Kriek Des Jacobins
Brouwerij Omer Vander Ghinste

Kriek Des JacobinsKriek Des Jacobins
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From:
Brouwerij Omer Vander Ghinste
 
Belgium
Style:
Flanders Red Ale
ABV:
4.5%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.94 | pDev: 10.91%
Reviews:
49
Ratings:
168
Status:
Active
Rated:
Dec 24, 2021
Added:
Mar 01, 2005
Wants:
  5
Gots:
  24
The basic ingredient of our Jacobins Kriek is wort made of wheat and malted barley. This wort is first boiled and then transported to the brewery’s open cooling vessel to cool down.

Afterwards it spontaneously ferments in big oak barrels, giving the beer its refined flavour and aroma.

To obtain its true “kriek” or cherry flavour, natural cherry juices are also added. The fruitiness of the aroma clearly reveals itself in the mouth. Our Jacobins Kriek has a well-balanced, pleasant and slightly sweet flavour, which is best enjoyed when drunk out of its own bowl-shaped glass. An excellent thirst quencher and... perfect for drinking in an outdoor café!
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Rated: 4 by doctorgary from New York

Dec 24, 2021
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Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

4.21/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
330 ml bottle with a 10 November 2018 bottling date stamped on the back label, served in a Belgian snifter.
This has a lovely dark red body with good clarity. The head is both short and short lived but this is par for the style.
Aroma. Sour cherry ham with a hint of wood.
Flavor. It's remarkably bright and fresh tasting, especially for a near 3 year old bottling. The cherry flavor is clearer than at least most other krieks I've tried. Nicely tart allowing hints of sweetness to appear and contributing to the soft finish.
Overall. Excellent if a bit one dimensional.
Aug 09, 2021
 
Rated: 4.14 by TMoney2591 from Illinois

Aug 05, 2021
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Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

3.16/5  rDev -19.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
250 ml bottle, not sure where I got it, possibly from Matkroken Stokka. BB date 26.03.14. ABV is 4.5%. Deep red colour, small off-white / pinkish head. Strong aroma of sour cherries, almond essence and marzipan. Moderately sour, fairly sweet and very fruity flavour, with loads of cherries and almond essence. Would like some more acidity and less residual sugar.
Apr 18, 2021
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Rated by robotic_being from Illinois

4.18/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
2018 vintage drank in 2021.
Delicious!
Mar 28, 2021
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Reviewed by AElfwine_Nerevar from Connecticut

3.97/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Bottled: 07/12/17

L: Pours a deep amber with good clarity. A gentle pour results in a half finger of off white head that quickly dissipates to a 2mm ring around the glass with a thin splotchy sheet of head in the middle. No lacing left as the beer goes down.

S: Cherry dominant with hints of earth and wood. The nose a bit to cloyingly cherry.

T: I get cherries and a sweetness that build through the mid palate but can't overwhelm the sourness on the backend. Maybe a hint of spiciness as the beer warms. Light notes of oaky and earthy funk that are dominated by the cherry juice and lactic sourness.

F: Medium bodied with medium high carbonation. The mouthfeel is a bit thin but the prickly carbonation makes up for it and it has a nice dry finish.

O: This is a pretty decent beer. I feel like the cherry juice overwhelms some of the complexity of the base beer. I do get some funky oak and earth and maybe hints of spiciness but those are barely perceptible. That being said the sweetness and sourness are fairly balanced and it does work on some level. It reminds me of a black cherry spritzer. Worth a try.
Mar 01, 2021
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Reviewed by Ozzylizard from Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Kriek des Jacobins from Brouwerij Omer Vander Ghinste. Purchased 10/20/20 for $ 4.76 (Including tax) for 11.2 oz bottle ($ 0.425/oz) from Shangy’s in Emmaus, PA. Reviewed 12/3/20.
Rear label marked “Date of Production 11 22 16”. On room temperature shelf at store and stored at home at 42 degrees. Served at 54 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. Final temperature 56.1 degrees.
Appearance – 3.5.
First pour – Amber brown (SRM 18), clear.
Body – Ruby brown (SRM 24), opaque. When held to direct light, beautiful clear ruby.
Head – Tiny (Maximum 8 mm, aggressive center pour), chestnut, high density, and fizzy, no retention, rapidly diminishing leaving neither crown nor cap.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 4 – Weak cherry, no hops, no yeast. Lasts but weakens still more.
Flavor – 4.25 – Begins slightly sweet with cherry syrup flavor. No malt, no hops, no yeast. Ends slightly sour with cherry. No alcohol (4.5 % ABV, as marked on container) taste or aroma. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl.
Palate – 4.25 – Medium, slightly syrupy, soft but lively carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4 An exceptionally good cherry sour – reminds me of the pre-mass production days of Mort Subite Kriek. This is one I could drink all day.
Dec 03, 2020
 
Rated: 4.3 by GoodChoiceBro from New York

Jul 26, 2020
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Reviewed by RedbirdRona from Illinois

3.93/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Look: dark cloudy red/amber color

Smell: cherries and malt

Taste: sour cherries with a strong malt backbone

Feel: Full smooth taste with good carbonation

Overall: I am not usually a fan of sours but this one was special. Very well balanced with an authentic cherry taste. I look forward to finding this again some day.
Apr 11, 2020
 
Rated: 3.8 by Mikexw from New York

Jan 07, 2020
 
Rated: 3.96 by Cuervo_PCB from Florida

Dec 25, 2019
 
Rated: 3.76 by UCLABrewN84 from California

Dec 18, 2019
 
Rated: 4 by rare_bird from Michigan

Dec 03, 2019
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Reviewed by emerge077 from Illinois

4.11/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75
Bottled: 09 08 15
Dark reddish brown, ruby glint in the meniscus. Initial head of tan foam, wispy skim and a foam crescent to one side.

Musty aroma, malted barley and fading cherry skin.
Tart with ample cherry and toasty malt character, lingering mouthwatering cherry skin that is pretty natural. Slightly oxidized after three years. Not the most complex, and less sour than Jacobins Rouge. Still, it has more depth than many other Belgian Flanders Reds.

Flanders Red #64
Sep 27, 2019
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Reviewed by GuyFawkes from Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Bottled 10/11/18; drank 6/29/19 @ the Yarchives.

Cloudy ruby red appearance.

An even pour yielded a big khaki/pink head; frothy lace.

Sweet cherry & faint honeyed grain notes in the nose.

Medium mouthfeel.

Luden's cough drop & honeyed grain flavors, with a faint tartness on the finish.

Too sweet to really love, but this is flavorful & not boring.
Jun 30, 2019
 
Rated: 3.85 by 4ster from Canada (ON)

Jun 16, 2019
 
Rated: 3.75 by Patches826 from Massachusetts

May 22, 2019
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Reviewed by daliandragon from Maryland

3.8/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
This is my first Flanders Red. Pours a maroon color with a pink head that doesn't last. The nose is tart cherries with a malt biscuit and wood note hiding in the rear. The flavor is tart and crisp but sweetens in the aftertaste. The high carbonation makes the comparisons to black cherry soda or seltzer hard to avoid. Not my typical tipple, obviously, but definitely interesting and worth a try.
May 04, 2019
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Reviewed by rodbeermunch from Nevada

3.54/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
So, I'm a massive fan of the regular flanders version of this beer. The kriek flanders, this one here? File under: not so much. First of all, pick a style. Second, this should be better.

Anyways, pours a dark red and light brown color, thin off white pink almost head 1/4". The nose is immediately differentiated from the other one with a high amount of what smells like cherry juice, like a Capri sun more than just cherries. I was really left with the impression that this would be better if it picked a direction, trying to be the best of both worlds is its undoing. Too much malt/brown/earthiness for a kriek, too much cherry juice for a flanders. Choose one.

I found it to be too sweet in the mouth feel. Neither style should be sweet. Now, its not like I hated the beer, but man I really love the non kriek version. Slightly disappointing stuff from a brewery that makes a different, awesome beer.
Apr 22, 2019
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Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

4.31/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
330 mL bottle from the LCBO; best before Apr 17 2019 and served at cellar temperature. I loved their Cuvée, and I generally enjoy krieks, which makes me wonder why I sat on this bottle for so long (at least 14 months).

Pours a deep, clear garnet red colour, with a rough-ish pour giving rise to a half finger of frothy, slightly pink-tinged head that erodes completely within two minutes. A bubbly collar of foam remains, but little else, save for a few filmy wisps upon the surface and a modest spattering of lace. Sweet, authentic cherry juice notes are immediately discernible on the nose, with hints of strawberry, vanilla, baked apple and cranberry just beneath the surface. There is a slight wine vinegar twang/tartness in there, too, but it's downright muted compared to your typical (un-krieked) Flanders red.

This beer might technically be (just) past its best by date, but it still tastes great to me - not entirely unlike their Cuvée, though the cherries in this one impart a juicy-sweet element that was not present in its sister brew. There's also notes of tart cherry and raspberry, with just a hint of strawberry mixed in amongst hints of vanilla and (very subtle) oak. Finishes a bit sour, with more cherry and a touch of wine vinegar sharpness preceding a mildly tart aftertaste that fades from the palate within a few seconds. Light-medium in body, with moderately low carbonation levels that gingerly tickle the surface of the palate; feels smooth on the tongue. More refreshing than Belgian sours tend to be - this would be a solid patio beer for the summer.

Final Grade: 4.31, an A grade. Kriek des Jacobins is a fine soured, light Belgian ale that I must highly recommend to any and all BAs. While it's far from the most complex example of the style, I can't pretend that I didn't love it. I would love to see this kriek, as well as their Cuvée, brought back to Ontario in the near future... but as far as I can tell there are no immediate plans to do so. Too bad - but if Duchesse and Rodenbach can become year-round options here (which has been the case for about a year now), then I can hold out hope that the same is possible for the Jacobins beers.
Apr 22, 2019
Kriek Des Jacobins from Brouwerij Omer Vander Ghinste
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 168 ratings