Ichtegem's Grand Cru - Brouwerij Strubbe

Phatz

Pennsylvania

3.43/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

What a strange beer. A Flemish Red that is more creamy than sour. Odd.

Appearance: The look it terrific. It pours a dark garnet brown with absolutely loads of lacing plastering the walls of my glass like a curtain.

Smell: Sweet sugars, Belgian candy sugar, molasses toffee, and *browned butter*.

Taste: The most distracting flavor in the beer is this significant butteryness with a vinegar attribute as well and of course the wood flavors come though as expect in a barrel aged sour red. There is a dull cherry/sherry element and tasty touch of old fruit. Still the butterscotch is odd.

Mouthfeel: It is a rather smooth medium body with fine carbonation that slides across the palate. Average-ish.

Drinkability: I seemed to enjoy the opportunity to try this beer more than my friends did. It is not bad but certainly not something I am going to look for again either.

Hope this is helpful.
Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

10-15-2007 03:50:26 | More by Phatz

AndoBrew

Georgia

3.25/5  rDev -13.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

*did not mind would not buy*

app: looks more brown than red.. not great lookin.

smell: mild pepper some nice tart zing w/ a little bit of brown gravy.

taste: odd. some sort of chemical after taste. some sour, lots of thick almost blonde malts

mf: little to thick, needs more bubles.

drinkable?: needs more zing, its nice but it needs more sour power.

Serving type: bottle

10-04-2007 01:52:25 | More by AndoBrew

brdc

Wisconsin

4.03/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Small capped bottle, thanks to stousnipas.
This is an Oud Bruin, according to both taste and the bottle.
Beautiful burgundy, with shiny amber overtones, and a fluffy tan head that dissipates leaving an ever-lasting lace that coats the sides of the glass and the top of the beer all the way down.
Aroma is vinegary, sour, mildly malted and slightly smoked.
Light bodied, easy to drink, it has the expected taste, vinegary, malted, acidic and mildly bitter, with some minimal "roasted" notes.
Not spectacular, but quite interesting.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2007 23:25:26 | More by brdc

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

3.58/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Pours a dark, garnet-hued body with a thin, short-lived beige head.

Smell: Sharply acetic aroma with a vague, berry-like fruitiness. Hints of antique oak.

Taste: Flavor of sour cherries and red wine vinegar with subtle hints of wood and a pinch of salt. Very light yeastiness. Tart, fruity finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body. Mild carbonation.

Drinkability: Yes sir, Itchy Gems makes a pretty fine Flanders Sour Ale.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2007 19:54:18 | More by ChainGangGuy

MaltyGoodness

Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

11.2oz bottle

Pours a rich chestnut brown with a vivid ruby hue. Small tan head recedes to the side of the glass, mild lacing.

Aroma is very tart with a distinct cherry fruity smell and some slight nutty and woody malt tones.

Puckering tartness immediately upfront that lasts the duration. Among the waves of tartness come fruity cherry, nutty, and woody flavors. Has a slightly sharp taste (metallic) at the finish as the tartness lingers.

Medium-full body, solid carbonation.

I really enjoy tart beers, and this one is no exception. It is quite complex and easy to drink, but falls slightly shy of greatness. Nonetheless, those who enjoy this style should certainly give this one a try.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2007 03:26:24 | More by MaltyGoodness

mep3222

New York

3.48/5  rDev -7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Had this on tap. The sourness was very unique. I was not a huge fan of the sourness of this beer. Most times I find the sourness to be appealing, but this one I thought actually tasted metalic, but after drinking more I do not think it was a metalic taste but a weird aftertase from the sourness. I didn't think it was all that great as a flanders red, balance was not there and the complexity that I usually find in Flanders Reds was severly lacking.

Serving type: on-tap

07-08-2007 15:38:29 | More by mep3222

Stimack

New York

3.9/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Was able to give this brew a try last evening. It is a style I really like but very infrequently have so this was a treat. The brew was poured to a dark reddish color with a creamy head that was medium in size and left nice sheets of lacing down the side of the glass. Nice berry aroma, mostly cherry I believe along with a slight vinegar sourness that is subtle but noticeable. The taste is very smooth with a tart berry flavor, to me the berries come out more clearly here with raspberries, cherries, and maybe plum? Has a sourness to it but does not seem to be a pronounced as in some other Flanders red offerings. Over all I think that this is a nice offering, very tame beer based on the style which has its good points. I would get this brew again in the future.

Serving type: on-tap

03-10-2007 13:15:22 | More by Stimack

DarkerTheBetter

Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I found this at Monk’s café.

This beer looks black in the dark back bar at Monk’s, but when held to the light, it glows a lovely burgundy. The head consists of a creamy collar that left a slight bit of lace.

Smells of a tart dry raspberry and cherry with a faint dry banana. I’m also getting a hint of rye. Sadly, it’s also slightly metallic.

Tastes of tart raspberries and cherries that fades to dry with a little sour milk, oak and an almost Bret-like sourness.

The mouth feel is light to medium bodied with a thickening micro bubble.

This sourness of this one is unique. Try it if you like the style for sure.

Serving type: on-tap

08-21-2006 21:55:46 | More by DarkerTheBetter

audiojon

California

3.8/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I'm a big fan of Flemish Reds, so when I saw that O'Brien's had a new one on tap this week, I had to try it. This was labeled as "Grand Cru," oddly enough. The bartender cleared that up for me and described as being similar to the Duchesse de Bourgogne but not as in your face. Unfortunately, I wish this were a bit more in your face; as it is it's a bit boring, but very enjoyable. In other words, I've had better Flemish Reds, but this is still a good beer. Def worth a try, and would make a very good introductory beer for those wanting to cross over to the dark (sour) side.

As for an actual review:

Smell is pretty non existant, not as much funk as I like. Taste is very good, only a light sourness unfortunately (I like to pucker), but it tastes great regardless of the sourness (or lack thereof). I could probably drink this all afternoon, and in fact may do just that. :)

Serving type: on-tap

05-07-2006 23:23:06 | More by audiojon