Flemish Style Sour Ale – 1 Door Ales
This is kind of my return to blogging after a long hiatus. I don’t have a hobby at the moment and I drink a lot of beer. Since I spend so much time drinking it and spending money on the interesting stuff, I think I am ready for a return.
Since my last post I got a new job, and moved away from the other Barons to the SF Bay Area. Beer is king out here. I am in heaven.
I am really partial to sour ales. Ever since reading about Monk’s Cafe Sour Ale (still haven’t gone to the Philly) in some magazine on a flight, I have been kind of intrigued with the flavor. My girlfriend and I made a wheat beer in 2008 for as a graduation present to me at the Shenandoah Brewing Company http://www.shenandoahbrewing.com/. We recently opened it in 2010 (after another graduation) and it had a real complex sour flavor; whether it was safe to drink is another story.
To me sour ales satisfy a flavor craving, something similar to those red meat craving us meat eaters get every once in a while at 11 pm on a Monday night. I am no expert in beer origins, but Flemish means Belgium/French border. So you can imagine the market is dominated by imports, but these are usually expensive. This beer is brewed in the good ‘ol USA (and a steal), brewed in San Jose (awesome for me). You can look up the history of Sour Ales on wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flanders_red_ale.
This beer in particular has a great sour citrus taste. The sour flavor is not overwhelming and comes in a swell as an aftertaste. Recently, I have had an issue with IPAs, due to the obscene bite. This beer has none. Smooth and a light caramel flavor, hints of roasted malt. There is a complex flavor that works…really well. I am drinking this with oreos, maybe not the best pairing, but I like it. The sweet chocolate counters the sour citrus taste.
If you can handle a tiny bit of bitter, then give this one a shot. I love it.
Where I bought this: Willow Glen BevMo
How Much: $3.00 with the sale ($3.99 regularly)
ABV: 7%
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