Verhaeghe Duchesse De Bourgogne

Brewed by Verhaeghe
Style: Sour Ale
Vichte, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium

Pours amber with a big pillowy tan head. Aroma is sour cherries and other dark fruits, with a little bit of earthy woodiness. Flavor is sweet and sour caramel and dark fruits, with lots of tart cherry. Very good.

Bottle. Pours red brown, small head. Lactic acid astringent nose. Well balanced flavors, very quenching, less sour than Rodenbach. Quite complex for the ABV.

330mL bottle - pours a reddish dark brown into chalice with a thin bubbly off-white head. Aroma is berries, port, sweet and sour. Flavour is strong black current, grapes, sour cherries. Mouthful is very thick and complex. Excellent Belgian sour ale - my favourite of this style.

Bottle. Pours clear brownish ruby with a bubbly beige head that lasts well with good lacing. Nose is vinous with aromas of port, berries, wine cork, and blackcurrant all standing out. Flavour is a nice balance of sweet and sour with toffee, grapes, raspberry and is also a bit woody, the oak casks adding to the flavour. Medium to full body and slightly sticky on the palate, this is a very good beer, not as sour as expected but very nice all the same.

Bottle. Lovely reddish brown with a creamy head. Head disappeared to leave wonderful lacing. Aromas are very much sweet and sour. Obviously quite complex. Plenty of vingary sourness here. Flavours are wonderful. Grapy, some malt sweetness and plenty of sour cherries. Yep certainly very complex. Mouthfeel is spot on. Great beer.

33 cl bottle. Reddish brown with off-white head. Small tight dense bubbles. Aroma is full of balsamic vinegar, cherries and brown sugar. Lovely balance between sweetness and puckery sourness. Flavor continues with cherry & balsamic theme. Simultaneously refreshing and filling. TCR = 3.5

750ml bottle. Pours dark redish brown with a quickly discipating creamy white head. Initial aroma is sweet fruit with slight vinous and/or acetic elements. Body is medium full mainly from the younger of the blend. Depending on the age of the blend the sourness will vary. This sample was much more sour than others that I have had that have been almost cloyingly sweet. This beer is outstanding. A good balance between the younger more sweet beer in the blend and the assertively sour older beer. I recommend letting the beer age more so that the balance is there, as well as the complexity. A great beer to end the night of tasting on.

( 750ml bottle exp 12/09) pours murky brownish red with nice fluffy white head and excellent lacing. Nose is vinous, fruity, and wood. Taste is lightly sour, some molasses, creamy, dried fruits, tons of wood and absolutely delicious. This has aged exceptionally and the creamy carbonation has benefitted as a result. Age one if you can!