Frambuesa I Chocolate
Brouwerij Hof Ten Dormaal

Hof ten Dormaal's Frambuesa i chocolate, dark sour beer with raspberries. 7% ABV.

A: About a half finger of light tan head. Dark brown in the glass. Hazy medium brown in the dimple. Light sheeting. Almost no lacing.

S: Rasberry jelly and dry cocoa. Lightly toasted bread.

T/MF: It has an unexpected fruity sourness. Cola and cocoa. Slightly roasty. Not quite what I was expecting.

Poured from an 11.2% ABV, into a Belgian tulip glass.

a very cool beer here, a dark lambic type sour with raspberries and chocolate, when i saw this was on tap downtown at bitter creek i knew i had to get in and try it. it pours a very deep matte brown tone with just a little crimson along the edges, fizzy but not really holding a head, and slightly murky looking without being full of sediment or anything. the nose is striking, less sweet milk chocolate character than i anticipated, immediately more deep and earthy, bitter and roasty, more nibs than anything, and not too much fruit, still plenty of tartness to the raspberry profile that sort of brings up the funky sourness, slight flanders type vinegar pucker going on, but some wild funkiness as well, and not overly acidic to me, despite the way it makes my mouth water, complex and unique for sure. the flavor is neatly balanced, the raspberry is obvious but other fruity notes arise too, pie cherry, raisin, even cranberry with all the tang this has, and the chocolate meshes so well with this malt profile, which has to have some wheat in it for one, but also goes quite dark without ever getting roasty like it smells, never bitter or anything, leaving plenty of space for the chocolate and the raspberry both. the fermentation profile might not be as radical as i hoped for or have come to expect from these guys, but its a nicely tempered lactic sour followed by just a little bretty maturity, some oak on this too it seems, mellowing the whole thing out just a bit. its odd to think of these extra ingredients together in a lambic type sour, but they actually work extremely well together in this context. medium bodied, more carbonated than it shows in the glass, and quite dry for what it is too. overall a unique and enjoyable beer, always a treat to have something unfamiliar from these guys, i love all they do. hope to see more of it around on tap!

 

 

A real gourmet treat.
The raspberry is great, the chocolate is awesome but the part whick strikes me the most is the complex association of those two elements with the acetic brown ale this is and the balance of it all.
Great.

 

Pours a clear mahogany. 1/4 inch head of an off-white color. Slight retention and slight lacing. Smells of raspberry, chocolate, slight bacterial funk, hint of cherry, and slight sweet malt. Fits the style of a Lambic-Fruit. Mouth feel is sharp and crisp, with an average carbonation level. There is an elevated tartness. Tastes of raspberry, chocolate, slight bacterial funk, hint of cherry, hint of roasted malt, hint of yeast, and slight sweet malt. Overall, average appearance, good aroma, body, and blend, with a nice complexity and tartness.

Poured from bottle. No head. Heavily carbonated. Smell is funk and fruit. No chocolate on the nose. Flavor brings the chocolate out. Tart raspberries. Tasty. Nice shelf turd.

L-Pours a one fingered headed beer that quickly dissipates. Color is a soupy dark brown/amber. Almost dishwater like...
S-A sour meld of yeast, chocolate, cherry, and (a tad) among of raspberry. Very to the point.
T-Very sour. Notes of chocolate, which is pleasant, cherries, and some raspberry. Very yeasty as well. I find the raspberry to be hidden behind the flavor of cherry. Chocolate is very nice with the cherry. All together, a very tart and tasty lambic.
F-Nice and crisp flavor with a very carbonated finish.
O-I will admit, this style isn't my favorite at all. But this beer gives itself a rewarding Mole kind of flavor. An almost savory chocolate flavor combined with the tart cherry and raspberry fruitiness makes for a decently structured wildly flavored beer. My only take away would be that this beer lacks a bit of that "fruity" essence you would expect. And with this beer being extremely limited, I am very pleased to be one of a handful trying this beer. If you are able to get your hands on this beer at your local "super hipster package store that seems to get beer from everywhere" package store, I would definitely give it a shot to see what you think.

L: Poured from a bottle to a snifter glass. Had a dark, mahogany brown color and a thick texture. There was a half inch of foamy, off white, somewhat long-lasting head. Not much lacing.

S: An interesting aroma of chocolate, yeast, malt, raspberries, and cherries.

T: Tasted of a fair amount of malt (not that noticeable among the fruit), a good shot of cherries, some raspberries, a bit of chocolate, a yeasty funkiness, and some other stone fruits. A fascinating flavor that kind of grows on you. It's sweet bordering on cloying, but never overpowering. Pretty tasty.

F: A well-carbonated beer with a lively, prickly finish. Medium-bodied.

O: Not your classic fruit lambic here, but that's not a bad thing. Worth a try.

 

A short lived, big, fine head has a slightly reddish hue. The beer is clear and cola colored, with rapidly rising fine carbonation within. The head is constantly crackling but leaves no lace above a turbid surface.

The Pretentions Beer Glass Company Cider glass allows fresh raspberries to punch through upon the initial sip before fading behind faint funkiness. The aroma is quite sweet, though I detected no chocolate. Raspberry returns later to dominate.

Raspberries are front and center in the flavor. It is quite tart with acidity well in check. Secondary flavors include a hint of lactic acid. This beer is all about the tart raspberries that are almost cloyingly sweet. The finish is mild and quickly diminishes before it settles every so softly.

A clean, crisp light body has a silky texture. Vigorous carbonation interrupts the alcohol and metallic notes.

I detected none of the chocolate and figure this should simply be a raspberry beer. For those who enjoy raspberries, this beer is for you. It was refreshing while reading in the shade on a cool summer afternoon.Peasant contentedness sums it up. I'm not sure I would call this a Lambic, but neither is it a Flanders Red. This is splitting hairs to be sure, but the beer is something in between.

 

 

 

Pours a tootsie roll color with cherry hints. Large puffy head of 3 fingers.

Aroma of sour cherry, stone fruits, mild cocoa.

Taste is mild with not too much sour with some faint roast chocolate. Cherries, lemon, lime, tootsie roll.

Heavy carbonated, nice pucker on the finish.

Overall a nice sour but not for $6.99.

 

 

 

Transparent, dark brown with a tinge of ruby. Cherry and cranberry on the nose, with sharp acidity. Cocoa powder on the tongue, with significant tartness that hints at raspberry without being too strong or artificial like a jelly donut.