La Folie
Thanks to JohnGalt1 for the 22oz LoF bottle that glugs into my duchesse glass. Pours a deep hazy red brown ruby color with a nice light tan head that dissipates in about one minute down to a ring around the glass. Nose is full of cherry, malt vinegar and some good oaky wood. The funkiness is apparent, smell is textbook for the style. Wow. Defenitely an excellent example of the style. A nice malt presence provides a base of sweetness that is balanced out by tart funkiness, slight cherry flavor and a deep oak presence that is quite impressive. A vinegary tartness is just as blatant as it should be in a beer of this style. Mouthfeel is pretty good, just a tiny touch too thick for my tastes, but still very nice. I wish there was a tad more carbonation, just a tad, but stylewise this is pretty accurate. Drinkability is pretty solid. Overall, flanders reds/oud bruins are my least favorite style, but i still enjoy them. This one clearly sits somewhere near the top of the rankings as far as Flemish ales brewed outside of belgium are concerned. An excellent example of the style, and a very enjoyable beer.