Brasserie Noel
Brasserie Saint James

a sour quad brewed for the holidays, 2017 vintage drinking lovely right now, a really different brew, almost more of a big sour brown, but there are still cool belgian yeast elements in here, this is both creative and well executed, fun and different for the season. medium brown color to it, less dark and viscous than i thought it might be, maybe the acidity cuts the body some, the head is nice and high and lasting, and it smells bizarre, with a red wine element, a woody tannic thing, a distinctive bacterial pucker, and most of the elements i would expect in a traditional quad as well, brown sugar or dark candy sugar, warming alcohol, and spicy bold belgian yeast, quite complex actually, and not as boozy as it might be at this strength. the flavor is less sweet than it smells, some dried fruits to it, and the sourness that comes on midway through, its not too acidic, but its strange in a quad, i like what it brings, and how it highlights different parts of this, more fruity than a lot of quads, and with the alcohol relatively well hidden too. not as smooth or traditionally wintery, but i like this being different, especially in a world of winter spice beers this time of year, this really stands out. another cool one from these guys, i wonder why nobody talks about them, their beers are awesome!

$ 13.77 (Including shipping)/capped 750 mL bottle ($ 0.542/oz) from Tavour, Seattle, WA.
No date other than “2017” on the label, stored at 42 degrees prior to consumption and served at 58 degrees in a hand-washed and hand-dried Jester King snifter.
Appearance – 3.5 – OK for an Oude Bruin, head and lacing subpar for a quad.
Body – Dark brown/black, nearly opaque, weak effervescence. When held to the light, red-amber, clear.
Head – While pouring, a small (< one cm, aggressive center pour), light brown fizzy head appears and lasts only a few seconds longer than the pour, leaving neither ring nor layer.
Lacing – None.
First pour – Light brown, clear.
Aroma – 3 – Vinous. No malt, no caramel, no fruity esters, no alcohol. OK for an Oude Bruin, again subpar for a quad.
Flavor – 3 – Begins slightly sour and acidic with just a bit of stone fruit (cherry?). No malt, no “dark fruit”, no hops, and absolutely no alcohol until gastric warming begins. Overall, a basic Oude Bruin.
Palate – 3 - Medium, watery, soft carbonation - in the overlap area of Oude Bruins and quads.
Impression and summation –3 - Well, this is confusing. This is a quadruple “made in the style of an Oude Bruin”. Quads and OBs have different serving temperature with the quad being served warmer. They have different head characteristics. Alcohol levels in quads are more prominent and are part of the expected taste. There is little other taste overlap except in the low or absent hop flavors. Overall, this is an average Oude Bruin. If it’s rated as a quad, it’s below average.

 

750ml. bottle from Tavour poured into an appropriate glass, and drank while listening to Caravan. Delicious. A little syrupy but the flavor makes it work. Not too off- put by the low carbonation- works well with the flavour drawn from the barrel aging. This is one of my favorites from my Winter stash. I have a second I'm gonna save for next Winter. Love oud bruins and appreciate this play on the style. If you're a fan of oud bruins or quads give it a try if you have the chance.

 

750 ml bottle poured into tulip. Looks like a quad: translucent brown although limited head. Smells of grape skins, black currants, molasses, red wine. Taste is heavily influenced by the wine yeast they add to beer with a heavy red wine, dried grapes, raisins note. The qualities of a quad are quite muted. Mild malt and Belgian sweetness coming through with dates, figs, brown sugar. Mouthfeel is a tad too undercarbonated for style. Overall it's an interesting beer but don't feel the wine yeast complements the style well.