New Belgium Lips of Faith (Dark Kriek)

Brewed by New Belgium Brewing Company
Style: Fruit Beer
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

Bomber purchased at Bottleworks in Seattle, WA: Dark ruby color beneath a thin white head. Aroma of oak, cherry liqueur and a little caramel malt. Tart with some semi-sweet cherry flavors, cola and some biscuit-like malts. Could be a lot better, but the balance is off for me. More tart cherry character would be nice.

Bottle from ShareANevada. Poured clear reddish brown color and an average frothy off-white head that mostly lasted with fair lacing. Moderate dark cherry tart aroma. Medium body with a smooth texture and lively carbonation. Medium tart cherry sweet flavor with a medium sweet citrus finish of moderate duration. Refreshing fruit beer.

Appearance – Pours a murky brown color with hints of red. A small half finger off-white head full of medium sized bubbles retreats quickly to a sizable ring. Interesting, yet boring. Smell – Tart cherries consume the smell along with funky brett, oak, vinegar, spices, and finishes off with the smell of a mediocre red wine, maybe a sauvignon. Taste – Not as sour as I was expecting, more tart than anything. Cherries are definitely there, along with the brett funk, but in very mild form. A little bit of spicy oak and vanilla are there too. Mouthfeel – More carbonation would do this wonders. It feels a little thicker than it should, and ultimately leaves a feeling that it is lacking something (carbonation). It isn’t way thicker than it should be, but it is definitely noticeable. Drinkability – Everything about this is pretty mediocre. Because of this I wouldn’t want to make this a regular or have to finish the bottle off by myself. Hopefully the wife will want some…

Pours out clear dark red brown with some foam. Smells sour cherries with some funk. Taste is tart cherry with sweet malt and wood. Some sour, crisp finish. No alcohol in here, tasty fruity brew.

Poured a nice dark ruby color with an off white head. Aroma was sour cherries, a little funk, some maltiness, brown sugar. Flavor was very tart, not quite sour beer, but definitely tart cherry. There was some good malt and sweetness in the background, but the tart cherry was the dominant player in this one. nice beer.

Smelled sour and Cherries and had a very bright nose. Poured red with some head. Smooth body with some carbonation that worked well because of the sourness. I really got into the flavor of this one. Sour but malty at the same time. The cherry really came out and was fresh and crisp... I like this one

Deep cherry red (appropriate) with a thin cream head that leaves plenty of tracings. Aromas of toasted malts and stone fruits, but the sugar overpowers the fruit. Tart taste of sour cherries with not much that balances. Some lactic tones, some malts. Sweetness lingers. Thin on palate. Not bad, but definitely could’ve been better, especially if the oak was more apparent or there was more of a sour presence.

Bottle from Aplusbreaks, sampled at the March Houston tasting. Thanks, Austin! Pours with a coppery cherry aroma, like a macro amber. Body is deep cherry bown. Flavor is thin cherry cola and tart fruit. Average mouthfeel. With some tweaking, this could be a very nice brew.