Great Lakes Grand Cru

Brewed by Great Lakes Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Cleveland, Ohio USA

Had this just after the Cleveland Brewing Festival 4/05. Looks like I’m the first one to rate the 2005. Served in a pint glass at the brewing company (tap). It came with a frothy white head and had a cloudy orange color. The aroma was spicy with wheat and some citrus sweetness (lemon perhaps). I thought that some people might like an orange or lemon wedge in this. The flavor was very similar to a white beer (blue moon came to mind) but with a much more interesting character. Orange and wheat flavors with some back bone/strength (alcohol) underneath. The body was mild and creamy with a watery/foamy ending. Thought I read that someone thought this was Holey Moses’ big brother…I can understand why. Very nice effort, though "grand crew" never came to mind. This will be great to drink as weather warms up in Cleveland!

Orange pour, small white head. Aroma is massive on the orange. Flavor is a syrupy cloying orange juice, with a massive amount of orange peel and coriander thrown in here. Mouthfeel is thick and syrupy which did not go with this beer. There was just too much fruit in here that it almost wasn’t beer anymore. It’s weird to see how you change a rating so drastically from 2 years ago.

Draft: hazy amber w/ a lasting white head. Plum, malt, light caramel, hints of freshly mown grass; plum get heavier as it warms. Malty & well balanced, but finishes on the sweet side w/ plum & alcohol aftertaste. Also a bit of a hop flavor in the aftertaste. Peppery spice, light clove w/ a light alcohol fruitiness in between. Very smooth m/f, higher carbonation, light alcohol warmth as it warms. Not very familiar w/ the style, but not a bad beer. I’m mildly turned off by the hop aftertaste, but that’s just my opinion.

This one has a big poofy white head. It’s very citrusy with orange and clove. It’s very drinkable as well with a good malt backbone. A bit hoppy-bitter for style. Before I even found out that it was basically Holy Moses big brother, I noticed the similarities. Both are excellent beers.

On tap at the brewpub. Cloudy golden amber color with a candi sugar and coriander nose. Nice head that left good lacing. Pleasant warming alcohol sensation as you drink it. Nice body and nice balance between the sweet and spice. Bitter orange peel and coriander are noticable, as is a real hop presence in the finish. Nice beer.

Tap: Hazy amber hue with frothy head and very good lace. The aroma hints of apricot, apple, orange zest, allspice, corriander, earthy and zesty yeast esters. The taste starts with a tart fruit and sugery candy combo. Mild bitterness, spice, and flowery finish. Lively and sharp mouthfeel, slightly warming. A touch too much hops for style but still very quaffable.

hazy amber, nice citrus spice aroma. taste is dominated by orange and a lingering zesty yeast spiceness that has a peppery component. nice coriander & hop blend in the aftertaste

20% darker than Holy Moses. Same general flavor, but minus the herbal notes - this one had a strong orange peel flavor - even in the head. The low bitterness and thick malty flavor have me convinced that this is really the ale to pull the macro drinkers over to our side; as evidenced by my dad, who usually prefers Carib or Dixie Crimson - he took one sip of mine and switched from the way too light Locktender. This is only my second Grand Cru, so I don’t know if this is typical of the style, I can only judge it on it’s own and compared to the lighter Holy Moses. As usual, at their pub, Great Lakes is fresh and tasty.