Kriek
Brouwerij Lindemans

KriekKriek
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From:
Brouwerij Lindemans
 
Belgium
Style:
Fruit Lambic
Ranked #117
ABV:
3.5%
Score:
87
Ranked #17,460
Avg:
3.86 | pDev: 13.73%
Reviews:
576
Ratings:
1,385
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jan 13, 2024
Added:
Jul 28, 2001
Wants:
  53
Gots:
  216
Also known as Kriek Foudroyante

We've already told you that our family never does anything the way other people do. Kriek Lindemans is a good example of that. In order to obtain a beer like no other, we have been adding whole sour cherries to our lambic for generations. Our meeting with American importer Charles Finkel in the 1970s revolutionized the fruit beer segment. Charles convinced us to export our old kriek to the United States by boat. What we had not thought of is that the movement of the waves would reactivate the fermentation process and cause the corks to pop during the trip. It was like something out of The Adventures of Tintin. To prevent that from happening, we therefore developed an alternative production method for our kriek. We use fresh, not from concentrate, unsweetened cherry filtrate which we blend with lambic that is at least one year old before fermenting & macerating for up to 3 days and pasteurizing the whole batch. So the corks don't pop. Due to the use of filtrate and pasteurization, this kriek is sweeter and fruitier than Old Kriek Cuvée René, which undergoes a second fermentation process in the bottle. Thanks to its innovative flavour, it was a resounding success both here in Belgium as well as around the world. Nowadays, it is undoubtedly the reference kriek for consumers.

18 IBU
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Ratings by YonderWanderer:
Photo of YonderWanderer
Reviewed by YonderWanderer from Colorado

4.37/5  rDev +13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5
A: Pours a darkish red with a nice thick pink head of foam. Lots of lacing on the glass.

S: Cherries, sour, sweet, a little bit of bready malt. But cherries are the thing here.

T: Damn that's tasty. Cherries through and through with a nice balance from the malt. Nice sour kick that stays with you for a while. Great lambic.

M: A little thinner than I'd like, but not bad really. Light carbonation but enough so you know it's there.

D: I could throw this stuff down constantly. Nice and easy to drink and damn tasty. This is a great alternative to a standard lawnmower beer on a hot summer day. Really refreshing.
Aug 26, 2007
More User Ratings:
Photo of BJB13
Reviewed by BJB13 from Maryland

3.49/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
355 ml bottle poured into a snulip.

Clear ruby red pour with an ample pink head leaving some lace. Vinous cherry aroma with a hint of oxidative aroma. Tasting more sweet than tart, large sour cherry flavor with cardboard showing up toward the more dry finish. Medium-weight body is fairly smooth. OK, in small amounts, a bit too syrupy for me.
Jan 13, 2024
 
Rated: 3.99 by digitalflood from New York

Sep 30, 2023
 
Rated: 5 by BrisLoganite from Australia

Sep 23, 2023
Photo of nasal
Reviewed by nasal from Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Rich deep red color. Round, full maraschino cherry flavor. Sour in all the right ways, but a bit too sweet for me. Mouthfeel leans syrupy (also maybe the cough syrup mental association.) Cherry isn't my preferred flavor - it's among my least-favorite flavors - but this is by far my favorite cherry beer. (That's not saying much, though.) This isn't my favorite Lindemans, and not even my favorite deep red Lindemans.
Sep 02, 2023
Photo of Sabtos
Reviewed by Sabtos from Ohio

3.2/5  rDev -17.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Mostly clear but a bit chill hazed, this otherwise appears light ruby red with a fairly tall pink foam head that clings in tall ridges.

This is such a sweet punch to the face while having been working on a Beersel oude geuze that the cherry is as if straight out of the maraschino jar. This also pairs with an unpleasant note of baby powder (?)...or maybe that's a little bit of the cinnamon character you sometimes find in krieks.

Frothy at first, but powder dry in the swallow, the finish amplifies my fears about the confusing flavor profile. Either way, it's clear to see why Cuvée René is so much more well-regarded than this cherry juice.
Jul 05, 2023
 
Rated: 3.73 by Dethark from England

May 08, 2023
Photo of Bitburger
Reviewed by Bitburger from Vermont

4.59/5  rDev +18.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Kriek is the best fruit lambic for sure. Low ABV; great tardiness and crisp and dry. Perfect cherry flavor and very pleasant aftertaste. Would be the perfect summer "beer" at a lower price.
May 06, 2023
Photo of c1377
Reviewed by c1377 from Illinois

4.84/5  rDev +25.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5
This is what a sour wine should taste like.
Lindeman's Lambic yeast is the best yeast bar none.
The only reason I can't rate it higher is that it is too expensive :-(, and it doesn't really taste like an ale.
It is one of a kind.
Apr 29, 2023
Photo of Foyle
Reviewed by Foyle from North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +16.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured from 8.45 oz bottle into tulip glass. Thin white head, mild lacing, cherry red color. Aroma of tart cherries, yeast. Mouthfeel is fizzy and crisp. Flavor very tart and sweet cherry dominate with bready malt in the background, mild hop presence. Overall: very good, probably the best of the 4 Lindeman's I have tried.
Mar 02, 2023
 
Rated: 3.95 by lakewy17 from New Hampshire

Feb 27, 2023
 
Rated: 3.83 by mmmbeerNY from New York

Feb 08, 2023
 
Rated: 3.66 by SteveinBelgium from Belgium

Jan 17, 2023
 
Rated: 3.83 by RamonaBeer from California

Jan 03, 2023
 
Rated: 3.95 by Tcsox from Massachusetts

Dec 26, 2022
 
Rated: 4.02 by Bogdawg from Massachusetts

Dec 26, 2022
 
Rated: 3.79 by Haybeerman from Colorado

Nov 26, 2022
 
Rated: 4.03 by Techichi from Texas

Sep 05, 2022
Photo of LampertLand
Reviewed by LampertLand from Canada (BC)

3.91/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Lindemans 'Kriek' @ 3.5% , served from a red foil bottle cap corked 355 ml bottle
A-pour is red from the bottle to a dark red in the glass with a small size pink head , leaving a fine spotty lace ring along the tulip
S-cherries , bit of funk
T-sweet start leads to a acidic & tart sour finish
MF-mild carbonation , light body
Ov-interesting sweet & sour , fruit Lambic
prost LampertLand
Sep 03, 2022
Photo of MikeWard
Reviewed by MikeWard from Pennsylvania

3.78/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
250ml bottle into a flute. Dating hard to figure out.

Looks very good, reddish amber body with a pink tinged head which leaves gobs of lacing.

Musty cherry aroma.

On tasting, cherries forward, tart and sweet.

Mouth medium, finish cherry.

Not bad, though the cherry comes of a little artificial, which I know it isn't. Not as good as framboise, but better than peche and pomme.
Aug 24, 2022
Kriek from Brouwerij Lindemans
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 1385 ratings