Struise Aardmonnik / Earthmonk

Formerly brewed at De Struise Brouwers
Style: Sour Ale
Oostvleteren, Belgium

Rate beer 2008. Poured a cloudy brown colour with a small off white head. A typically sour barnyard nose with hints of balsamic vinegar and tart fermented summer fruits and some hints of cianti. Similar sour taste but with loads more fruit character. Very nicely balanced sourness.

A dark reddish brown ale with a big bubbled off white head. A wonderful complex aroma of blackberries, a good burgundy wine, lactic acid and a good berry jam. Wow! In mouth, a complex Flemish sour with light vinegar, cherries, light candy sugar. An intense beer, probably in my top 10. Enjoyed in bottle at Kulminator, Nov. 2006, with Joris and Carlo.

33cl bottle. Poured at generous height as suggested on bottle into a Struise glass. Head lasted for a short while but complex and several levels. Dark dark brown color, carbonation is little to not present. Smells like raisins, grass, oak, a musty. Taste, wow, one of the strangest I’ve had. It is very complex, difficult to describe, but does not follow the normal progression a beer does on the palate. It starts with caramel, becomes moderately sour(not overly), and then the oak kicks in and almost lifts my taste buds to cherries, vanilla, maybe grapes then some funky yeast. It finishes quite lite for starting quite sour and overall is very smooth, almost creamy to drink with the thickness and lower carbonation. Hmmmmm.... might be my farvorite from Belgium so far!

750ml bottle. Poured dark brown with some amber hues and very thin tan head that left little lacing on the glass. Aroma of cherries, dark fruits, raisins, and oak. Tastes of tart cherries and dark fruits, currants, raisins, light barnyard funkiness, with an oaky dry finish. A little more acidic then I prefer, but not bad.

Bottle shared by Crosling, thanks dude. Poured a murky brown color with some red highlights and a moderate fizzy beige head that diminished to a ring. Aroma of tart cherries and berry, funky yeast, some barnyard, and a bit of oak. Tart, lightly funky entry with some tart cherry and a hint of grape and a moderate acedic character leads into a barnyard yeastiness that finishes dry with some light tartness. Moderate carbonation with a nice dry bite/

A tart lactic acid nose with crisp sour cherries and brown sugar. Brown sugar sweetness and a mouthpuckering sour body that reminded me of La Folie with a bit more oak. Fantastic. Many thanks to yesper for sending me this bottle a year ago.

Huge amount of thanks to xmarcnolanx for this treat. Pours very dark with a garnet hue and almost no carbonation at all. The aroma has sourness, dark malt, dark cherries, licorice, red grapes and burgundy wine notes. Medium / full super-slick velvety body with a mere hint of carbonation. The flavor starts with a mix of vinegar sourness and dark caramel. There is also dark cherries, berries, some rough graininess and hints of granola. The finish has a pleasing tartness and some cereal-like traits and a hint of abv. This is nice different and enjoyable approach to the sour ale style.

Zeeland 08’ tasting. Really looking forward to this one. Poured red brown. Aroma was nice funk and sour cherries. Taste was nice cherry, well rounded and a great tannic and wine like acidity. One of my favorites of the night.