De Ranke Père Noël

Brewed by Brouwerij De Ranke
Style: Belgian Ale
Dottignies/Dottenijs, Belgium

Corked, woody aroma offers notes of apple and orange and flowery, herbal hops. Opaque tan-brown with partial but long-lasting cover of white head. Strong fruity esters to the biscuity malt flavour with woody, leafy, herbal hop flavours and decent bitterness in the lightly acidic finish. Soft carbonation caresses the tongue with a medium body. Bottle (1.5L) enjoyed at the Ratebeer Mondial Gathering 2005.

Honey-colored body with a frothy, just off-white head. Nice aroma of pepper, honey, tropical fruit, and tart grapefruit. Great balance of many elements in the flavor. Has a tropical, passion fruit quality with nice moderate acidic, sweet, and bitter qualities. Very nice.

2001 1.5L bottle at the Ratebeer Mondial Tasting on 6/4/05.
Hazy, soft, yellow orange, somewhat like peach juice, though a bit paler than that. Moderate white head recedes to ring, with little lacing. Dry, powdery yeast and orange rinds in the nose. Definite herbal/floral hops, fresh parsley, mint and cumin. Corky/woody notes as well. Begins moderately acidic in flavor, with the dry yeast and cork flavors from the nose. Some bits of powdery, lime-flavored sugar a la Vervifontaine Fagnard Blonde. Tart apples, caramel, biscuity malt, definitely some green raisins/special B. Toasted grains in both texture and flavor on the finish. Low carbonation, no alcohol noted. A lemon-lime like hops flavor from the start can still be found on the end. Slightly bitter overall, quite dry on the palate.

I have tried a fair number of Belgian Christmas beers in recent months and they generally seem to be a rather different style to the rich, dark British concept. This one was no exception. Golden colour with flowery hops and estery apples and oranges in the aroma. Fruity, spicy flavour with a flinty mineral mouthfeel and a dry, slightly tart, finish. Orange zest and crystallised fruits to the fore. Refreshing is not a description I’d often use of a British Christmas ale, but it certainly fits here. Tending towards a tripel or even saison style. But lets not bother about the style too much, its a very fine beer. Bottled at Reading Beer Festival, April 2005.

Cloudy orange pour with a thin white head. Powdery aroma of spices, yeast and fruits. Flavor of spices, yeast and fruits with some sweetness. Light to medium body, the texture is dry and powdery, dusty even, the carbonation is moderate. Interesting beer, not really what I expect from a "bière de Noël" but a worthwhile experiment.

bottle. 2001 magnum. hazy orange body with a small white head. spicey and peppery at first sniff. some light tartness, funky cheese notes, fruit, and cookie malt flavour. quite nice and flavourful. A touch of alcohol in the finish.

1.5L bottle, 2001 vintage. Completely clouded golden to amber body. White ring of foam. Very hoppy nose, musty mustard seeds, cobwebs, very fluffy yeast, a truck of it. Appealing fruitiness, perfumey and mango-like cuts through the heavier honey nature. Quite corky nose, but paired with the earthiness, it gives it a bière de garde feeling that I’m quite fond of. Deep coniferous hops, very floral. Salivating hops, highly refreshing, corked flavours are also present in mouth. Slightly astringent and I can’t say it works very well. Tastes pretty clouded if I may say so.. the heavy yeastiness seems to veil other flavours and it is perhaps a bit too young, because those hops must have been something when fresh. Cookieish, very dry palate with a light acid touch. Medium bodied, light display of carbonation, surprisingly.

2001 magnum, tasted in 2005:

The Lure:
Piney hops and yeasty moss proliferate on the cork outgrowth. Perfumy, intense, but a tad unidimensional.

The Festivities:
Bitterness is amplified by the yeast overload. Piney and orange-y hops proffer a saison-like spiciness to this quirky Christmas beer. Malts are hard to perceive, and this may be the downfall of this particular bottle.

Transcendence:
A dust storm cannot help your enjoyment of a walk in the woods.