Belgian Beer Appreciation Thread (2024)

A Cossack beer!?!

Today’s new beer is from Brasserie de la Senne and it is branded as Taras Boulba. Who is Taras Boulba you might ask? Well, I had to do a web search to learn:

"Taras Boulba" refers to the title character from a novella written by Nikolai Gogol, depicting a fierce Cossack warrior who, in the story, tragically kills his own son for betraying their people by falling in love with a Polish woman; essentially, it signifies a story of extreme loyalty and harsh justice within the Cossack culture.”

Well, this sounds like a novella with quite a bit of a dark message. Not my ‘cup of tea’.

But from the Shelton Brothers website:

“Taras Boulba is the perfect session beer — loaded with complex yeast flavors, hopped to perfection, and as drinkable as any beer you’ve ever tried. At 4.5% alcohol, it’s built for drinkability — we suggest buying it by the case.”

Well now, that is a ‘story’ I can get enthused about!

Served in my Tripel Karmeliet Tulip glass:

Appearance:

A hazy straw yellow with a white head.

Aroma:

Wow! An enticing combination of hop aromas (e.g., citrus, floral) and yeast produced aromas (e.g., fruity, spicy).

Taste:

The flavor follows the nose with the aforementioned citrus/floral and fruity/spicy. There is a moderate bitterness.

Mouthfeel:

A sharp carbonation with a light - medium bodied. A dry finish.

Overall:

This beer is very good- excellent! I very much enjoyed the combination of enticing aromas/flavors. When I finished it, I very much wanted a second.

Cheers!

 

Nice review and back story about Cossack legacy. I had the pleasure of reading James Michener’s Poland which was an amazing factional take of Polish history in which i never realized how much they were a punching bag for powers that be for centuries.

 

My father read that book as well and he loved it. A ‘fat’ read though.

Poland is kinda screwed by its location; a ‘cross road’ of Europe so to speak with aggressive neighbors. I don’t know if you have been keeping up with contemporary Poland but they are spending a lot of money building up their military. I suspect that sometime next year they will have the largest military of the European NATO countries. They don’t want a repeat of what happened in WW II

 

What are the chances I might get Ganymede? I hope, I hope!

 

Without a doubt Unibroue’s best-known beer, La Maudite is inspired by abbey beers and Belgian double-style ales. Super tasty, too.,

 

Where did you get this?

 

Don't drink'n drive, you might hit a bump and spill it.

 

I got a 2x16 of this, SoundGrowler Brewing Barrel-Aged Grand Cru for Xmas from my BROIL, we have different tastes. I had to look up "Grand Cru", a term to descibe a high-quality vineyard, wine or other product. So now I know what Grand Cru means.
This beer was not in the BA database, it was not on the brewers website but untappd had it listed as a Belgian Quad, so that's what I defined it as. All that being said, this would've been a one'n done except I got a 2pack .

 

Another fave from Bend, Ore.



From the can - “Devilishly smooth & Light bodied! Originally brewed in celebration of the 4th anniversary of Portland's Abbey Bar, this classic dry golden ale is slightly fruity with a subtle earthy hop presence. The bouquet is sweet with a mild spiciness intertwining with a pleasant pineapple character.”