Rodenbach Redbach

Formerly brewed at Brouwerij Rodenbach (Palm)
Style: Fruit Beer
Roeselare, Belgium

11.2 oz bottle: bright raspberry with thin, white wisps of head. Irony, metallic aroma: artificial cherry syrup mixed with bits of wheat and decent undertones of Flemish yeast…sharp, cherry popsicle flavour and syrupy texture. Tart, lightly acidic finish with a bit more metal and a little fizziness. I can only ask why?

2006 bottle consumed on 6/27/06. Best before April 20th 2007. Dark cherry red beer is highly clear, very filtered, with a dark pink, flimsy head that immediately fizzles away to nothing, leaving no lace or anything behind. Very forcefully carbonated. In the nose, plasticy, old, stale malt aromas signify pasteurization. Dull and dead, with possibly the closest approximation I have smelled to a jolly rancher (hard candy). Sugary, sweet, artificial. Simple and rather insulting to a flemish sour, with no signs of oak aging. The flavor is equally as artificial, with syrupy sweet candy notes, heavy on the cherry juice sweetness and only a very minimal "sour" touch. High carbonation, very fizzy and creating a loose, flimsy mouthfeel. No alcohol notes, of course, but really leaves me with the impression of a fizzy alco-pop. In itself, not so bad, but a flemish sour? Something made by Rodenbach (not that that’s saying much these days)? Downright shameful.

Dark maroon, thick pink head, lots of tiny bubbles. Nose is dark juicy cherries, funk yeat, balsamic vinegar, and some light malts. Begins rather sweet, with a huge blast of dark juciy cherries, almost Jolly Rancher like. Finishes slightly sour, but with a nice twang. Nothing really complex, but for a chick beer it aint bad.

12 oz bottle, via BelgianShop. Pours a bright clear red with quite a bit of fizzy visible carbonation under a pink tinged head. The head faded to a thin film rather quickly. Aroma is tart with a cherry candy sweetness and maybe a hint of woodiness. Flavor is very sweetened with sugary cherry flavoring. Just the slightest tartness remains in the mid swallow. The fruit isn’t overly cloying, just a little artificial tasting. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with fizzy active carbonation. The sweetness did get a little cloying towards the end of the bottle though. Overall, this would appeal to those who are enamored with Lindeman’s fruit lambics. Not to say that it’s a bad beer per se, just a horrible aberration when you take into account Rodenbach’s heritage. This should also be classified as a fruit beer in my opinion.

Hazy reddish purple cherry like body with a pink head, good lacing. Aroma is like a lighter version of regular Rodenbach with some cherry essence added. Flavor is the same, a very light sourness here with the cherry sweetness. This beer is a complete joke compared to the rest of the lineup. But, I got Rodenbach notes out of this, so it’s impossible for me to score it less than a 3/5.

Dark ruby with a large red hued head. String lacing is left behind. Dusty and dry nose with hints of cherries. Slightly sour and cobwebby. The flavor is earthy with a good dose of cherries. More sweet than sour leaves you thinking that this is a fruit beer rather than a flemish sour.

I’m a bit scared of this one based on the appearance. It isn’t that there is anything /wrong/ with the way it looks - deep ruby with a thin pinkish head - but something is reminding me of black cherry soda. Maybe its the carbonation I see streaming up the sides of the snifter. Maybe its the fact that I’ve never seen a beer quite this red (unless of course you consider Lindeman’s Framboise a beer) So what does the nose have to offer? Up front it is quite balsamic - figs, cherries, oak, a hint of lemon. Further back I get a bit of meatiness (I never know how to properly express that aroma) and some old, rotting fruit. How does she taste? Sweet. Acidity is quickly taken over by cherry syrup and balsamic. I do get some black cherry soda in there. The finish has that echo that says "This could have been a great sour beer" that I seem to find in so many products. You get some oak, some acidity, some wonderful beasties doing their thing. Sadly all that goodness is buried under cherry syrup. Not as cloying as many other sweetened sour beers but far too sweet for it’s own good. Someone hand me a Grand Cru.

Red with pinkish head. Aroma is cherries and rasberries. Light bodied and tart, with weak cherry and rasberry flavors coming through. I may have like this one better if I was ten years old.