De Ranke Père Noël

Brewed by Brouwerij De Ranke
Style: Belgian Ale
Dottignies/Dottenijs, Belgium

11.2oz bottle. Glowing thick orange-tan color. A yeasty creaminess and hoppy dryness that is unusual for a Christmas beer. Delicious, complex but drinkable at 7%. Some sweet herbal tones happening as well. Great beer. I rated this lower out of the 750ml bottle later..giving it a 3.8.

Bottle: Poured a cloudy dirty hazy beige color ale with a huge foamy head with good retention and some good lacing. Aroma of Saaz dry hops with some light dry funky notes. Taste is dominated by dry Saaz notes with a light funky notes, some floral notes and a quite dry ending and all this being supported by a nice Belgian malt backbone. Full body with limited filtration and great carbonation and no apparent alcohol. Interesting experience but maybe a tad too dry to be enjoyed on a repetitive basis.

330ml bottle from Hopduvel, Gent. Hazy orange with a tight, moderate white head. Aroma of yeast and spice with a touch of earthy hops. Bitter tasting with some tingly hops, subtle spice and a decent dry finish. Very good.

Poured from 11.2oz bottle a light golden brown with creamy small white head. Aromas of tart lemon peel, yeast, and bread. The palate on this one is very dry, tart bitter. Flavors check in with some earthy bitter hops, tart yeast, and hay ending in a slight alcohol warmth. Not what I expected of a Belgian Christmas beer, but it make a for an ESB type beer instead. This beer was OK but not one I would come back to often.

Bottle 33 cl. Huge uncontrollable fizzy white head that mostly lasted. Excellent display of lacework. Cloudy amber color. Aroma of yeast, fruit, alcohol, citrus, grain and caramel. Over the palate came spicy notes, slightly bitter alcoholic and orange peel notes. Medium bodied with an average carbonation and light alcoholic texture. Moderated sweet flavor with hint of bitter and acidic. Fruity acidic like spicy finish.

Brown bottle, 33 cl, best before November 2012, via Importations Privées Bièropholie, savoured on April 26 2008; eye: copper, hazy, voluminous creamy white head that disappears rather rapidly, good lacing, slight effervescence; nose: yeast, spices, caramel, light fruity, light citrusy; mouth: hops bitterness amplifies the alcohol for a not so pleasant feel but that feeling becomes more pleasant as the beer warms up, caramel is quite present, light fruity, pepper, alcohol, light orange, finale in hops with a good presence of alcohol and pepper, lightly harsh in the throat, lightly sweet, mildly bitter, medium body, slightly oily texture, rather carbonated, mild astringency; overall: disappointing FRANÇAIS Bouteille brune, 33 cl, meilleure avant Novembre 2012, via Importations Privées Bièropholie, savourée le 26 avril 2008; œil : cuivrée, voilée, mousse blanche volumineuse et crémeuse qui disparaît plutôt rapidement, bonne dentelle, très légère effervescence; nez : levure, épices, caramel, léger fruité, léger citrique; bouche : amertume du houblon amplifie l’alcool pour une sensation pas très plaisante mais qui devient moins déplaisante au fur et à mesure que la bière se réchauffe, caramel est pas mal présente, léger fruité, poivre, alcool, léger orange, finale en houblon avec une bonne présence d’alcool et de poivre, légèrement rugueuse en fond de gorge, légèrement sucrée, moyennement amère, corps moyen, texture légèrement huileuse, plutôt carbonatée, astringence moyenne; en résumé : déçu

Aroma is a light fruity scent with a slight yeast tone. Color is a brownish orange with light carbonation and a very thin but tight head. Taste is cidery and bitter. Starting with a light/medium body it goes down with a crisp bite. Finish comes in bitter with a cider like feel and more bitterness. In the after taste the bitterness turns sharp with a sour taste and a strong alcohol feel. Its all bitterness, there’s no malt or tasty Belgian yeast and the alcohol is way to strong for a beer that has 8%. I am very disappointed with this, maybe I got a bad bottle, it just not a good brew.

Bottle - not sure of age but its dated as Best by 2010. Poured a hazy bronze, with a foaming head but little carbonation in the beer itself. Palate was soft, a tad thinner than expected with light carbonation . Aroma beings with a sugary bready malt, very light phenol and just a vague fruitiness that could be tropical. Flavor shows a little bit of herbal hop and an indistinct spice somewhat of thyme. Pretty balanced with a nice easy finish, though thinning out toward the end.