Duchesse De Bourgogne
Brouwerij Verhaeghe

Duchesse De BourgogneDuchesse De Bourgogne
Beer Geek Stats | Print Shelf Talker
From:
Brouwerij Verhaeghe
 
Belgium
Style:
Flanders Red Ale
Ranked #21
ABV:
6.2%
Score:
93
Ranked #3,947
Avg:
4.16 | pDev: 13.94%
Reviews:
1,664
Ratings:
4,676
Status:
Active
Rated:
Friday at 07:56 PM
Added:
Oct 15, 2001
Wants:
  297
Gots:
  1,066
Belgian top-fermented reddish-brown ale, a blend of 8 and 18 months old beers following the careful maturation in oak casks.
View: More Beers
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by JackRWatkins:
Photo of JackRWatkins
Reviewed by JackRWatkins from Georgia

3.94/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
snifter on draft

quick and humorous note on this one, I had it the other day not realizing that I had indeed tried it before at a beer festival, so the lesson I guess is that with some luck you may get a second chance to make a first impression.

A: Walnut brown is danced over by a very pretty ruby color. very muddy (not color wise but consistency wise) and thick. little to no head but decent and pleasant lacing. the ruby coming through makes the contents of a glass look like a glowing gem, which I suppose is fitting.

S: sour, sour, sour. Wild yeast stands toe to toe with the cherry and the tart acidic smell. Very pleasant. smell resembles the tartness of this style's more varied cousin the lambic.

T: Very pleasant, easy to drink. I personally very much enjoy sour beers, however this is not a typical sour beer, this beer is very reminiscent of St. Bernardus abt. 12 (on draft not bottle). It's as if the recipe for the 12'er was scaled down for a 6% beer and then a lot of cherries were added. back to it being atypical in terms of a sour beer, I feel like there's a lot more going on here than in your typical kriek flanders red, the malt is more present and so are the dark fruits, but the yeast is the deviation, it's as if this was a similar experiment as three philosophers only at a lower alcohol and done with much more success. It's essentially like a low abv dubbel fermented with wild yeast with added cherries

M: oily and watery, yet decently thick, the water may leave the mouth and go down the throat but the syrupy sugars stay on the palate

O: I really enjoyed this beer, as I said at the beginning I had tasted this beer before but did not remember it. Looking back, the first time I tried it, I remember tasting pure vinegar, it was bad and disappointing, however it incidentally, (as I said before) it got a second chance to make a first impression and I'm glad it did. I was, while writing this review, initially questioning whether this beer had a purpose when placed next to abt. 12 on draft seeing as they are very similar, I have concluded that there is a place for both of these in your glass, when you can't afford to be knocked on your ass, this is a great alternative to abt. 12 since it's lower in alcohol, additionally, there is a subtle difference in flavor that is enough to justify this beers existence. very satisfied overall.
Nov 04, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 2.19 by mushycake from Connecticut

Jan 31, 2024
Photo of Scotchboy
Reviewed by Scotchboy from Idaho

3.53/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bottled in 2019, pours out an effervescent dull reddish-brown with ample off-khaki head. More sweet than most Flanders Reds I've had...certainly there is some vinegar-y tartness and impressions of lemon, but the caramel and dark sugary malt sweetness leads. Interesting.
Jan 30, 2024
 
Rated: 3.99 by RahFoodie from Canada (ON)

Jan 22, 2024
 
Rated: 4.18 by SViterileroux74 from Texas

Dec 30, 2023
 
Rated: 4.75 by Ox8840bo from Illinois

Dec 28, 2023
 
Rated: 4.41 by al_al1357 from Canada (ON)

Dec 23, 2023
 
Rated: 4.11 by Catalinmunteanu from Romania

Nov 30, 2023
 
Rated: 4 by Nyoder

Nov 26, 2023
 
Photo of Larryken
Reviewed by Larryken from Massachusetts

4.81/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Wonderful cherry aroma, smooth and well balanced flavor. I am a Rodenbach fan and this brew reminds me of Alexander. Very dark red color and this is a beer worth seeking out. Been enjoying on tap from my local.
Nov 09, 2023
Photo of Shiredave
Reviewed by Shiredave from New York

4.3/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
The Duchess is the refined Grand Dame of sours.
Dark and still with a faint wisps of foam.
Rich dark fruit aromas of cherries and pear mix with sour apple cider vinegar sharpness.
The flavor follows - tart and fruity with a malt depth underneath that carries the sour character giving it heft and balance.
Finish is dry and tart with lingering apple rind notes.
When "fresh" ie. properly conditioned this can be stellar.
Oct 26, 2023
 
Rated: 4.43 by QueenSac from Colorado

Aug 26, 2023
Photo of Bobbisu245
Reviewed by Bobbisu245

2.18/5  rDev -47.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 1 | feel: 4 | overall: 2
I wanted to love it. Love sours and all kinds of fruit beers but this was not my cup of tea. Looked wonderful but one whiff of the rotten apple smell put me off. Thought OK smell isn’t great but taste had to be better. NOPE! As bad as I didn’t like the smell I liked that more than the taste. To me tasted like what I would envision nail polish remover tasting like. Hubby didn’t agree with my acetone comparison, but he too thought that it was just not good.
Aug 26, 2023
 
Rated: 4.13 by BeerInspector from Delaware

Aug 19, 2023
Photo of Drop_The_L
Reviewed by Drop_The_L

4.74/5  rDev +13.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Opulent.

Bright acidity balanced with medium carbonation make this beautiful palette cleansing opener. Bright cherry and balsamic vinegar on the nose wish a dash of barnyard funk. Tart cherry notes evolve into a sweet (but not overly so) balsamic vinegar finish that just begs for another sip. Those who resist will enjoy the long, lavish finish.
Enjoy with wild game or short ribs.

Served in a Burgundy glass at around 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
Aug 11, 2023
 
Rated: 4.09 by tobek from New York

Aug 11, 2023
 
Rated: 4.77 by MakerMachiav from England

Aug 09, 2023
Duchesse De Bourgogne from Brouwerij Verhaeghe
Beer rating: 93 out of 100 with 4676 ratings