t Smisje Sleedoornbier

Brewed by Brouwerij De Regenboog
Style: Fruit Beer
Assebroek-Brugge, Belgium

The Lure:
Cranberry-like fruitiness yields a citric nature as well as a dab of pomegranate sweetness. All is quiet atop, this appears to be a simple, unpretentious, fruit beer.

The Festivities:
Lazy pink grapefruit citrusy character within yeast and watery bubbles. Prickly berry skins keep things interesting, but the body is so frail and malt-less that I lose interest rapidly. Okay for its purpose, but any Unibroue Ephémère does a better job than this, to my tastes.

Transcendence:
Oversimplifying can get soporific real fast.

Murky orangey golden, small white cover, mostly lasting and procuring decent lacing. Sweet floral nose (heather), definitely candyish in nature (cotton candy) and highly yeasty, which cuts a bit in the fruitiness for the worse. Cidery, old books yeast notes are overtaken by soapiness and muddled tropical fruit and papaya juiciness. Slightly sulfury ending, phenolic in a bandage sort of way, drying out not unlike a white wine. Light-medium bodied, small bubbled carbonation, okay balance.

Peach color with a honeycomb-like, white head. Subtle fruit and brettanomyces aroma, yeasty. Definite horseblanket character in the flavor. Very dry but there is quite a bit of viscosity as well. An unusual chalk texture is noted. Interesting but quite simple for the ingredients.

Going into this drink, I wasn’t sure what a sloeberry was... and now, for sanity’s sale, I don’t want to find out. It poured a hazy orange-like color filled with particles and topped by a creamy white head. The smell of the drink is furniture polish, a piercing lemon and chemical aroma. Alive in the mouth, it has a stinging, tart citric taste with a trace of malt and some flowery hops. Sticky hot finish. More of an interesting drink than an enjoyable one.

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Bottled (BBE 2008)
Hazy reddish brown, small head. Lemony aroma. Medium-bodied. Sticky mouthfeel. A bit sweet with earthy notes like in some lambics. Sugary aftertaste with some sourness. Quite interesting and unique brew.

An unclear amber beer with a small white head. The aroma is primarily of sloe, but also of malt and hops, while the flavor is sweet malty with notes of both black currant and sloe. I think this is a nice fruit beer - I’ve had plenty of sloe snaps - but to put it in beer is new to me - and a good idea.

Golden colour with a white head. Aroma and flavor has a sour apple note that makes this beer very hard too get down.

Bottle. Golden colour with a white head. Light sour tomato aroma and taste. Medium body and a long sour finish.