De Dolle Speciaal Brouwsel 20

Formerly brewed at De Dolle Brouwers
Style: Sour Ale
Diksmuide, Belgium

Tasted at 2008 Woodshop hosted by cquiroga. Last beer of the night. Well worth the wait. Malty, sweet, hint of sour, but not prominent. Mixed bubble head. Delicious.

31st and Final Rating from 3rd Annual Woodshop tasting in Temple City, CA. 3/1/08. One hell of a day put on by Cquiroga, thanks for a killer day Chris. Also spent the day there with bikesanbeer, my girlfriend Cyn, wetherel, JohnC, DenverLogan, dirty_martini, jasparg, DrBil, IPAFiend, awaisanen and many others, this was one crazy day. I don’t know the name of the guy who brought this but he was so nice to share it with me. I’ve wanted to have this beer for so long, and I feel honored to be able to have had it. It was really killer. Pours orange with a bright white head. Nose is amazing and big and sour. Taste very sour really really yummy. I wrote illegibly thank you beer gods for the opportunity to have this!

750ml corked and caged bottle. Special treat for my 4,000th rating on ratebeer!. Opened to a lout audible pop. I expected a gush after that sound, but it didn’t. Aromas of yeast, cork, a little oxidized, bready, some cherries, earthy, and some wood. Tastes of yeast, cherries, lighter vinegar, and some woodiness. The strong corkiness in the aromas did not show up in the tastes. Lively body. Sweet with a lighter tart/sour finish. Still a very special treat to have had this one and I’ll give it an extra point for being a special beer for a special occasion!

Sample courtesy of 11026. Dirty amber with decent white head. Woody tannins dominate up front, hints of cork, cherries and alcohol. Again flavor is dominated by woody tannins. Only hints of fruit, again slightly corky/oxidized. Oily smooth mouthfeel. Nice, but I would guess a tad past it’s prime.

Bottle @ Kulminator, Antwerpen, Belgium. Clear light to medium brown color with a small, fizzy, fair lacing, mostly diminishing, off-white head. Aroma is vintage, sherry - port, light alcohol, wood. Flavor is moderate to heavy sweet, light bitter and acetic (vinegar) with a average to long duration. Body is medium to full, texture is oily / syrupy, carbonation is flat. Very nice ;o)) (121207)

That’s right bitches, come to Brussels and you can actually buy this at a restaurant for 25€. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it on the menu. Besides the small taste I got when Mike opened up a bottle at a gathering last year, I figured I’d never get to really try this.

What I assume was the beer sommelier (as it was not our waiter, and we did not see him again) brought the dust-covered bottle (from 1999) out, verified that it was right, and popped the cork with a smooth motion. "Still alive," he says with a strong French accent as a puff of CO2 bursts from the bottle. Indeed the carbonation was definitely still there, as this poured witha huge head even after 8 years. Dark umber in the glass. Mushroom, pine, walnut in the aroma, lightly sour. Orange and pumello, very tart taste. Smoky and old cardboard, down blanket and feathers. Very oxidized. Unfortunately, this beer was a good 4 or 5 years too old. I can see that it must have been painfully great, but today it is faded and should be drunk as soon as possible.

Bier Circus, 750ml. Well-carbonated for something this old. Big white head on a cloudy amber sea. Aroma is funky, earthy, some oxidation, a little hint of piss (how is this not a downer?), apples, other lightly rotten fruit. Medium body. Candy fruit is big up front, acidity grows through the palate and finishes with a bit of apple and earthy cider. Brilliant.

Powerful thanks to Jason for bringing this over, 10/2000 bottling!! First rating for my 2nd 2000! The first few pours were relatively clear deep carmel/copper with a towering cap of off-white head and lovely sticky lacing. The aroma was deep and gueuzey with sour Balsamic vinegar, tart cherry skins, soft dusty sweet cherries, and old dusty yeast.. just delightful!! The flavor had sweet and tart cherry concentrate at the core with some tart cherries and dry musty yeast toward the edges.. this was more on the softer and not sour end of the spectrum, but I really enjoyed it!! Just about medium-bodied, moderately sour, and much sweeter than anticipated on the palate, with a whole bunch of carbonation.. somewhat warm, sweet, and tart finish with dusty sweet cherries lasting a while. This was mighty fine stuff!