De Ranke XX Bitter

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

I wasnt all that impressed with this one. As refined as most Belgian beers are, I think I am too used to the American take on hoppiness. Had a little bit of a grainy taste to it, maybe it was the carbonation. Will not be grabbing this again anytime soon.

Bottle 33 cl. Pours a pale cloudy yellow with a medium white head and a hoppy aroma. The taste is dominated by mixed bitter hops, but there is some yeast and sugar to find in here too. A bitter hoppy finish makes this a very good Belgian beer. I love it!

bottle - Pours hazy yellow with a big lingering, lacy head. The aroma is citrus and yeast with some mild hops. The taste is led by the dry, bitter hops. There’s some yeast and citrus in the background. It has a surprisingly light, almost thin body with high carbonation levels. It’s a decent quaff with a dry finish, but I’m not crazy about it.

Nice beer that had a strong bitter flavor and finish. Appearance was light with white head. Flavor was bitter and the alcohol came through very much in the flavor.

the XX is just marginally more appetizing looking than a wit beer--which i consider to be the ugly duckling of the beer world, that anemic milky yellow like bovine afterbirth. this one is certainly a well yeasted pour, part turkey gravy, part pilsner and wallpaper paste. but atop that jaundiced muck resides a classic belgian foam: tiny bubbles woven in a woolen nap as thick and tight as an icelandic sweater. the lace arcs elegantly down the glass like the smoky and fading tatters of fireworks dying in the night sky. gorgeous aroma of peach, packing paper and wheat porridge. the hops are dusty dry smelling and blushing with a blown kiss from the lord of brett. XX is full bodied and creamy with an edge of bright carbonation, rather dry, and flavored with enough putty-like yeast to plug a faucet leak. famously bitter for a belgian, the carbonation is the tooth and the hops are the nails, but the kind of raking they give the tongue is more like a massage, calming, delicious and salubrious. thanks to jeff (TAR) and cathy for this dreamy hour of drinking pleasure.

750 ml bottle from bottletrek.com. Pours a light straw color with a 4 finger frothy head. Aroma of yeast and light spice/herbal like many belgium. Flavor of yeast and grass, a bit stale. Medium mouthfeel with a bitter finish. I am not sure why, but I was expecting more of an american style IPA, which this beer is clearly not. Hoppiest in Belgium? Very doubtful, but still a decent beer.

Draught: Aroma of alcohol, citrus, hops, grass, and apples. Poured a golden yellow color with a tiny white head. Very hazy. Opaque. "Looks like cloudy piss." Bitter, metallic alcohol flavor. Like sucking on a penny. Medium body. Smooth creamy texture. Soft carbonation. Metallic finish. Overall, not very good.

750 ml bottle. Hazed then murky gold with a foamy white head. Nose is a mix of fresh fruits: pineapple, lemon, orange and mango. Soft, with a little perfume. A slight funk with later pours. Sharp, tiny carb work the tongue before giving way to a creamy hop truffle. Lemon and lime pith with bits of caramel. Dry bready aftertaste. You know its a Belgian but hops seem to balance the yeast. A most interesting brew that continued to change with each glass over an hour.