Kasteel Kriek

Brewed by Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck
Style: Fruit Beer
Ingelmunster, Belgium

Serve in Flute

Wow, this was a surprise. It’s really, really good. Huge cherry nose, as one might expect. Deep, rich cherry flavor - almost decadent. Cherries mix nicely with some chocolate and a subltle, mellow bitterness. On tap, Thirsty Monk, Asheville.

On tap at Luka’s Taproom (Oakland, CA). This red beer poured with a miniscule pink head. There is a very sweet cherry flavor with a slightly harsh finish. Makes a great dessert beer.

Bottled, named Kasteel Rouge. Clear redbrown color, short off-white head. Aroma of cherries, some marzipan, not sweet sugary though. But aroma is of a cheap-ass kriek. Taste is very fruity of cherry, mild tart only, slight sweet, quite thick. Definitely not a lambic indeed, obvious fruit beer.

Appearance: Pours a clear, deep, dark ruby-hued body capped by an inch of pink foam. Smell: Candy-like nose of sweet-smelling concentrated cherry juice. Jolly Ranchers cooked down into a pot of Kool-Aid where somewhere didn’t add nearly enough water. Taste: Super sweet blend of melted lollipops, Luden’s Wild Cherry cough drops, and grenadine. Very light cherry tartness. Some meager perceived hints at actual malts, but it’s pretty much straight-up cherries through and through. Mouthfeel: Medium-plus body. Medium-low carbonation. Drinkability: A bit simple with it’s delivery of just cherries and jolting sweetness. Me, I’d sooner reach for something a bit more graceful, like New Glarus Belgian Red. Still though, I found it reasonably enjoyable, but I could see many people considering this to be outright cloying.

From a bottle at GBF 2011. Deep copper with mediium pink head. Fresh cherry aroma. Medium bodied with soft carbonation. A bit too sweet.

Thanks to beastiefan2k for unloading this beer on me - dark purple beer with large off-white bubbles around the edges of the glass - grape juice and black cherry kool-aid kind of aroma, with a sort of artificial fruit-flavored soda character to it, some light vanilla - the flavor is a bit like cherry soda that has been stored in an oak barrel for a few months - the only true difference is that the beer is more on the tart and acidic side than it is the sweet side - I’m torn, because it really does taste good, it just tastes so much like SODA.

Bottle at Block Party. Pours a hazy, dark red with minimal head. Strong cherry aroma with some acid. Very sweet flavor with prominent cherry notes, along with some mild tartness and acidity. Very much like a Jolly Rancher. Light to medium in body with fine, fizzy carbonation. Finishes sweet with lingering cherry impressions. Nice beer if you like.

In the bottle from Max & Joe’s Tavern. Pours a dark reddish purple with a lavender head. The aroma is strong of Smith Sister’s cough drops. The flavor is an amazing taste of bing cherries. Phenomenally delicious.