Petrus Aged Pale

Brewed by Bavik-De Brabandere
Style: Sour Ale
Harelbeke, Belgium

This was an enjoyable one. Pours pale orange with a frothy white head. The aroma has a lot of things going on - spicy, peppery, woody, melons, lemon, barnyard, wild yeast, spicy hops and more. Medium body that is very crisp with some mild sharp carbonation. The taste has the myriad of flavors from the aroma, but it is quite a bit smoother than I expected, yet it has a crisp sharp finish. The finish has lots of sharp spiciness. Excellent flemish sour that is very dry, yet fully refreshing.

Bottled. Golden coloured with a small head. Fruity with notes of vinegar, balsamico, berries and maybe a weak hint of apples. Pretty well balanced.

Very slight murkiness in a golden soft yellow body, possibly from chill haze, though I’m sure there’s some yeast that was poured. Teeming with scents of honey, vinegar, light acetone (not in a bad way), sweet apples and a bit of a garlic-vinegar brine. The sweet scents are most present, with red apples and honey the most dominant smells. Bright, vibrant, spritzy on the tongue, very active and bubbly. Doesn’t taste like much up front, but on the middle and back, with a cola-like bubbliness, there’s some light apples, light honey, some dough and some pine. Finishes a little empty, minerally as well. Not one of the best FSA’s I’ve had, but still delicious. Reminds me of champagne. The levity on the back is killer.

Re rate 7/18 What a difference a few months make! Great flavorful Flemish.Aroma of sour fruits and vinegar. Pour was a cloudy orange with no head. Taste was a beautiful mix of sour cherries, oak and some vanilla. Nice and mouth puckering. The oak agedness in this beer is not overpowering and doesn’t define it. It adds character. Outstanding! ___________________________ rating: Aroma-5 Appearance-3 Flavor-6 Palate-3 Overall-10 Total:2.7 First (and probably last) flemish sour ale I’ve tasted. While it is not unbearable, this is just too sour. It poured a hazy golden color with a huge white-ish head that stays on the glass the whole way through. The taste is of sour fruits and vinegar which as I drink I like more and more. If Sour Patch Kids made a beer this would be it.

Bottle. Hazy amber with a small foamy white head and sticky, delicate lacing on the glass. Aroma is sour fruits, light wood, soft vinegar, and light sweet maltiness. Overall it’s pretty much sweet-sour fruits in wood. Taste is more tart fruit notes, light damp wood, and soft vinegar. Bit of earthiness in there as well. Body is bubbly and sharp with a light-medium feel. Finishes with more sour fruits, wet wood, light vinegar and some earth notes. Not bad!

Bottle. Golden with vague white head. Sour and fresh aroma with fruit and a moist feeling to it. Flavour is sour, prickling, fresh and sweet with a smooth bitterness. Also apples and cherries. 6-2-5-3-11 (2.7) Re-rate, 22nd of march 2008: BB 18/10 2007. Clear golden with ok off white head. Some apple in aroma and a woody character. Flavour has a more balanced feel to it than last rating.

Sour aroma with hints of vinegar and sweet malt. Light golen in apperance with a medium palate that has good carbonation. Taste is sour and sweet with a nice background of wood flavors. Very enjoyable.

I generally don’t like these super sour fruity beers, but this one is more bearable. The sourness doesnt overwhelm as much as others do. While I can’t say I am crazy about it, I don’t mind drinking it.