Petrus Oud Bruin

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

330 mL bottle. Pours red brown with a sizeable light tan head. Sour and sweet aromas of green apple, some dark fruit and caramel. Flavor is much weaker than the aroma, with some dark fruit, apple, and a bit of earthiness, but just not very much of anything there. Maybe even tastes a bit dusty, if that makes sense. Nothing offensive, but this is just disappointing in its lack of flavor.

Terrible sour. Pours a hazy brown amber color with a medium sized light tan bubbly head. Nose is meaty bread some brown sugar and a bit of tartness. Taste is like watery apple skins and yeast or unbaked biscuits. Totally blah and not worth drinking at all.

25 cL bottle at DHVL, 1992 vintage. Pours clear and golden deep amber with a small off-white head. Dry and wooden initial aroma, followed by a brown sugarish and raisin sweet note. Somewhat oxidised. Flavour is dry malty, subdued metallic and towards dry breadish. Dry malty finish with a light yeasty fruity accent. Nice to find yet clearly over the top and flavour has none of the sweetness the aroma promised.

Bottle, $3.50. Pours light brown with a medium sized head. Aroma of biscuit, soft malt, and funk. Oud Bruin is soft on the palate, with mild carbonation. Initial flavor notes include whole wheat bread, caramel, and darker fruit. Finishes with refreshing tartness, though not overpowering. This brew is drinkable, interesting, and flavorful, which all adds up to a solid score in my book.

$3 11.2 bottle from HWC. Pours brown with medium bubble head. Not really that sour for a sour ale. Pretty easy to drink. Some oak, some fruitiness. Low in flavor. OK.

Bottle, 330ml. A dark brown colour with a good head. Aroma of brown sugar, blackcurrant, caramel and hops. Taste has roasted malt, blackcurrant, a little oak, citric hops and cocoa. A little sourness in the finish. An interesting and enjoyable brew.

Bottle. Pours a brown body with an off white head. Light tart fruit aroma, oak and light floral hoppiness. Vinous, chardonnay, more oak, light tart vinegar sour with light acidity. Decent.

High, high reviews for this one: I love it!

Bottle purchased December 2007. Tasted December 20, 2008.

App: Pours a bit like a porter or Munich Dark -- opaque, dark russet-brown. A copious tan head lingers nicely in my Unibroue goblet.

Aroma: Mild sour note, lots of yeast, chocolate, faint cherry, oak, sherry, vanilla.

Taste: Wonderful! Sour cherry, hop resin, dark chocolate, raspberry-sour note, toffee.

Palate: Thirst-quenching, spritzy-dry with palate-scrubbing-bubbles. A *tiny* hint of diacetyl-slickness, and is that a wine-like finish?

Overall: A terrific little Oud Bruin treat: definitely will have again! Try with duck, game, or good cheeses. Next time, I’ll use this in my Carbonnade a la Flamande.