Flanders Fred (w/ Alan Sprints) - De Proefbrouwerij (bvba Andelot)

BDIMike

Ohio

4.53/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Pours a fantastic looking beer. A light brown, dark red color, almost a brass. A constant stream of carbonation creates a thick fluffy white head that sticks to the sides of the glass the entire way down.
Smell has some very nice fruity smells to it. So many different tart fruit smells really dominate the nose. Orange, lemon, cherries, and others. Also a nice bit of Belgian spiciness and a good pine hop too.
Taste is great. The beer starts very tart with the strong citrus fruit tastes. The tart subsides and a good hop taste enters the equation. The good hops are balanced by the dark cherry tastes and even some green apple.
Mouthfeel is very nice. The tartness is not as sharp as expected. It puckers your cheeks, but the Fred comes out and settles you back into the drink. A nice dry fruitiness that makes you want to take another sip, too.
Drinkability is awesome on this beer. Definitely the best limbic or half-lambic I have ever had. So many great tastes going on and the high alcohol can be tasted, but it adds to the complexity of the beer. Very nice and smooth and rare. If you have the unique opportunity to get your hands on this beer, do not let it get away.

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2012 01:32:34 | More by BDIMike

andrewinski1

Maine

3.6/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Thanks to sonicalligator for sending me this one! The color is amber/orange. There is a bit of haze. There is a nice foamy half inch head.

The aroma has some hint of tart cherry. There is a tiny hint of mustiness.

The taste is dry, which caught me a little off guard considering the larger body on this for a wild ale. That is perhaps due to the high carbonation. There is a nice slightly lemony aftertaste.

This is a very good wild. It's dry, crisp, and refreshing. It doesn't stand above the rest, but it's delicious.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 02:45:34 | More by andrewinski1

fsck

Washington

4.25/5  rDev +0.2%

05-18-2013 11:52:30 | More by fsck

hannydawg

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -23.3%

05-18-2013 00:31:53 | More by hannydawg

Hugonaut13

Illinois

4.75/5  rDev +12%

05-16-2013 14:13:51 | More by Hugonaut13

Holland

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -5.7%

05-15-2013 02:07:05 | More by Holland

MadScientist

New York

4.75/5  rDev +12%

05-14-2013 01:38:26 | More by MadScientist

PEIhop

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +12%

05-12-2013 13:02:17 | More by PEIhop

largadeer

California

3.75/5  rDev -11.6%

05-09-2013 19:02:40 | More by largadeer

polishkaz

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +0.2%

05-06-2013 00:30:22 | More by polishkaz

PHBoiler

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%

05-03-2013 19:02:14 | More by PHBoiler

Graviz

Colorado

3.25/5  rDev -23.3%

04-28-2013 21:13:52 | More by Graviz

grittybrews

Washington

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%

04-28-2013 15:07:31 | More by grittybrews

WYVYRN527

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%

04-21-2013 06:18:20 | More by WYVYRN527

falloutsnow

Illinois

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

From: Binny's, Glen Ellyn, IL
Date: Brewed March, 2012, best by 11/04/2014 on cork
Glass: New Belgium globe glass

Flanders Fred is a delicious collaboration between two skilled brewers, producing a sour Flanders-inspired ale that has strong fruit, malt, and oak influences. Perhaps fresh, the hops mentioned on the label would stand out, and while interesting, I'm not sure how this would influence my appreciation of the beer. As it is, I would purchase another bottle for enjoyment sometime in the not-too-distant future, though the price of a 750ml bottle is somewhat high (~$12). Probably best for fall enjoyment due to the tart fruit, oak, and leaf tannin flavors.

Pours a 1.5cm head of slightly off-white foam with average retention (slightly over a minute), falling to a 0.2cm cap of white foam atop the body. The lacing that remains is excellent, a large number of small dots of foam coat the inside of the glass, resembling a dot-matrix print or pointilist painting. Each sip also renews this effect for repeated entertainment. Body is a deep, hazy (50-60% opaque) copper orange-brown color, with light bringing out dried apricot orange hues. Carbonation is visible rising along the sides of the glass, somewhat plentiful and aggressive.

Aroma is sweetish and toffee-like, but with a notable influence of Brettanomyces-influenced tartness, dry leaf tannins, oak, and sour cherry and raspberry. The beer is a definite blend of a Flanders-style beer and another, lighter ale, though the hop character mentioned on the label (lemon, pine, and tropical fruits, really?) has definitely faded by this point, slightly over one year since it's bottling. Still, a very pleasant aroma that reminds me more of a good Flemish sour than any American hybrid ale.

The overall flavor of the beer is of a pleasantly sour Flemish ale that expresses cherry, raspberry, green apple, oak, dried leaf-like tannins, and toffee in pleasant proportion. Opens with sweet toffee-like flavors that are tempered by slightly acidic tartness, sour cherry and raspberry flavors, and dried leaf tannins. Mid-palate is of a sourish Brettanomyces strain that contributes mild acid and woodsy characters, with intensified sour cherry, raspberry, and green apple flavors, some oak, slight savory (the herb). Back of palate finds intensified sweetness and tartness with raspberry-cherry esters, somewhat like the similarly named US candy, but also complex oak, herbal, and bitter characters. Aftertaste is of sweetish toffee tempered by Flemish ale characters of Brettanomyces (tart cherries/raspberries/green apples), and leaflike tannins.

Beer is medium to medium-heavy bodied with carbonation of medium intensity, resulting in a feel that is slightly fizzy at first, then calming to a gentle, rolling and filling foam. Closes semi-dry, with fairly substantial stickiness lingering upon the palate.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 21:55:55 | More by falloutsnow

t0rin0

California

3.75/5  rDev -11.6%

03-30-2013 22:13:18 | More by t0rin0

brentk56

North Carolina

3.89/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

Appearance: Pours a clear amber color with an impressive head; nice squiggly patterns of lace are left behind

Smell: Tart lacto with berry yogurt from De Proef that is buttressed by the strong toffee base from the Fred

Taste: Fred faces forward, on the front, end with the toffee and Belgian yeast strain; by mid-palate, however, the lacto, berry and green apple flavors start to balance and then overcome the caramel; in the finish, there is a strong sense of vanilla and oak

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate to high carbonation

Overall: I like both of the base beers I am tasting but I am struggling with the blend; still, a very interesting effort, but the vanilla and the sour flavors don't mesh for me

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 20:41:38 | More by brentk56

bluckbeyes

Oregon

4/5  rDev -5.7%

03-07-2013 03:49:03 | More by bluckbeyes

HaveUSeenMyCellar

California

4/5  rDev -5.7%

02-27-2013 04:42:59 | More by HaveUSeenMyCellar

Texasfan549

Texas

3.75/5  rDev -11.6%

02-24-2013 19:13:04 | More by Texasfan549

bigred89

Maryland

4.25/5  rDev +0.2%

02-23-2013 23:56:28 | More by bigred89

deadonhisfeet

Kentucky

4.19/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Brewed in March 2012 and reviewed in February 2013. Poured from a bottle into a Bell's tulip. The pour is very pretty. It's clear coppery gold with just a touch of haze, some nice effervescence, and a nice frothy head with nice clumpy lacing. The nose tells me this beer has some nice acidity. I get vinous notes of apples and white wine.

The beer has a medium body, a firm feel, and lip-smacking acidity. Nice crisp refreshing notes of sour green apples, lemon, herbal tea, and a faint sweetness all meld together into a very drinkable beverage. There is a nice vanilla oakiness at mid-palate that carries through the finish. The acidity makes this beer very appetizing.

Overall, a very well-crafted and enjoyable beer. Listed here (for now) as a Belgian Strong Pale Ale, but really more like a Flemish Red Ale with a few of the same flavors as a Belgian Tripel. Very glad I picked this up. Perfect sipper on a lazy Saturday afternoon.

Serving type: bottle

02-23-2013 21:57:03 | More by deadonhisfeet

Blanco

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -29.2%

02-19-2013 04:06:46 | More by Blanco

M27

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +0.2%

02-17-2013 17:19:09 | More by M27

shelby415

Oregon

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%

02-17-2013 06:56:25 | More by shelby415