkish pictures but it is already 11 PM.

It has a standard Spalt label, mainly red and blue, showing what I guess is the city of Spalt and in front of it the apparently well known hops that they grow there.

Simple beer so simple glass. Nothing fancy like a tasting glass for something down t earth like this brew.

Though the picture might make it appear reddish, it is more of a light hazelnut color. Nut as red brown or dark brown like the dark beers I am used to, also filtered and very clear. I can easily look through, which speaks for itself when it comes to the color. A nice big bubbled caramel colored head, dissipating mediocre fast.

The aroma is almost meaty. I have had his before on some brews, it reminds me of fresh raw meat... no idea why. There are faint roast aromas and the carbonation tickles my nose, which speaks for a certain tartness. Somehow the images I get are a classical German pub with a lot of smoke in the air.

Ratebeer doesn't seem to be too convinced and rates it lower than its lighter sister the Export Hell.

The carbonation is strong in the beginning and stings a bit. The first facets of the brew that strike me is a side taste of non alcoholic malt beer that is common in Germany... a bit like Finnish koti olut.
The second aspect is the rich roast aroma which sadly dissipates fast and leaves an unsatisfied feeling. The alcohol is definitely there and as you know I really don't like it when I can taste it. It's missing more umami. While it serves a nice bitter dark it is not very fulfilling in other categories. The aftertaste is there on the back of te palate but all in all this is rather mediocre.

Prost!

DMW

Ichtegem's Grand Cru

Ichtegem's Grand Cru
330ml
6,5%

The more expensive brother of yesterdays Oud Bruin, this Flemish Red Ale has been matured in oak barrels and has one label more than the red capped brother from yesterday. The label is more or less the same and as already mentioned, the cap this time is white not red. I was thinking of saving this baby but it has been in the fridge for over 24 hours and I truly can't be arsed to wait for another one to get cold so this one it is.. also it fits as I had the brother yesterday.

The color is lighter than yesterday though the pictures don't show that very well. The foam again is light caramel and dissipates very fast though I did my very best to conjure up a nice head.

Ratebeer also has a very high rating for this, more than double than the smaller brother from yesterday.

The aroma at least is a lot better than yesterday. I can detect spices, the wood tones from the oak barrel and a fine tartness. It reminds me of Glögi or Glühwein with cloves and cinnamon. Complex aroma indeed. that makes me wanna drink this now!

This is awesome. It takes yesterdays aroma but tops it. It starts sweet only to warp into tartness and end with wine like aftertaste and decent bitterness.

I have said this before but this definitely is one of the best brews I have had the last few years. The aftertaste is complex with delicate bitterness and very fine yeast tones, coupled with the fruity tartness of gooseberries topped with warm spices.

Absolutely worth trying!

I dedicate this post to Turo! Great work running the Amsterdam Marathon!

Prost!

DMW

Ichtegem's Oude Bruin

Ichtegem's Oude Bruin
250ml
5,5%

So my little brother who happens to be 12 years older than me went to atrip to Belgium and brought back some babies for me. I cut back my beer drinking so my posts might be less in their intervals.
The task I gave my brother was to bring some Oude Bruin which is a sort of beer I learned to like a long while ago in Dutchieland.


So Ichtegem's isn't rated too high on Ratebeer but then again I haven't tasted one in ages so I prolly wouldn't recognize a good one if it hit me in the face.
As the weather is getting bad it is also time to take the pictures inside .. Winter is coming!

The small bottle is really simple in design. A small plain bottle with one simple label and a red cap. Nothing special so far but I don't drink the label but the beer so...

So seriously as a first impression this smells vile... like strong liquor or sherry, sweet, heavy and very sour... I might even guess that this yeast has gone bad but we shall see. I do like sour/tart beer so it might be a challenge. There is a cork smell mixed with a sour something...

Thew brew is very dark black with mediocre caramel colored foam that was hard to conjure up and dissipated even faster.

The taste is reaaaally nice (though my mum just said that it tastes like vinegar..) I find a complex mixture of sweet and sour with a fine bitter end note. It is very nice and fruity with many sub tones. Fresh sweet cherries mixed with very faint wood tones that leave a nutty feeling on the tongue. The bitter side notes fill  the whole mouth and palate in the after taste.

This was a true surprise, especially as the aroma is truly not very appealing.

Prost!

DMW