Kriek - Block 15 Brewery & Restaurant

PaulStoneAnchor

California

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%

12-18-2012 05:59:34 | More by PaulStoneAnchor

Photekut

Azerbaijan

3.5/5  rDev -17.5%

05-19-2013 01:36:23 | More by Photekut

AlexFields

Tennessee

3.7/5  rDev -12.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Opened at 4/20 tasting.

Pours dark caramel brown, not much head.

Smells slightly oxidized but not enough to ruin it. Sweet cherries, some light tartness, some funk.

Tastes more sour than I expected, pretty lactic, some sweet cherries again, very good! Little or none of the oxidized character I picked up from the nose.

Fairly good carbonation and drinkability, medium thick body.

7.8/10

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2013 21:21:16 | More by AlexFields

4DAloveofSTOUT

Illinois

4.28/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Huge thanks to Rathakem for this Block 15 beer!

375ml bottle with pressure cap.

poured into Block 15 tulip glass.

Appearance: crimison red bodied beer with 2 fingers of white head that slowely fizzeles down to a thin ring around the tulip.

Smell: acidic and tart cherries. oak barrel with a hint of bourbon sweetness almost has a maple syrup smell to it as well. smells a little boozey as well.

Taste: Strong tart cherries and cranberries; this beer is really way more tart that I expected it to be. Its also acidic and a slight hint of vinegar is notable. A little more boozey that I expected as well. Oak barrel and vanilla notes hiding in the background. Slight earthy funk. Also has a vinous quality like a red wine and getting some subtle floral notes. Sweet malt backbone is detected and seems to contrast the tartness. Did notice some off flavors in this beer, both acetone and cardboard. Very minor and not really distracting towards the overall flavor profile of this beer.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied beer with carbonation thats on the high end of moderate. Really prickly and aggressive carbonation in this beer. Its got a dry finish that accentuates the tartness of this beer nicely.

Overall: Another great wild ale by Block 15. They accomplish what they set out to do with this beer. A solid kriek with a very nice pucker factor. The bourbon barrels lend just the right amount of barrel influence and nice little kick of bourbon. Great complexity in this beer. The balance was okay, it seemed the entire time I was drinking this beer that the sweet and the sour were constantly fighting each other.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2013 12:25:15 | More by 4DAloveofSTOUT

acurtis

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -5.7%

05-05-2013 18:33:48 | More by acurtis

djrn2

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -5.7%

05-05-2013 17:19:18 | More by djrn2

JMRSN

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +0.2%

05-02-2013 17:54:59 | More by JMRSN

HopHead84

California

4.05/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

4/13/2013

Bottle into a snifter.

A: Darker than expected, a brown with subtle burgundy tinges and a finger of beige foam. After reading the label the color is no longer a source of mystery.

S: Jammy strawberry with notes of pie crust and a light tartness. Perfumy floral and fruit presence. Vinegar is faint, as are woody notes.

T: Lightly tart with a firm lactic presence and a little of vinegar. Strawberry jam and seed with pie crust and a little leather and earth. A bit of oak and astringency in the finish.

M: High carbonation. Lower medium body with a soft mouthfeel.

Overall: A nice beer though I prefer a more neutral blond base as a vehicle for fruit. Golden Canary Kriek would be nice.

Serving type: bottle

04-22-2013 16:25:25 | More by HopHead84

DaveHack

Pennsylvania

4.21/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottle served at 50 degrees into a tulip glass

Easy pour yields a large, billowy head that settles fast leaving almost no trace of any remaining head. Color is an extremely dark brown/red.

Smells like tart cherries with a touch of sweetness. Not noticing much from an barrel aging, there might be a slight oakiness, but that could just be bacause I know it BA.

Very tart up front. As you swallow it remains tart but there is the barrel program at work...notice a boozy burn on the way down, it's kinda nice.

Very dry in the mouth. Carbonation is low, but it doesn't really hurt it.

Overall, it is a unique beer. At first I was off put by it. I drank a little and waited to do the review after a while to really 'get' it. It's not my favorite, but it is solid.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2013 02:11:29 | More by DaveHack

cosmicevan

New York

4.15/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4

once again, big thanks to Rathakem for the Block 15 hookup. enjoyed from my block 15 snifter.

a - brew poured a deep crimson that revealed itself to have a bit of a watery look when held to the light but settled like black cherry in the glass. there was a thin fizzy head that came with the pour but it fizzed away within minutes leaving some fizzy pockets along the rim of the surface and thin soda like bubble skin patches.

s - fairly big cherry only tamed back by bourbon which imparts some raw oak bourbon phenols along the lines of say founders' dirty bastard...but the fruit dominates. fairly lush and ripe...juicy even. the bourbon is just a nice twist and for the most part complimentary. nice tartness...more flanders than wild. bottle says the base is an oud bruin. really nice.

t - taste leads with cherry. then you slipped the booze then finishes with a fairly well rounded oud bruin/flanders with a puckering tart tail off. really quite nice. the cherry again dominates and is rather tart.

m - body is fairly thin and a little watery. carbonation is prickly on the finish, but on the swallow is rather smooth. tart and dry.

o - overall, i dug it. the feel was a bit off for me...tart and dry on the finish. nice flavor...the bourbon compliments the base beer nicely, but the star is the cherry. ripe cherry.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2013 03:39:33 | More by cosmicevan

largadeer

California

4.25/5  rDev +0.2%

03-26-2013 19:03:30 | More by largadeer

cavedave

New York

4.44/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Big thanks to oregonskibum for yet another Block 15 gem.

Pours a cloudy reddish brown, with a quick to leave beige topper, and persistent ring.

Rounded and vinegary tart, with cherry and flowers, some nice grainy sweet, hints of herbal bitter and wine.

Woaahhh, don't know why this is listed as a wild ale, this has all the great flavors of a quintessential kriek. Cherry and tart yeast front the sip, nice sweet comes in, hints of earthy funk and a bit of grain round it out, and it finishes with a wonderful tart cherry/vinous just dry enough flourish. As it warms to room temperature nice barrel notes tiptoe in to make it really special.

Easy drinking to a fault, light but full of flavor, with a clean fruity finish that will knock your socks off.

What a simple and great beer, all one could ask for in a kriek, holds its own with any of the Belgians I have tried. Highest recommendation.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 21:17:42 | More by cavedave

wichiee

Oregon

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%

03-15-2013 04:52:07 | More by wichiee

mroberts1204

California

4.75/5  rDev +12%

03-12-2013 03:17:33 | More by mroberts1204

HuskyinPDX

Washington

4.41/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Bottle opened on 1.30.13
Thanks again Seth.
Kriek aged in Bourbon barrels

A - Pours a dark burgundy brown with a fizzy tan head that is gone very quickly.

S - Cherry, oak, borbon, vanilla.

T - Tart cherry, then some warm vanilla-bourbon, and some subtle oak.

D - Decent carbonaton with a medium body.

O -Kriek with a bourbon chaser. Nice take without the usual sweetness.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2013 06:24:13 | More by HuskyinPDX

cbrunpc

Oregon

4.61/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

375 bottle on 1/20/2012. Have a few left!

A: Being colorblind, i thought this looked purplish...not much head.
S:Tart, with a little bit of tart. I catch a little bit of oak as well.
T: Starts tart and finishes tart. Oak and cherries throughout.
M: Medium body, very refreshing, a nice bit of sourness, but not over the top.
O: A wonderful sour beer. I think it will age very well. I enjoyed this beer and look forward to the three I have left to see how they age.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2013 02:50:16 | More by cbrunpc

Shmeal

Oregon

4.75/5  rDev +12%

11-27-2012 20:35:48 | More by Shmeal

writerLJBerg

Oregon

4/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

375mL bottle from the brewery. Served in a snifter.

A: Brackish brown color with a very, very thin reddish-white lacing. Clings to the glass for a bit before gliding down.

N: Deep whiffs of tart cherries, some sweetness of oak and vanilla from the bourbon, and a slight acetic element. However, this one leans more towards the former and less towards the latter.

T: Sour oaked beer. The cherries lend the tartness to the beer, and then there's a depth of oak, bourbon, vanilla, and honey. Some cranberry and some acetone, some dark berries in the very back.

M: Medium mouthfeel which contains more than its fair share of carbonation. No alcohol presence and a very pleasing level of sourness.

O: A balanced candy of a beer. A complementing mixture of sweet and sour. I would take this over the Dissident or Earthmonk every day of the week. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2012 23:51:28 | More by writerLJBerg