Silenrieux Joseph Spelt Ale

Brewed by Silenrieux
Style: Specialty Grain
Silenrieux, Belgium

Foam rises out of the bottle as soon as it is opened. Huge white head over hazy pale yellow body. Thin, sharp, spicy aroma of barnyard and eggs. Taste is thin, chalky spice with a slight note of vomit. (Hmmm, is this infected? Should re-rate.) Bitterish, empty aftertaste. Intense, lingering taste of metal. This really is no bloody good. (0.25l bottle.)

25 cl bottle. A medium bodied beer. On the lable that is a little different as the shown, it mentioned 5.4 % alcohol. Some yeast taste. Tasting better and better. When opening the beer a CO2 burst ended some ml on to the table. Was best white beer on SOK beer tasting

250 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Also available in Norway at Vinmonopolet. ABV is 5%. This spelt beer is organic (French: "biologique")., and has had a secondary fermentation in the bottle. Very pale blonde colour, hazy. Large and fluffy white head. Yeasty, spicy (cloves a.o.) and citrussy aroma, nice. Spritzy mouthfeel. The flavour is wheaty, fairly dry, notes of citrus and pepper. Not very different from their buckwheat beer "Sara". Joseph is a decent beer, but not worth the ridiculously high price in Norway.

Bottled. Hazy golden with a rich licely white foam. Dryish yeasty aroma of banana-peels, lemon, mild flowers and biscuit. Soft, lively and somewhat wheaty flavour of banana, yeast, bread, spices and mild pepper. Soft airy and sparkling mouthfeel. Light finish of yeast, pears, banana and almond-paste.

Hazy, golden/amber appearance; medium size, off white head; little lacing; lots of flocculation. Yeasty aroma, spicy, wheaty, sweet. Grainy taste , with honey-like sweetness. Fruity flavors before turning tarter and spicier as it finishes. Better than most organic beers.

Cloudy dirty blonde body with almost no head. Pleasant Saison-ish countryside aroma. Taste is again Saison-ish with a wilder than average yeast. Pleasant fruity notes mixed in with some wild flowers flavour, like dandelions or something. Some spicy notes too. Body is a bit oily with a tickling carbonation. The mouthfeel was a surprisingly a bit lacking. No thin or watery. The type of beer that collapses in your mouth instead of filling it. Very Saison to me. A gentle honest beer bearing the name of the most naïve cuckold in history.

Considering the style, Scores ranging from 1 to 5, 5 being the most intense
Appearance:
Body:   Clear(1)->Murky(5) : 4     Pale Yellow(1)->Copper(5) : 4     Still(1)->Volcanic Sparkling(5) : 2
Head:   None(1)->Large(5) : 2     Lasting: 2     Lacing : XX
Aroma:
Intensity : 3  
Yeast : 3   Bread : XX   Dough : 3   Esters : XX   Phenols : 2   Dusty : 3   Spicy : 2   Apple : XX   Banana : XX   Tropical Fruits : XX   Brett : XX   Barnyard : XX   Leather : XX   Wood : XX   Vinous : 3   Cheese : XX   DMS : XX   Diacetyl : XX Sulfur : XX
Malt : 3   Pilsner : 2   Pale : XX   Vienna : XX   Biscuity : 2   Toasty : 3   Hay : XX   Caramel : 2   Honey : 2   Cereals : XX   Grainy : XX   Wheat : 4
Hops : 2   Noble(1)->American(5) : 1   Leafy : XX   Perfume : XX   Orange : XX   Floral : XX   Lemon/Lime : XX   Herbal : XX   Grassy : 3   Piney : XX
Notes : Pepper : 2   Cloves : XX   Coriander : XX   Ginger : XX   Orange : XX   Earth : XX   Vanilla : XX   Oxidation : XX   Bubblegum : XX
Flavor:
Initial Flavor : Dry(1)->Sweet(5) : 3   Finish Dry(1)->Sweet(5) : 3   Sourness : 1   Acetic : XX   Lactic : XX   Bitterness : 2   Farmy : 2   Complex : 2   Length : XX
Palate:
Light(1)->Full(5) : 3   Flat(1)->Fizzy(5) : 3   Clean : XX   Sharp : XX   Watery : XX   Oily : XX   Chalk : XX   Astringent : XX   Alcohol : XX   Mineral : 2

Comments: An easy-going well focused on the spelt beer where subtlety is more important than punch. The final result is no revelation, but pleases the palate nonetheless.

Bottled, BB end 2007. Cloudy golden coloured, yeast floating around and a lot of carbonation going on. Yeasty aroma, some citrus, also sone white wine character. Grainy flavour, some fruit, more sweet towards the finish. Easy drinking, but not very special.