Goudenband - Brouwerij Liefmans

Mitchster

Michigan

5/5  rDev +19%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Ah, one of my favorite beers of all time (if not my favorite beer of all time). This one pours out to a beautiful, lightly cloudy chestnut color with auburn highlights. There is no yeast particles, and there is no yeast in the bottom of the bottle (corked, wrapped in tissue paper, plain green bottle) The head is gorgeous...light tan, creamy in appearance with immaculate retention and some of the best lacing I've ever seen. The head sits atop small to medium-sized bubbles and seems to last forever. The aroma? Oh bliss, bliss and heaven. Gorgeousness and gorgeousity made flesh...sweet and sour, rotting cherries and oranges, natural apple cider gone bad, deep amber malts, a distant hint of clove, dirty socks, and a faint whiff of alcohol. This gets the parotids kicking into gear. Carbonation is mild, especially when compared to most other Belgian Ales. Mouthfeel is very mild, smooth, creamy, slightly cloying...the body is suprisingly moderately light. Taste begins with some musty puckering sourness, brown sugar, firm amber malts, and a brief note of alcohol. There is a metallic note, which is something I hadn't noted on my last tasting which was all of 10 years ago (Goudenband is hard to find in Michigan..I brought this bottle back home with me from Amsterdam for 2 Euro). The finish is sustained, earthy and (despite it's sourness) is only slightly dry with notes of dates, rotting fruits, and sweet dark molasses cookies. As it warms, this beauty breathes and the flavors evolve, making it exceptionally drinkable. One bottle leaves me with a warm pleasant buzz, but this is something I could drink all night...and all day, and all next week. Ahhh...Goudenband. Truly an exceptional beer, an absolute joy and a must to behold. I am left stunned with a shit-eating grin on my face...seek it out.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2003 20:14:26 | More by Mitchster

futurefjp

United Kingdom (England)

5/5  rDev +19%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Started drinking this a few years ago in Leeds at North Bar, one of their three Liefmans brews available. Very enjoyable all round, in moderation. Find it a bit intense after a while, intoxicating - true to form for bottle conditioned beer. A legend in my eyes. Reminds me of a Kriek I once drank at the Legendary Yorkshire Heroes(Archers) in Newcastle in early 1990's - very like Black Cherries.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2003 19:09:06 | More by futurefjp

drperm

Virginia

5/5  rDev +19%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Bottle purchased 6/2010; Opened 5/2013.

My first thought is, this is the best beer I've had in a very long time.

My second thought is, this is quite possibly the perfect beer.

My third thought is, DAMN why did I only buy one bottle??

A deep ruby colour entices in the glass.
On the nose it is, in the words of another reviewer, "like Scottish food" - lots of spice, malt, esters, vinegar, tartness, and plum.
On the palate it is extremely complex and enjoyable - sweet & sour with a fair balance between the two: not too sweet, not too sour.
The finish snaps sour with a hint of bing cherry.

Pair with: carrot-miso soup with sesame oil (I'm not even kidding), herbed goat cheese, baked brie with fruit, dates and figs, roast duck, or venison with cherry sauce.

And when you find it in a shop, don't make the same mistake I did: purchase more than one bottle.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2013 01:13:44 | More by drperm

putnam

Michigan

4.97/5  rDev +18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Cloudy brown. The smell recalls the delicious horror of the Cuvee Rene 1998 that so recently rearranged my face. It promises sour, vengeful fruit and earth and yet it is balanced by a generous, sweet mocha-cream nuance that seems inviting. Terrible, thunderous, giant cherry flavors push flavors of bacon, nuts, spice and pan drippings on the palate. The finish is long and tart. A froth in the shape of a Yin Yang settles on the surface. Serve with bacon-stuffed eel, nettle-stuffed pigeon or onion pie.
___

That was my first taste. I've been drinking this beer like water over the last month, and I felt it was time to elaborate on its performance. My rating scores do not change.
Possibly perfect beer. While there is definitely some bottle variation (some flatter, some creamier, some spicier, some more alcoholic) it is always a pleasure. I've tasted cinnamon and horse blanket. I've tasted apples and botrytis Riesling. It is always fascinating and pure. Drinking it at the Maple Creek Farm harvest pot luck, under the giant fruit tree with friends, cooks and eaters... it was easy to approve of. If Cuvee Rene is a perfect food beer, this is perfect specifically with furious autumn montages of ripe vegetable parcels. Low maintenance, it doesn't need but the barest chill, and that just to get it started. Believe me, I've drunk Goudenband eagerly at 90 degrees F.
Amazement followed by recognition. I've seen it on many faces first tasting this product.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2002 11:14:15 | More by putnam

marburg

Michigan

4.97/5  rDev +18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

For years, I've had a sadistic obsession with consuming things that pucker my face up into a big dimple. This is one of the great beers that really accomplishes this with a bang. I really believe sour beers like this one are a great balance of flavors -- sweet and sour rather than sweet and bitter. I welcome this change from the "norm," and I relish in its complex and powerful flavor.

A deep, cloudy, chocolate brown color with a white, thin, big bubbly head -- soapy waste water. A great deal of chunky sediment floats around for a bit and settles on the bottom of the glass. It looks a bit like you're drinking sewage, but it gives it such a natural appearance.

The acetic acid of over-ripened sour apples mixes with hints of plum, alcohol, and sour citrus peel in the nose. Starts sweet with an almost cherry-like flavor up front which quickly dissipates as the beer is swallowed, leaving an almost-unfortunate acid reflux sensation at the back of your throat with a wonderful tartness on the tongue. Mild hints of cobwebs and earth throughout. Lively at first, this beer feels a little less carbonated at the end, but it hardly takes away from the quality of the beer. And perhaps one of the most impressive things about this beer is its amazing drinkability; this does not taste like an 8% abv beer. Perhaps masked by the tartness, this beer is exceptionally easy to consume. It's almost perverse to enjoy a beer this RAW, but I absolutely love it.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2003 18:10:45 | More by marburg

ColForbin

New Hampshire

4.97/5  rDev +18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

The bottle I had was wrapped in paper and corked, with the cork dated 1998. The beer poured a beautiful dark red/brown with a thin white head. Try as I might, some large flecks of yeast managed to find their way into my glass, so I had to deduct half a point from appearance. The nose is full of sour cherry smell and maybe some cooked plums. Taste is more of the same, with a light cartbonation lifting the sour flavor off you tongue and revealing a slight maltiness. A very dry finish, leaving you wanting more. Now that I can't find Rodenbach, this is probably my favorite beer. A world classic.

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2003 03:33:48 | More by ColForbin

elinash

New York

4.97/5  rDev +18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Corked and caged bottle dated 2017- I couldn't wait that long.

I've tried this beer a couple of times because I like it so much, but I'll catalogue my response this time.

I'm drinking it out of a celebrator glass because it's like a wide, stout flute or short pilsner glass.

Appearance is coke-bottle brown, maybe a little lighter. Reddish tints throughout. Lacing is really great- forming a crown sticking to the glass.

Smell is sticky, a little sweet, with tart notes and brown sugar coming through.

Taste is initially soft (including mouthfeel) rounding out to tart raspberry, rhubarb, and sweet tart candy. Mouthfeel follows with extra but not overwhelming carbonation. Superb thirst quencher. Finishes with the slightest iodine, but in a good way.

An amazing brew, one of the best, I hope the Liefmans facility stays afloat.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2008 00:59:17 | More by elinash

inebrius

Michigan

4.95/5  rDev +17.9%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

2001. Poured lazily into a Holiday Inn cocktail tumbler.

A stroll through the late-Autumn orchard. Curled browns and ambers clutch the crooked limbs of fruit trees refusing fate for awhile. Tired soil is covered with the sweet scents of packed dead wet leaves and rotting fruits. The earth greets your every sense with primeval longing you don't quite understand.

I crave this type of visceral experience everytime I carry my lips to a glass filled with fermented liquid. Only few can bring it, and even fewer with the symmetry of Goudenband.

Bark and sour orange and nut bread wash across your buds and down and the heady vapors left behind affirm your instinct time and again. I feel I should list everything I'm feeling as I drink this but that might cheapen it. If your ever going to shell out five bones for a little bottle of beer, make it this one.

There should be a tree on the label.

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2004 00:45:32 | More by inebrius

Derek

British Columbia (Canada)

4.93/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Corked and caged in 1987; laid to rest on its side for ~18 years. Sediment on the side of the bottle, like a fine wine.

A: It poured like a red wine, with mild carbonation.

S: Also similar to red wine, with a sharp, tart odour.

T: Wow! I expected more tartness, but there wasn't anymore than a Beaujolais. The flavours of grape juice, cherries, cranberries and oak are more reminiscent of a fine wine than any beer!

M: Light to moderate body, mild carbonation.

D: It's like fruit juice! It goes down easier than almost any wine or beer!

Thanks for the tasting Len!

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2005 20:46:50 | More by Derek

Tim2000

Quebec (Canada)

4.93/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

375 mL green bottle, wrapped in paper. 2 years until best before date.

Clear mahogany bown brew that shines red when held to the light. Thick and rocky tan head clings to the glass.

Aroma is full of spices, cloves and cinnamon come to mind. Some cider vinegar and fruit notes as well.

This is a complex brew. Tart cherries blend with cloves and nutmeg. Sugary malt notes come in as well. I'm getting sour green apple and some faint medicinal phenols near the finish. Alcohol has a subtle warming effect and some woody tannins give the beer a slight astringency. Hops are nowhere to be found, but are definitely not missed. Mouthfeel is a bit on the thin side, with moderate carbonation

Sweet and sour balance perfectly in this beer and it has exceptional character. Goudenband tastes like a wild, traditional, farmhouse ale without the excessive barnyard flavours that many other sour beers I have tried have. It doesn't get much better than this.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2006 05:01:42 | More by Tim2000

SirSketch

Massachusetts

4.93/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A - Lovely green, unmarked champagne bottle, corked and caged, with purple wrapping displaying the Liefman's name. A large beige head sustains. Looks dark brown until being held up to light where a deep, cherry red is revealed.

S - Dark candied sugar, farmhouse funk, and sour components prevail. Some white grape, bark, and a little coffee aroma as well. Damn nice!

T - A delicate acidity and sourness combines wonderfully with the earthy and dark fruit undertones of this delicious beer. A pie crust-like quality makes an appearance as well. A truly fantastic and satisfying beer.

M/D - Dry and effervescent mouthfeel adds to the experience. Just take a small sip (or a big one!), sit back, and reflect on the good in life... Excellent!

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2009 00:48:38 | More by SirSketch

k75

Pennsylvania

4.9/5  rDev +16.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

12oz - cork, cage, paper wrap

pours clear medium bright red / heads fades moderately.

aromes are of faint sweet balsamic and some biscuit.

flavors are a complex blend of sweet malt, tart vinegar and medium dark fruit. sourness is present but subdued - not as up front as a Rodenbach.
A fully developed beer as complex as a $30 california cabernet.

finish is medium length and refreshing

drinkability is amazing. (be sure to allow this to warm up to about 50 degrees as it gets better)

my current favorite beer. period

Serving type: bottle

06-23-2006 17:30:50 | More by k75

NoLiberty

Pennsylvania

4.9/5  rDev +16.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This incredible 20 YEAR OLD BOTTLE (1987) was enjoyed at the Beertje in Brugge with GrassrootsVT.

App: Beautiful clear, chestnut color with a full white frothy head. This beer is obviously still very active, alive and happening.
Aroma: Active, cherry, oak, apples, age, tart and bold, smooth and crisp.
Taste: Also very smooth and balanced. Tart with bold fruit up front and nice crisp middle and a completely balanced finish.
Mouth: Still fully carbonated with clean clean light to medium body. Crisp and dry.
Drink: Yes, yes, yes, please more. This is my beer of choice for a long session.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2008 00:54:08 | More by NoLiberty

AlesALot

Tennessee

4.9/5  rDev +16.7%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

This is a beautiful beer. It pours a deep redish brown with a light tan head that stands as tall as any I have seen.
It smells of sour raspberries and dark fruit.
The taste is much like the arouma. it sits on the tongue almost to no end. The sourness is balanced by the rich fruitiness and deep malt complexity.
Drink this beer if you enjoy dark Belgian ales!

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2008 21:37:12 | More by AlesALot

Realale

Missouri

4.88/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

From a 750ml corked bottle.

Pours a rich, clear brown with some slight reddish highlights. Initial foamy head settles quickly to a thin incomplete cap of fine bubbles.

Nose is mouth-wateringly sour fruit - cherries, a hint of orange. Amazing fruitiness, given that its not a fruit beer. Nice barnyard notes add complexity without over-whelming. Well balanced.

Palate was initially a bit hollow and shrill, but filled in quite nicely with a little air time to be a seamless integration of sour fruit, rich round malt, and barnyard. Incredible length from the acidity.

Loses a bit on mouthfeel, as it comes across a little thin. But its incredibly drinkable, and a great beer to match with a host of foods - especially rich meats, as the acidity cuts right through. Definitely one of my favorite beers in the World!

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2003 07:54:19 | More by Realale

HopDevil

Pennsylvania

4.88/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

poured from the bottle the color of rubbed walnut. The brownish red liquid barely produced a head, but oh that aroma.

Acidic, sour, oaky earthy, musty woody with an underlayment of caramel malt.

The flavor impact is a rush for the tongue. The character noted in the aroma is in the taste in spades. Zingy, tangy, jolly rancher, granny smith apple, sour cherry tart with a charming fruitcake maltiness that keeps the raucous sour acid musty woodsy flavors gently reigned in . The hop is imperectible.

Metalic and sharp mouth watering pucker in the finish, unbelievably refreshing for such a hugely complex beer. My unschooled macro drinking friends HATE this beer- lmao. More for me

I can't get enough of the sweet n tart flavor characteristic of Flanders Reds of which this is my favorite example.

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2004 20:43:37 | More by HopDevil

CAMRAhardliner

Ontario (Canada)

4.88/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

I enjoyed this stellar beer at Smokeless Joe's. I thought it would be good for my 200th review.

It pours a rusted red color with great lacing and an eternal tan head. It has an earthy, winey, oaky, tannic, tart aroma. Theres also spice, vanilla and and some musty funk. The blend of different aromas is so unique and impossibly complex.

The taste is more malty and less sour than Rodenbach Grand Cru. There is a definite sourness, but also spicey herb notes, notably cinamon, ginger and mint. A lambicy funk appears in the middle. Theres a sherry like sweetness in the middle somewhere. There are prominent oak notes and lots of vanilla as well. The alcohol is impeccably well hidden. Theres no hop flavor, except for maybe some earth (though that might not be 'earthy hops' but something else). The mouthfeel is prickly yet thick. The finish is dry.

This is close to beer perfection, so unique, and incredibly complex. It will pair with many foods. Damn refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2004 17:53:38 | More by CAMRAhardliner

horndecker

New Jersey

4.88/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

I'm not sure why Beer Advocate has this classified as a Flanders Red Ale when everything I've read calls it an Oud Bruin.

The presentation is special. A 375ml bottle wrapped in paper, though the label itself is less impressive. But it all helps ones anticipation of the drink. Carefully poured into a Duvel goblet as there is much sediment. Cork says 2003. A deep coppery brown, with almost purplish tinge at the edges and a dense fine off white head which fades only reluctantly, leaving a fine lace.

The nose is tangy. Citric, malt, fruit - cherry I suppose mixed with lemon zest. The taste is at first sweet raisins and figs, plums, then a tart middle. The first few sips only present a premonition of sourness at the finish. Does this mean the brew is a bit young? I dunno.

Aha. Sourness makes much more of an impression as the beer warms up. So much more happens, it gets very involved and complex. The big fruity splash remains, but the puckerful sourness is now completely in hand with it. Wonderful balance.

My first bottle, but not my last. I'll have to pick up some bottles to lay down for a bit as welll, as I understand it develops quite a bit over time.

A new favorite!

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2005 20:53:53 | More by horndecker

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.88/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Serving type: bottle.

Pours a very dark amber with a thin white head. Slightly sour aroma that is a nice balance of maltiness and sour fruit. Perfectly balanced sour ale that is not to sour nor to sweet. A nice amount of maltiness and sour fruit combie to give this a beer an extremely smooth very drinkable taste. The best sour ale I've had yet.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2008 18:09:04 | More by corby112

Frozensoul327

Michigan

4.85/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

WOW. This beer is really, really good. Poured out to a dark red brown color similar to a blood red. Minor notes of lace. Aromas of fermenting cherries, rotted grapes, sweet malts, and a tartness that reminded me of children's candies from years ago. Taste was Exceptional. Flavors of cherries, grapes, sugarcane, malts, spices and herbs blend in a world of perfection. Mouthfeel is heavenly. Smooth, medium bodied, yet reserving enough to fill the palate and keep the drinker begging for more. Execeptional drinkability, I would drink this everyday if it weren't so expensive. The only drawback is that when poured toward the end of the bottle, I got clumps, literally clumps of sediment. Not very appealing, but this beer is so good I totally overlook this fact. World Class Beer. Get this. Go to great lengths if you must; the reward is worth it.

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2005 23:26:52 | More by Frozensoul327

AlexJ

North Carolina

4.85/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Murky burgundy with a thin beige head that forms a thin ring as it receeds. Delicate whisps of lace in my balloon goblet.

Aroma is dark sticky fruits, tart cherries, sour must, yeast, oak, and lots of berries. I just know it's gonna be good, the aroma makes my mouth water.

Flavor is simply incredible; dark fruit and berries sour earth, dry rotten wood, leather, pit fruit, oak. Perfectly sweet and sour. Very complex. I hold each sip for a contemplative moment before swallowing. Delicious.

Body is medium, creamy, and sticky on the lips. At 8% this is the strongest Oud Bruin I've had, but there is no trace of the strength. I could drink buckets of this delicious potion. Thanks to Dan @ Flying Saucer for sharing!

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2008 13:26:03 | More by AlexJ

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

4.83/5  rDev +15%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Liefman's Goudenband from the historic waterside town of Oudenaarde is one of the few remaining classics of the oud bruin style. It's brewed with 4 different hop varieties; a 100-year old yeast strain; a 12-hour boil; 6 to 8 months maturation before blending; and then 3 months of additional aging once it's primed and dosed with a shot of secondary yeast... and it shows!

Carefully poured from a long-standing bottle it's a surprisingly clear ruby-tinted mahogany that displays orange-ish highlights at the base of the goblet. A large head of exceptionally creamy off-white foam holds exceptionally well, maintaining itself throughout the glass and leaving some noteable lace. The nose is quite complex with a variety of aromas that include oakish, vanilla-laced wood; honeyish caramelized sugars; dark fruits (plum, red grape, cherry); a mild touch of Brettanomyces; and a subtle hint of sweat-sock/old cheese hops. The light body is gently crisp and smooth in the mouth; but almost takes a backseat its the puckering, tart acidity. It starts tart and then fruity, but softens to reveal some sherry-like, earthy, lightly toasted and woody malt before ending in a dry finish. Quite exceptional! It offers most of the tartness of an authentic straight-forward lambic; but with a cleaner profile and more fruitiness! Tart, fruity, refreshing!

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2003 17:29:10 | More by NeroFiddled

Chsyhkr

North Carolina

4.83/5  rDev +15%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My favorite beer of all time? Perhaps, even though I do not drink but once a year.

Deep mahogany with low carbonation. About 8% abv but you would never know it. Complex malts and sourness create a delicate balancing act, keeping both in check.

Sour, but not too much, how do they do it. Oak, almonds, currants carry through the flavor into the finish.

Don't think of beer when you drink this, but a fine aged wine...

Enjoy and be surprised!

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2004 23:16:21 | More by Chsyhkr

brdc

Wisconsin

4.83/5  rDev +15%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Small corked bottle; 2006 vintage, good until 2016.

Reddish brown, glowing with amber highlights, and a nice light orange head, with good retention and lacing. Some haziness.
Great aroma, fruity, vinegar, tart and sour notes, along with some melted brown sugar.
Creamy yet highly drinkable, it has a perfect interplay of sweet and sour. Fruity sweet, tart, sour, sweet again, vinegary at times. It keeps coming, and it keeps changing.
Amazing, and it will probably be great in a carbonnade flamande.
I need more of this.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2008 01:28:31 | More by brdc

BKotch

Texas

4.8/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

The classic Oud Bruin!

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2001 17:48:19 | More by BKotch