Jopen Adriaan

Jopen
Brewed at Brouwerij Huyghe
Style: Traditional Ale
Haarlem, Netherlands

This deep gold brew with a white merengue head smelled of coriander and citrus , it taste was slightly tart with notes of cherrios and fresh bread, spices round off the flavors (sweet Orange peel and coriander) the mouth feel was medium to thin kinda lifeless after the intial sips.

On tap at Arendsnest, Amsterdam. Hazey white/yellow, with a thickish head. Really nice chalky lemon aroma. Less chalky than expected in the mouth, more sliky in fact, with a lemon meringue pie feeling. Sweet fruit, with creamy fizz and a crunchy carbonation on the finish. Very good stuff, even though I never clocked it was anything other than a standard Wit stylee.

This is, I believe, my first gruit beer and, given the opportunity, will not be my last. Not that it’s that great. More like interesting. (The experience reminds me of having my first Fraoch. Interesting then; enjoyable now.) It pours a cloudy lemon yellow with a skinny white head. The aroma is quite refreshing, grassy, herbal (but not like Koyt, as they say), with a lemon twist. The brew lost its carbonation early on, but has a tart mouthfeel to take its place. Spicy (both sweet and bitter) but light to the taste buds, this has a dry, lemony finish. Nice.

Unsure of the date on this one. I know the last shipment of these hit the U.S. in early-mid 2004, so I will assume this is a 2003 bottle. Light golden pour, lightly hazy/transluscent, bottle conditioned, with a smattering of white head. The color has a greenish tint to it, with some light, rusty orange-yellow tones as well. Aroma is lightly sour/bitter, spruce and gale notes, with a hint of dry, nutty coriander-like notes as well. Flavor has a unique range of spices, some sweet, some bitter, some dry and nutty. A tinge of sugar on the palate and a chewiness no doubt from the oats used. Odd, buttery/cardboard overtones on the palate, that really make this tough to love (diacetyl). Medium-light body, a bit stale tasting on the end. Though it’s bottle conditioned, it tastes like the yeast has petered out. Finishes with more herbs, light citrus (lemons, tangerines) and with an even wheat and oat texture, that seems slightly broken up by a bit too much carbonation. Need to try this one fresh.

Medicinal aroma. Sweet citric, grape, apple flavour. Copper in colour. Interesting and spicy.

Bottle. Sweet aroma, some coriander, citrus and lychee. Sweet palate, flat, with no carbonation on the tongue. The lychee, citrus and coriander spicyness comes through on the palate, aswell as some clove.

Bottled at The London/Joet Gathering Chez Chris_O. A copper coloured beer with a hint of orange and no head. The aroma is full of elderflower and lychee. The taste is over-sweet and syrupy. Very very floral and a bit unpleasantly odd really.

The Kilburn Gathering. Soft fruit and Belgian yeast aroma - nice. Dryish, biscuity, light fruit. Pleasant.