Ichtegems Grand Cru

Brewed by Brouwerij Strubbe
Style: Sour Ale
Ichtegem, Belgium

Sampled on-tap 5-7-2007. Pours a dark brown that looks like ruby when held to light. Heavily clouded. Nose is strong with wood and a touch of cherry. Flavor is pretty sweet and not really that sour at all. Firm, but not obnoxious wood tones. Feel is standard on the liquid and slightly bubbled on the tongue. Very drinkable. If you don’t like the more sour versions of this style, you might appreciate this tamer version.

Bottle. Pour a clear deep amber with a small off-white head that fades to a ring and leaves good lacing. Aroma of tart cherries, oak, and brett spice. Taste is tart cherries, oak, and some barnyard goodness. Medium thin mouthfeel with a mild amount of bitterness and nice acidic finish. Very good.

Pours a deep ruby brown color with a light brown head. Aroma is funky, some sweetness, oak, vanilla, and tart fruit. Flavor is oak, funk, vanilla, tart fruit with a dry woody finish.

Bottle. Ruby beer with a light cocoa-colored head. Fruity, strange cocoa (?) aroma with oak and malt. Oaky, fruity, grain flavor with grain growing and growing. Medium body. Grainy, mouth puckering, chemical finish. Just bad.

Sampled as part of a BJCP training session. Hazy brownish reddish appearance. Aroma quite woody, light cherry. Flavor is light, balanced oak, wood, faint cherry, and a touch of sourness. Interesting. Not bad at all.

Pours ruby with a mostly receding light tan head. Aroma of cherries, oak and leather. Taste is oaken fruits, brett, leather, wood, barnyard, and moderate sour acids. Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied with lush carbonation. An enjoyable sour ale, despite the low ratings.

Pours a deep ruby brown with a fizzy cobwebby looking head with spotty lace. Aroma is wierd- stale cola-like, earth, and lots of dirt, rusty nails- oxidation and cherry pits. Flavor is nutty and toasty, with a wierd sharp bite- burnt pancakes, more metal, pennies, some tartness, oxidized, wet cardboard, soy, and a bit fishy. Astringent and tart finish withmore dirt and mustiness and then it fades to almost nothing. One of the worst Flemish Reds I have had.

Dark red with medium, off-white head. Highly carbonated. Fruity/yeasty aroma. Nicely balanced sour/sweet taste with lingering sourness and oak/vanilla.