Struise Witte

Brewed by De Struise Brouwers
Style: Belgian White (Witbier)
Oostvleteren, Belgium

Good looking beer. pale gold orange but with a beautiful white head and streaming bubbles. Aroma: pears, white grapes, hints of wheat and other fruity notes. Flavor: white grapes, very reminiscent of a white wine but actually tastes good. Also pears, wheat, and hints of other fruits. Seems like some spices are in there too. Palate is nice. It has a smooth body, light mouthfeel and the finish is on the dry end. Overall, impressive for a witbier, probably one of the better ones out there.

This beer pours a golden color with a unique aroma. It has a strong apple and sour orange aroma which emerges as the bubbly head subsides. The flavor is the same as the aroma with pieces of sharp lemon and I swear I tasted some lime. No lace on the glass, but it was an interesting beer. A bit disappointing for a Struise.

20080821 330ml bottle, Pennington SS. Right on cracking the cap I can tell that this beer is not going to be a favorite but I have faith in Struise and so pressed on. The pour is clouded, visibly effervescent, honey amber in color, and with a thin but persistent off-white head. That head is the closest thing about this beer to anything beerily white. Robust? Well, the first sniff is boozy, doughy, and reminds of a German hefe import that has seen some years on the shelf. It’s leathery with notes of paste and soggy corrugated cardboard. The first sip, sadly, reminds only of those off-putting aromas, but the beer does show some promise, becoming decidely drinkable through the middle of the mouthful. A pleasant citric tartness melds well with the still leathery notes and some mineral earthiness. And then it is gone in a flash as the palate is forced back into suffering a stale, oxidized, cardboardy, and slick-finishing oddity of a beer. What a shame to see this one go down the drain.

11.2 oz Bottle. Pours slightly hazy orange with great lacing. The aroma is light with some spice and fruit. The taste is light and refreshing as well - notes of spice and yeast.

Golden, orange colored brew. Yeasty and fruity aroma. Some yeasty, malty flavors. Citric and spices too. Pretty nice try.

21-Jul-08 (330-ml bottle: Purchased 03-Apr-08 for $3.69 from liquidsolutions.biz) This is an odd Belgian white, not exactly to style. For starters, it pours much darker, more of a hazy, medium-dark golden color. The whitish head pours filmy and fades to a razor-thin ring. The beer smells very doughy and papery, as if it’s seen a year or two of aging at room temperature. Bright aromas of citrus, spice and coriander are strangely missing. A similar story on the palate, with heavy, papery doughiness dominating. Lightly toasted wheat bread, mildly tart lemony citrus and just a hint of herbs offer some contrasting flavors, but only the citrus is able to offer much in the way of balance. It’s much heavier in weight too, the medium body only somewhat offset in the entry by the mild acidity of the citrus, but this fades in the finish, leaving stale doughiness to linger on an unrefreshed palate. Medium-high carbonation is fizzy. Overall, this hasn’t been an enjoyable drinking experience. It’s clearly not to style, but that’s only an observation, not a reason to dislike any beer.

Bottle. Large fizzy white head that mostly expired, one ring of lacing, hazy, and a straw hue. The aroma was sweet, citrus, yeasty, spicy, some tartness, herbs, and fruity. The flavor was sweet, spicy, tart, herbs, fruity, crisp and refreshing. The mouthfeel was tingly and this beer is medium bodied. Easy to drink, refreshing but I did not care for the flavor enough to want this beer again. Not a bad beer per se, it just did not leave me wanting more.

Bottle. Slightly opaque golden yellow pour with a thick frothy head that thins out quickly. Aroma of belgian yeast, wheat, sweet malt, coriander and other spice, and some citrusy notes. Similar flavor with more maltiness than I’m used to in wits. Medium to light body with good carbonation. One of the better wits I’ve had recently.