De Ranke XX Bitter
Brouwerij Brasserie De Ranke

25.4 oz. bottle poured into tulip
("10/1/20 expiration printed on top of bottle cap)

L: pale gold, almost 100% clear, just a little cloudiness; huge head of white/off-white foam, over 2 inches and super fluffy, like cotton balls; also super sticky and not dissipating quickly; keeps an amazing skin, almost 1/4 inch at all times ... and you see why inside the glass -- a veritable bubble factory is churning in there, hundreds and hundreds of bubbles flying up the middle of the column; lacing, sticking, the skin, the thick collar ... it's a foam machine

S: sweet, hoppy, floral, grassy and very tart, lemons, limes; as it warms, the sweetness subsides and you get a very farmhouse-ale like aroma ... musty barn, some tartness but very tame, kumquats

T: huge bitter hop bite, mostly floral/perfume-like but with some grass and a lot of sweetness pushing into the bitterness; the hops are for real, but they mix with the malt to form a classic Belgian fruity juiciness, strawberries, cherries, maybe some orange ... cantalope

F: lovely ... big carbonation but with enough liquid weight to form a classic medium-crisp ale feel

O: it's bitter, but it's so much more ... tart Belgian pale notes, almost but never really sour; a fruit basket of flavors that aren't typical of the American citrusy/mangoey IPA; some good grassy flavors .... it's like a hopped-up Orval and the closest thing I've had to it is Prairie Hop or Buffalo Bayou's Abrikoos -- but this has some farmhouse ale earthy/hay notes that really nail home its Belgian authenticity. fantastic beer!

 

 

 

I “inherited” this from someone else’s cellar; my guess is that the bottle is 14 years old;

A: hazy; deep gold in color; a 2 finger finely pored ivory head that receded to a wispy cap with a moderate tight collar; very little lacing;

S: not especially aromatic; what’s there is earthy;

T: earthy and grassy from start to finish; moderate bitterness at the end that increases to high in the aftertaste; the bitterness is long lasting;

M: medium bodied; highly carbonated; moderately dry finish - the bitterness gives the impression of even more dryness;

O: I’m guessing that the age of the bottle had a negative impact on the hop character; I was surprised that the bitterness held up this well;

From a single bottle into a tulip, pours a dense, thick but not exactly hazy caramel-amber, with a finger of pill white tight little bubbles that recede fast to just a crown. I love the color. Nose is bready pilsner malt, medicinal/herbal hops with just a little spice, as well as some citrus, but not the bright kind...also a little funky yeast. Everything in the nose gets really dialed up in taste. In some American attempts (which are too rare) at a Belgian PA or IPA, I sometimes get this herbal but aggressively bitter profile, and I kind of like it, and here its very much present but done better. underneath the bitterness, which kicks in in a very focused way 2/3 of the way through, there's a kind of oily and soft mouthful and full body. Carbonation is low to middling. I like this a lot.

 

 

Copenhagen 29/9 2019. 33 cl bottle from Voldby Købmandsgaard. Pretty stylized label centered on the two big X'es and some Hop flowers.

Pours unclear, golden yellow with a big foamy, white head. Settles as 0,3 cm thick layer of foam covering the surface of the beer and crawling up the sides of the glass. Massive lacing.

Aroma is intense, fruity sweet, metallic and with a dry hoppy intensity. Fermented sweetish fruity odor, metallic alcohol and light notes of Citrus and Grape fruit.

Light carbonation. Medium thick, smooth, soft, kind of flat texture.

Flavor is lightly sweet followed by a strong, harsh bitterness. Aftertaste is bitter with a citric tang. Finish is dry.

A quite bitter and dry brew. But it certainly lives up to its name.

 

RB transfer

 

 

 

Bottle 0.33L.
Hazy, golden body with average, creamy, white head, mostly lasting with nice lacing; average density of tiny bubbles.
Heavy hoppy (citrus, grass, flowers), moderate malty (bread) and yeasty (cheese) aroma.
Moderate-to-heavy bitter and moderate sweet flavour; average duration.
Medium body with oily texture; soft carbonation.
Satisfactory.

Hazy yellow color , medium white head. The aroma of malt, citrus fruits, yeast, and a bit of honey. Bitter, hoppy taste with a strong hoppy bitterness in after the finish.

De Ranke XX Bitter at 50 F decanted into a glass, avoiding the yeast. Good pale ale with touch of Belgian character. Body is golden with modest heft. Hops are dominant, with assertive bitterness and background flavor. The bitter aftertaste is inviting. Good beer all around. Thanks to son for the gift.

Cloudy gold with a huge, suddsy head. Smells of clove, cooked sugar, sweet malt, maybe banana. The taste is (of course) quite bitter, but retains a distinctly Belgian flavour, not unlike a dubbel or triple (sweet molasses, cloves, toasted cereal). Very dry finish.