Verhaeghe Duchesse De Bourgogne

Brewed by Verhaeghe
Style: Sour Ale
Vichte, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium

surprisingly dark. half inch large bubbled muddy head. lacing lasts nicely. smells pretty woody, funky and musty. actually not too appetizing, but the flavor is redeeming. perhaps too sweet, but i like it that way. a lot of berry flavor, a bit thin middle profile on flavor. kinda taffyish. strangely the body feels really smooth but also seems pretty effervescent. not sure how to describe it. in any case, i could probably drink a lot of this if it was sold in 6 packs and was thus not so expensive.

Had this for Christmas dinner. Nose was apples, vinegar, and roasted beef. Taste was apple spice with malt undertones. It was tart, but not exactly sour. A bit syrupy, but pleasant and balanced... very nice.

Pours a brown color with a yellow white creamy head. Smells of meat and sugar. Tastes like beef, sugar, honey, and some spice. Very different and somewhat hard to get used to but I can see the merit.Nice beer in the flemish style.

12-13-07 bottle. Deep amber brown colored with nice lacing. Smells of a white wine spritzer and cherries - not awful - just a bit heavy on the alcohol in the smell for me. Sour, but acutally it was much more sweet in flavor than anything else, I was very surprised. Crisp dry finish. Aroma, taste, and even slightly the texture remind me of white wine. Overall, I would like to have again. I would prefer more sour and less sweet though.

Dark, deep reddish brown pour that lets some light through. Smell is kind of a funky, sour cherry and wine like aroma without a strong offputting vinegar scent. Gooey band-aid-y aroma that I don’t care for, though. If that were in a regular beer it would be called infected. If it’s in a Sour Ale, its pleasant?? Flavor is sweeter and less sour than expected. Fairly sweet up front, but finishing dry with a bubbly champagne like body and flavors that are reminiscent of cherry, grape and cranberries. A bit hard to describe as its only my 1st or 2nd sour ale. All in all, not a bad experience and a unique beer that is like a funky fruit soda. I would have to get used to that odd smell though, to really enjoy this beer again.

*I like it will buy it again* the cork says exp date nov.2007 app: NICE, I poured it right into a duvel tulip, a 2 finger head. deep rich garnet ruby color kahki colored head.. its just pretty. smell: sour, little dark viniger, some spiciness in the nose. I love this smell. I really do. something inviting and wamring about it. taste: Yum Yum Yum. a little sweet and meek up front then mild sour tartness then more refined sweets, then booze on the breath like a nice post white wine sip. actually the soft fruity sweet finish reminds me a lot of a very mild white wine... little pepper in it to. has a little spice and spritz in the back of the throat that reminds me of the way sparkiling cider that I had to drink on new years when I was young felt. very balanced, very smooth then exciting then smooth again. I was a little worried that it would be a lot more sour than it is.. cause I have this big bottle all to myself. BUT its easy sailing. mf: spritzy, alive.. I wish it was more carbonated. and or thicker.. I dunno. Its good.. Actually silky, thats it, I wish it was more silky. drinakble?: very very drinkable.. the cider type spritz spice, slows you down a little.. also the feeling like drinking to much cider, that if you chugged vats of this you would have to sit down on the pot for a long time slows me down a bit. OverAll: today was my 1 year day of joining BA, great beer to have as a reward for putting up with that silly site. This is really great beer, and if you are scared of the whole wild beer sour tart pucker thing, no worries here. It is there but mild. I think some of the lady’s might even love this one.

The Duchesse tastes more like a black cherry soda than a beer! Minimal head but big aromas. I describe it as a liquid SweetTart with balsamic notes. It pairs wonderfully with: smooth cheese, stinky cheeses, hearty soups, endive salads (can be used to make salad or other dressings). It’s lovely with turkey and cranberry, pork roast, carbonades, and especially with desserts from tiramasu to chocolate molten cake. There’s no fruit in this one but it tastes like cherries. Not like a real lambic or kriek because of the sweet and balsamic component. There is some variations in the taste of this beer from batch to batch. While drinking a glass it seems to mess with my tongue in fun ways so I taste differences as the glass airs out. Truly fascinating but if sharing with newbys, don’t call it a "beer!" Many will immediately not like this beer, but many non-beer drinkers will love it at first sip! Many experimenting with sours (gueuze, framboise, etc) will find it a lovely excursion. I find it a bit more complex than Monk’s Sour, which I also like. Moonlight Brewing in Calif. is doing a similar funky Flemish styles with their 60 to Life and others. But there’s nothing like the Duchesse!!

This is actually the first sour ale I’ve ever had. It was....interesting. Almost tasted like someone dumped some champagne in a brown ale and called it a new drink. Aroma itself is sour and smells of cherries/cranberries/orange. Flavor is tough to describe - very tart, a little malty, hint of apple on the finish. I expected something more sour than this, but still enjoyed it.