Struise / Alvinne Keralensis - De Struise Brouwers

oline73

Maryland

3.35/5  rDev -14.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I had this on-tap at the Copenhagen Beer Celebration. Served in a tasting tulip glass.

Appearance: Pours a cloudy reddish amber with a layer of white head that goes away completely rather fast.

Smell: Sour strawberry jam with a nice level of fruity sweetness playing backup. The tartness is playing nicely with the fruit notes.

Taste: Tart red berries up front. There isn't a lot of sweetness in the taste. The finish is tart and fruity, and the overall flavor seems a bit weak.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with tingly carbonation and a dry finish.

Overall: The taste seemed a bit watered down. This is a pretty good beer, but it was overshadowed by all of the other awesome beers at the fest. Still glad I got to try it.

Serving type: on-tap

05-13-2012 13:49:35 | More by oline73

MasterSki

Illinois

3.8/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks Urbain for this one. Served in a champagne flute. The bottle specifically says this isn't a lambic.

A - Two fingers of white foam settle to a thick cap and collar, leaving behind minimal thin splotches of lace. Reddish-orange, with some partial transparency. Looks a little like a Shirley Temple with foam.

S - Cherry pie, light balsamic. Initially quite sweet, but it gets more sour as it warms up. There's a fruity funk to it, although it's not as "wild" as the Cuvée René we had immediately prior. Some oaky vanilla as well.

T - Taste is unfortunately a bit monochromatic, with pie crust sweetness and only light funk and acidity. Heavy on the cherry juice with well-hidden alcohol.

M - Pleasant medium-low carbonation, slightly syrupy and sticky medium body. Some light dryness in the finish.

D - Not very "lambic"-like, although to be fair, the label says as much. Very easy to drink, but nothing life-changing - for Struise fanatics only.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2011 16:21:52 | More by MasterSki

Sean9689

Illinois

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle provided by Alex, thanks homie! Poured into Bruery tulip.

A - Pours a dark ruby red, thin ring, no lace or retention.

S - Smells balsamic, tart cherries, vinegar, sour fruit, funky bad feet, barnyard. Lots of funky fruit, basamic vinegar, tartness, oak.

T - Not as tart/sour as the nose suggests, a slight off-putting metallic note, cherries, oak. Almost a smooth cherry note with some oak and funk.

M - Light, smooth, light carbonation, dry finish.

O - A solid lambic that's not so big on the cherries and oak and smooth on the sour/tart notes. As Struise stated, it's not a kriek so it's not huge on tart/sour notes, but it's still very enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2011 00:20:16 | More by Sean9689

AgentZero

Illinois

3.68/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to Alex for sharing this rare tick.

A - Rusty brown beer with red highlights and a small white head that faded to a thin ring.

S - A little bit of vanilla, caramel, dark fruit, vinegar, cherry. Interesting blend that has a kind of rotten funk smell to it, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

T - Some balsamic vinegar notes with a sweet brown sugar/dark fruit taste to it. The cherry flavor is a little bit different than anything I have had before. Finish is some good fruity notes.

M - Smooth, fuller side of medium bodied, soft carbonation.

O - Not a bad beer, interesting and unique flavor. Not my favorite thing, but worth giving a try.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2011 00:17:53 | More by AgentZero

craytonic

District of Columbia

4.1/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Many thanks to SpencerDB for sharing this rare gem

Appearance: red with a bit of copper; large off-white head

Smell: Similar to a Oud Bruin; lots of cherry and oak with an interplay between sweet and tart

Taste: Similar to the above, cherry, oak, vanilla with a sweet and tart back and forth. A tasty blend

Mouthfeel: champagne-like carbonation, slightly thin

Drinkability: Very tiny bottle; it goes quickly amongst four. For an Oud Bruin it would be very good; as a lambic it is a bit simple

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2010 01:09:08 | More by craytonic

ccrida

Oregon

4.05/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

33cl bottle (thx MacDomer!) poured into my large GuldenDraak tulip, Keralensis is cloudy magenata with a big, very pale magenta head that settles pretty quickly to a long lasting skim with a bigger bubbled collar that leaves no lace.

Smell is pretty bright, sour cherry, a strong seltzer like quality that tinges the nostrils a touch, like a good gin and tonic, but not in a boozy/hot way, more quinine.

Taste is good, classic kriek, nice minerality to the lambic base with a kiss of cherry, not as strong as the color or nose would suggest, but then again I think this is a good year+ old. Fairly modest sourness though, and not super complex either.

Mouthfeel is dry and acidic, tooth-coating, but perhaps a little thin.

Drinkability is pretty good, a strait forward, well made kriek. Nothing particularly exceptional about it worth chasing down, but definitely enjoyable if you come across one.

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2010 00:00:27 | More by ccrida

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle: Poured a hazy deep reddish color ale with a large off-white foamy head with good retention and good lacing. Aroma of cherry and oak is quiet interesting with a great balance between sweetness and tart notes. Taste is also a very nice mix between some tart cherries with some balance sweetness with a solid malt backbone. Body is fuller then average with good carbonation and no alcohol was perceptible. Very well done overall and better then I would have expected.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2010 17:53:06 | More by Phyl21ca

easement

Georgia

4.1/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours with little head. Theres some carbonation there, but not much. The color is reddish brown.

The Aroma is slightly barnyardy. You can tell this is going to be tart.

However, the taste isn't as tart as the nose hints. Sweet malts in the beginning make way for tart with the sweetness coming back a the ens. notes of cherry and berries. There's some caramel in there as well.

Mouthfeel is thin, but that's what you want with a beer like this.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2009 21:30:32 | More by easement

seaoflament

California

4.13/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks goes out to Kyle for sharing this beer this past weekend and helping me knock it off my wants.

What a nice looking beer, violet and dark cherry tones with a half inch of foam on top and decent retention too.

Funky on the nose with a mix of cherries and berries, dark brown malts, hints of chocolate in the background, and a decent amount of lemon acidity. Sweet and tart cherries become more pronounced as the beer breathes for a few moments. Vinegar comes out to the front as well but still well balanced by the fruit and funk.

Dry cherry skin is the first thing that comes to mind on the initial sip followed by hints of brown malt, toast, apples skins, and a nice dryness in the finish. Quite nice. Low acidity, moderate level of tannins, and easy to drink. Low carbonation but the dryness balances out the mouthfeel and eases the drinkability. Would love to drink this one again.

Serving type: bottle

11-04-2009 03:17:00 | More by seaoflament

HopHead84

California

4.1/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle shared by floydster on 10/31/2009. Thanks Kyle. The beer is hazy and a dark raspberry color with a frothy one finger white head.

The nose is vibrant cherry with subtle lactic notes, a hint of tartness, and subtle wood. Brett imparts musty notes. The cherry smells fantastic, and the mustiness compliments it nicely. Yeast character is low and no alcohol is evident.

The flavor is tart cherries with an upper low level of lactic sourness and some mustiness. The tartness hits me at the back of my palate and in my throat. Tannins are evident. The cherry flavor is almost as good as the aroma.

This is enjoyable stuff with an excellent cherry nose.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2009 20:52:46 | More by HopHead84

brc

Michigan

4.18/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

One of the bottles of the batch blended for pre-ZBF 09. Love the Magritte knock off bottle art.

Poured into a Cantillon flute - bottle was a bit of a gusher. It's got a ruby color, with a pink head that settles quickly to a ring around the glass.

Has much of the depth of aroma as a top notch kriek. Cellar mustiness, along with a cranberry fruitiness and cherry, of course. You can tell it's going to be tart. There's none of the wet dog smells, though.

Cherry flavor, like eating fresh tart fruits. Quite dry, almost no sweetness. The sourness is fairly laid back - a bit on the tongue and in the back of the throat.

It's very drinkable - a light tartness that the sour-curious could appreciate, if a bit tame for lambic lovers. Balanced, fruity, really good stuff.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2009 22:46:38 | More by brc

ggaughan

Pennsylvania

4.18/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A collaberative brew between Struise (using Struiselensis) and Alvinne (using their Kerasus) which debuted at the Pre-ZBF fest at Alvinne this past weekend.

The beer poured a nice ruby red color with a vibrant pink head. The aroma was a bit sour, cherry. A touch of wood could be detected as well. The seems to be a good mix of the two base beers although I get a bit more of the Kerasus. There are solid cherry notes, wood and overall a tart character on the tongue. Overall a very solid beer that will benefit further from some bottle age I would think.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2009 20:05:05 | More by ggaughan