Bruegel Amber Ale

Brewed by Brouwerij Van Steenberge
Style: Belgian Ale
Ertvelde, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

Bottle purchased at John’s Grocery in Iowa City, IA. Pours a hazy copper with a creamy ecru head that diminishes to a skin at the surface and laces nicely. The nose is of toasted barley with a touch of floral hops in support. Medium-bodied and creamy with a lightly bitter and mildly dry finish. The flavor is of toasty, sweet and lightly sour malt with a mild supporting note of floral hops. This is a pretty solid brew. I’m surprised to see it with such a low average rating.

The Dan Journal #189. Tasted 7/3/08. 330ml bottle. Filtered with a golden hue. Lingering lacing white head. Perfumy wheaty nose. Estery. Medium bodied and tart. Bready malt notes. Tangy and fruity with a subtle caramel flavor. Average.

Bottle from my variety 6. Poured light copper color with small head. Aroma of slight yeast and cornmeal. Not too much going on with this beer. Heavy carbonation with a dry finish. Not much flavor in between.

11.2 ounce bottle as a part of a mixed 6 pack that was purchased at the Davis Food Co-Op. This motherfucker was a gusher that caught me off guard. Not very happy about the mess it has left me. Aroma is quite grainy and cereal like. There is a bit of a musty yeast aroma with a touch of metallic sweetness. Mildly hazy copper color with a little extra orange hue. Huge off-yellow head that explodes out of the bottle. Appearance takes the hit for this being a gusher. Starts a bit sweet with a touch of metal and a light astringency. Becomes toasty, grainy, and very cereal like in the middle. Kellog’s Corn Flakes comes to mind. FInishes with a bit of a spiciness and without too much in the way of hops. I like the chewy and cereal-like nature of this beer.

33cl bottle from ABC Liquors (North Dale Mabry, Tampa, FL). Rated on 5/6/08. Pours a clear golden with a one-finger white head. Aroma is banana, spice, apple, pear, and slight hints of phenol. Flavor is not strong but notes of malt, sweet fruit and bread come through. Generally watery mouthfeel with a some hints of apple on finish.

A darkish amber, truly beautiful color, but then things go south a bit. The head dissapears like a magician, not that that’s ever been important to me, but the aroma is something very familiar. Some American micro that they slap ’Amber’ on just because they’re not sure what else to call it and it tastes a days worth of biscuits. The best part of this beer is the barely detectable Van Steenberge yeast familiar in all their beers. Shame on me for drinking this between the Piraat and the Gulden Draak, but this is one of those breweries where you thing they might have done well brewing 7 or 8 really good brews rather than take the Sam Adams path and release everything you ever experimented with.

(Bottle) Pours a clear amber with a creamy white head. Aroma of apples, grass, honey, caramel, and sweet malt. Bittersweet flavor, hoppy, sometimes watery but in general, it has a good medium body. A very drinkable and well balanced amber ale.

Apple cider with a white soapy slowly diminishing head. Aroma of grassy hops, earthy hops and light sweet malt. Taste of mild earthy hops, corn, yeast and sweet malts with a mild apple aftertaste. Thin and astringent, barely drinkable and definitely forgettable.