Menno & Jens | Brouwerij De Molen

4.02/5  rDev +2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours murky brown with a red hue, no head, almost still but with legs like like a glass of Red wine. Aroma is just as I might expect like warm stewed fruit with plenty of herbal notes. Sweet, complex and has that familiar warm feel to it, very unique and interesting as well as wonderful. Tastes are similar with lot's of herbal flavour, sweet fruit, cola, wood, a bit of medicine but not in a bad way. The palate was great! Really nice soft carbonation, silky and dense, not heavy bodied but really close and coats the tongue and mouth beautifully. I REALY liked this beer a lot. Just different to what I usually drink and a very nice change. They did a great job, and it makes me want to try some other Gruits.

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4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle: Poured a cloudy amber color ale with a large off-white foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of herbs that resemble some very fresh floral hops notes which makes for a very nice aroma. Taste is very refreshing with dry malty notes and some dominant floral notes with light green notes. Body is quite full with great carbonation and no apparent alcohol. Very solid beer with great drinkability factor and nice floral touch but also very hard to describe.

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3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

3.67/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Served in a becher at ChurchKey.

Alright, a collaboration between De Molen and HaandBryggeriet? And it's a gruit with yarrow and mugwort? Gotta try it! It pours a cloudy amber brown topped by a half-finger of off-white micro-foam. The nose comprises juniper, blueberries, pine, pineapple, nutmeg, and a bit o' dark apple cider. Wow, I honestly don't know if I've had a smell so all over the place hit my 'strils before. Right on. The taste holds notes of cinnamon, cider, flowers, juniper berries, and a subtle hint of smoke. I'd like to list yarrow and mugwort in there as well, but I have no idea what they taste like. Something in the finish doesn't quite sit right with me, a kind of dry, woody, herbal taste that sharply bitters and turns my tongue off after a generally nice ride up to this point. The body is medium, with a moderate carbonation and a drying finish. Overall, a nice, adventurous gruit, but one that falls short thanks to that harsh finish. A very interesting brew, indeed.

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4.46/5  rDev +13.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Color:
Golden rust hue with lots of carbonation, creates a nice white foamy head that quickly dissipates. Lots of unfiltered malt is present with other larger sediment which would probably be bits herbs.

Smell:
Warm fruity roasted malt.

Taste:
A full mouth feel of caramel malt flavours with an after taste of lite bitterness and herbs with a hint of woodiness. A pleasant and refreshing natural carbonation is present but appeared to die of at the end if not drunk at a moderate pace.

Overall:
Excellent beer, expensive and probably almost impossible to get in Australia but defiantly worth trying, first Gruit Herb Ale I've had.

Food:
Chocolate gives it an even more powerful caramel/herb flavour.

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3.75/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Cloudy dark gold colour with a creamy tan head. Average head retention.

Sweet yet tart and citrusy aroma. Slight herbal edge. Interesting.

Malty and fruity aroma with plenty of esters. Mild caramel and a hint of smokiness. There is a touch of herbal bitterness but on the whole there isn't much of that spice and herb one expects from a gruit.

Medium body with moderately-high carbonation. Fine.

A nice, malty beer with an interesting fruit character. While I expect a bit more herbal character from a gruit, this is still fine.

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