This week our beer adventure takes us into the world of sour beers.Brewers utilize a collection of microorganisms (wild yeast and bacteria) with names like Brettanomyces, Lactobacilus, and Pediococcus to add sour character to their beer ranging from a mild twang to mouth puckering. Their are many sour ale varieties offering many beer drinking experiences, among these are Lambics (produced both with and without fruit additions), Guezes(typically a blend of one,two, and three year old lambic), Berlinner Weisse (a sour wheat beer sometimes served with raspberry syrup), Flanders Brown Ale (AKA Oud Bruin), and Flanders Red Ale which is what is on the menu for today with Monk’s Cafe Flemish Sour Ale. Most sour beers have their roots in Flanders, what is now northern Belgium, however new takes on sour beer are arising with a style known as American Wild Ale.

Just the Facts:

Brewery: Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.

Place of Origin: Ertvelde, Belgium

BJCP Style Category: 17.B. Flanders Red Ale



ABV: 5.5%

Bottle Sizes: 11.2 fl. oz

Recommended Serving Temperature: 48-55°

First Impression:

To be honest this beer had a less than authentic look about it as I checked it out at the store. It appeared to use the name Monk’s Cafe to trade on the status of the Trappist beers produce in monasteries in Belgium. however upon deeper investigation, this beer is produced in Belgium (although not by monks) for Monk’s Cafe a drinking establishment in Philidelphia.

The Pour:

The beer poured a dark mahogany cokor, with an off white foam that quickly dissipated to a thin patchy layer on top of the beer.

Aroma:

A distinct sour smell hits you straight off, it smells fruity and tart like sour apple. There is a sweet smell from the malt that backs up the sour aroma.

Taste:

The taste follows the aroma quite closely, there is a nice dose of tart sourness,giving just a little bit of mouth puckering. The sourness lingers through the middle of the taste, but the finish is that of malty sweetness. I found that the beer coated my tongue and the back of mouth a little bit, and the sourness added to the mouthfeel with the aforementioned puckering and a little residual tingling.

Traditional food parings for sour beers are with other bold flavors, think about trying this with a good tangy cheese or with a tart fruit dessert of some kind

I enjoyed this beer, which is the first i have had in this style of sour, it offers a good sour quality without being over powering. This would be a good beer to introduce someone to the wide world of sour ales or as a counterpoint to someone who has previously been put off by overly sour beers.

Other Sour Ales to try:

Russian River Brewing Company – Temptation, Consecration, and Supplication (All aged in wine barrels)

New Belgium Brewing Company – La Folie

Next week on “The Weekly Pint”: Wee Heavy Scotch Ale from Ale Smith.

Do you have a beer that you think i should showcase? An idea of how to improve the blog? Let me know in the comments.