Rodenbach Classic (Red)
Brouwerij Rodenbach N.V.

 

 

 

Pours a mostly opaque reddish brown from the can, robust 1" head that fades to a tan collar, minimal lacing. Nose is lactic off the bat but rather quickly loses punch. Oak, light red fruit, and loose change. Taste pretty mellow - cooked cherries, light oaky barrel, brown sugar, hop. Deeper on the finish and as it warms, there is some more assertive lactic and blue cheese notes, but it's really pretty subtle. Mouthfeel is moderate, and despite the prickly carbonation, this drink heavier than expected given the low ABV. A pretty approachable Flanders Red, which to me means it doesn't quite deliver what I expect from the style. Disappointing, as I know I enjoyed this in the past.

 

500ml can into a pint glass. Code no help in determining age.

Nice reddish color, head quickly disappears. Comes off like a sour session ale, easy to drink and light in body.

Wow! Very special Cuvee with perfect carbonation and mouthfeel. The sourness is on point (don´t know how they do that). The taste is a tart fruit cocktail from a better world. Undescribable...

 

Brown in color with a very murky complexion. There’s a fingernail of brown around three quarters of the rim. The aroma is of oak and sour vinegar. I’m tasting lightly tart cherries. The mouth is moderately carbonated and dry.

 

25cl bottle.
Brown, with some red. Little foam.
Oak, red-wine like, cherries, raisins.
Sweet, sour.

Complex, very refreshing, pleasant.

 

A: medium brown in color with a light tan head.

S: tart up front with a lovely fruitiness and a hint of funk in background.

T: sweet tart, with a bright acidity, and hints of dried fruit and caramel.

M: thin I'm body, carbonation is fine in size and a bit low in general. Somewhat dry finish.

O: well that's just a real treat there. Delicious, complex and tasty.

Bought a single 16.9oz can $3.99 Village Bottle Shop
51854 L stamped on can
Smell of sweet cherries
Brown muddy color
Medium-light mouthfeel
Light-medium carbonation
Taste some cherries, a little prune mui, not sour, slight tartness
Overall just ok. Was expecting a sour beer and this isn't it.

 

 

Brown amber, murky, with one finger of tan head. The smell is a yeast bomb, with a bit of woodiness. On the palate are sour apples, dark fruit, a hint of malt, and powerful sour yeast notes. An interesting and complex blend of sweet and sour leads to a pleasant balance, and makes this beer very moreish. Overall a complex, rewarding, and very refreshing beer.

Poured into a chalice: color is amber, slight density to it, quick light amber head that dissipates to nothing except a scant ring on the glass sides and spotty circles on top.

Smell is woody/oaky, vinegar must, sour cherries, and sweet candy - not really over done but definite nuanced aromas as it warms.

Taste is perfect for this style, really the standard bearer - similar depth as the aroma with wood/oak, vinegar, sour cherries and raspberries, and sweet candiness to it, some malt depth and light butteriness.

Mouthfeel is moderate/high carbonation, moderate sweetness but leans sour in the end, with drying puckering finish.

Overall: a style defining ale with pleasant notes form the barrel and aging, just enough vinegariness but a lot of subtle fruit and barrel flavor depth.

 

Found in Kigali, Rwanda. Poured from the 330mL bottle into a mug. The beer is an amber red color with an odd-colored 2 finger thick head that is orangish tan with little retention.

Smell is fruity with mostly apple and pear with some cherry in the middle. A pie crust aroma comes through, along with more tart notes albeit light after that. Raspberry, rhubarb. White wine. There is a lot going on here if you dig deep enough,

Taste: Tart up front with raspberry and cherry with pie crust in the middle. Apple peel, astringent pear note, a really light hint of malt vinegar. Reminds me more of a kettle sour with its fruitiness than a real Flanders sour. This is good stuff. It is missing a lot of the funk that I associate with the style, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. There is the slight vinegar note. But mostly tart fruit and some crust. Pleasant. Balanced

Overall: This is very drinkable and could be a good introduction to the style, even for some people who don't like beer all that much. Not much funk going on, which makes it more approachable, but still has just enough to make it interesting to veterans of the style. Solid.