Liefmans Goudenband

Brewed by Liefmans (Moortgat)
Style: Sour Ale
Oudenaarde, Belgium

750mL bottle (I think that was the size) at our KW group tasting, thanks to Jan Primus! 2006 vintage. It poured a murky burgundy with a lot of yeasty floaties. The aroma is nice and complex, berries, chocolate, sour cherry, soy, vanilla, yeast, all in one massive clusterf*** in the nose. Flavour has all the same elements but with a hugely astringent finish to balance it out, which is a major benefit. Sour cherry features most prominently, with the yeast. Alcohol is not at all noticable. I like clumps of stuff in beer sometimes and this one satisfies that want. Very nice beer and super refined after all the aging.

bottle, dark reddish/brown colour, fruity smell. Taste: a mix between sour, sweet and fruity. Nice balanced beer, a bit like a rodenbach.

Bottle sample at Noogfest High 5. Poured brown with no head. Aromas of tart fruits and cellar mustiness. The flavor sweet fruit and wood. Medium body.

Light hazed brown pour with off white head and lace. Aroma of brown sugar and easy hops. Sour and medium light brown sugar flavor. Medium bodied and refreshing pretty nice.

Pour hazy chestnut brown with off-white head. Aroma of prunes, cellar, wild fermenting and cookies. Ditto flavour. Very tasty IMO. Nice balance between the sourness and the more sweet malt flavours. Great beer!

375 ml caged and corked bottle from Dilly Deli. Poured a hazy dark brown color with a minimal frothy off-white head that mostly lasted with good lacing. Moderate to heavy earthy tart fruit and wood aroma. Medium body with a sticky texture and soft carbonation. Medium to heavy dark fruit flavor with a medium to heavy sweet & sour finish of moderate to long duration. This is a standout complex beer.

Sampled at Noogfest High 5, 1999 bottle. Pours mahogany with almost no head. The aroma is nice woody sourness, cellary funk, and some fruits. The flavor is dates, balsamic vinegar, some lactic acid, and a bit of lemon. Very, very tasty. That decade of age does some magic.

Bottle. Cloudy dark red colour with a beige head. Big pieces of yeast floating around. Sweet, sour & malty, balsamic vinegar, earth, berries, caramel, apples, oak, metall.