Belgium

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Beers 41 - 52 of 52:

Van Honsebrouck, St Louis Premium Framboise (Belgium) This beer pours a very deep, cherry red colour that is slightly cloudy. The off white head fades very quickly. The nose has a intense aromas of slightly artificial raspberry and bright, jammy fruit, with a nice sour, lemon and yeast background note. It is very powerful aromatically. On the palate there is a huge sweetness that immediately coats the mouth with syrupy, red liquorice, cherry and raspberry fruit. This states "raspberries 25%" on the label, though the sweetness seems too much to be entirely natural. There is a nice backstop of sour, actually quite nicely weighted lambic flavour, and though that sweetness persists, this concentrated, intense fruit beer has plenty of personality. 2.8% ABV, 25cl.

Van Honsebrouck, St Louis Premium Kriek (Belgium) Containing 25% fresh cherries in the brew, St Louis Premium Kriek pours a stunning crimson red with a fluffy, bright pink head. There is something very summery about the nose, with some grassy notes beneath the dominant cherry and cherry bubblegum aromas. There is a little hint of creamy malt too. On the palate it is sweet, with a thick, mouth-filling texture and very good fruit. There's masses of flavour here, and a spritely acidity that really sharpens up the finish to leave it delicious and refreshing. 3.2% ABV, 25cl, �1.19, Beersofeurope.

Van Honsebrouck, St Louis Premium Peche (Belgium) This Lambic beer, made with 30 per cent peach or peach juice, pours a barley-sugar colour with a hint of peachy white in the moderate head. There's a sour lemon and slightly vinegary note on the nose, and just the merest suggestion of fruit. On the palate it is medium-bodied and quite creamy, with an initial sweetness that is fruity, but not specifically peachy, which is odd. It has fairly good acidity and a touch of malty richness that stops it from being too cloying, but the delicacy and vibrant peach juice quality I'd expect are missing. 2.6% ABV, 25cl, �1.40, Cave Direct.

Van Steenberge, Augustijn (Belgium) My bottle of this live (yeast in) Abbey beer poured with an enormous, high rise white head over a hazy light yellow/caramel coloured body. Brewed to a recipe by the Augustinian fathers of Ghent from 1295, it has a lovely nose of spices, rotten oranges, sour cherry and complex floral and yest-derived estery notes. On the palate it is medium-bodied and has a fresh, light mouthfeel that defies its 8.0% ABV. There are citrus and malty, honey and mollases notes, and plenty of that clove and ginger spice. It has a long, quite powerful sour finish that is rather moreish. 8.0% ABV, 33cl, �1.95, Onlyfinebeer, .

Van Steenberge, Bornem Dubbel (Belgium) A live, dark Dubbel Belgian beer, Bornem pours a hazy, pretty opaque brown with a foamy, coffee-coloured head. The nose is quite subtle here, with a caramel and toffee note, but not flamboyant. Some clove and sour yeasty notes come through, and a soft, berry fruited suggestion of sweetness. On the palate it is quite rich, but a decisive note of lemon and underripe pear acidity gives real bite. There is a malty, almost chocolaty richness that comes through on this, but the medium-bodied format and that very steely, crisp finish make this a refreshing beer yet, one that sits somewhat at odds with the warming depth suggested by the nose. 8.0% ABV, 33cl, �1.59, Onlyfinebeer, .

Van Steenberge, Bornem Trippel (Belgium) This strong Blonde beer pours a pale yellow colour with a high-rise, foamy off-white head that leaves plenty of lacing as it subsides. It has a very attractive, yeasty nose with estery notes of banana and clove, freshly-baked bread and citrus fruit. Despite being a Tripel beer, there's no overriding maltiness. On the palate it is quite full and chewy, with a firm, almost liquoricy edge to the fruit and firm, precise bitterness and tangy acidity that is dry and savoury. There's a strong herbal streak and plenty of mouth-tingling spice, in an unusual, assertive, but very interesting beer. 9.0% ABV, 33cl, .

Van Steenberge, Bruegel Amber Ale (Belgium) This live amber ale pours a glowing amber colour with a lacy, off-white head. On the nose there is a sour fruit quality of cherry and apples, with a sweet malty note and quite a sour, Lambic character. On the palate it is fairly light-bodied, making a good introduction to the style - one to break a lager-drinker in gently! Flavours are citrussy and fresh, with a little malt sweetness and slightly weak finish. 5.2% ABV, 33cl, .

Van Steenberge, Gulden Draak (Belgium) This "Barley Wine" comes in a faux-stone bottle, and with a whopping 10.5% ABV, it is fittingly named "Golden Dragon". The beer pours a dark brown with a thick, persistent cappuccino-coloured head. It has a lovely nose, filled with raisins, chocolate-coated cherries and a spicebox of clove, sandalwood and tobacco. On the palate it is full and thick-textured, with a weight of malty, chocolaty flavours and sumptuous depth. It is not cloying however, nor one-dimensional, as lots of bitter flavours emerge, with grapefruit pith dryness balancing sweeter tones, and nutmeg and clove warming the finish. Like sitting in front of a crackling log fire in the depth of winter. 10.5% ABV, 33cl, �1.99, Belgianbeerclub, Cave Direct, The Offie, Onlyfinebeer, , Beerritz.

Van Steenberge, Piraat (Belgium) A very strong, amber ale from Steenberg that pours a cloudy medium yellow/gold colour with a fluffy off-white head. I got an intriguing whiff of bacon fat on this at first sniff, with warming, honeyed malt character coming through and notes of sour preserved lemons in the mix. On the palate it is very smooth, thick and mouth-filling, with an unctuous quality suggesting a malty sweetness at first, before more fruity, plummy and orange flavours push into the mid-palate. The finish is powerful with an array of spices, and then the sweetness in the beer reasserts again. The finish is rich and rolling, with plenty of alcoholic warmth. 10.5% ABV, 33cl, Onlyfinebeer, .

Verhaeghe, Duchesse de Bourgogne (Belgium) This red ale has very similar qualities to Rodenbach, with a very sour profile. It is a blend of oak-aged and younger beers, and it's colour is a deep treacle with a chink of ruby. The head is foaming and off-white. On the nose there is a very powerful perfume of sour cherries and a wine-like, but almost vinegary quality. There's a hint of something unctuous and sweet too, and some spice and herbal notes. Some wild, almost animal nuances develop in a highly complex set of aromas. On the palate there is a thick, creamy texture and an astonishingly sweet attack, with intense fruity sweetness before that big, sour back-stop of underripe cherry and lemon takes a grip of the finish. Sweeter than Rodenbach, and perhaps a little more extravagent, it is a lovely sweet/sour beer and very distinctive. 6.2% ABV, 25cl, �1.49, Peckhams, Beerritz.

Westmalle, Dubbel Trappist Ale (Belgium) This beer pours very dark, a chocolaty brown/ruby colour with a foamy, thick head. The nose is immediately fruity and spicy, with a honey and malt background and quite a bright, herb and pear note. On the palate it is surprisingly crisp and fruity rather than overtly malty and dark. There's a cherry and red berry quality, and a medium- to full-bodied texture, with quite a nice hoppy, bittersweet grip. There is a chocolate and dark, roasted element and a touch of sour cherry. What a nicely balanced beer. 7.0% ABV, 33cl, �1.50, Asda, Luvians, Peckhams, Safeway, quite widely available.

Westmalle, Tripel Trappist Ale (Belgium) At a whopping 9.5% ABV, Westmalle's Tripel takes no prisoners. It pours an innocuous, fairly hazy gold, with a high-rise white head that leaves a distinct lacing. On the nose it is fabulously complex, with cloves and ginger spices in abundance, a big core of overripe melon fruit and hints of both sour apple and fruit-cake richness. On the palate it is full and fantastically tangy: again it is extremely complex, with all sorts of luscious, toffeed flavours vying with crisp fruit, sour notes and estery banana and confectionery. There's such a warmth of spice and alcohol too of course, in a totally hedonistic, even slightly overwhelming beer. But make no mistake: absolutely brilliant stuff. 9.5% ABV, 33cl, �2.29, Beersofeurope, Euro-beer, Peckhams, Pitfield Beer Shop, Beerritz.