Gouverneur Speciale 140

ABV 5,5%

Bottle of 300 ml, at home, poured into a tulip glass. ABV 5.5%. Ingredients are water, barley, hops and yeast. Bottle fermented. 

Pours a pale golden yellow colour, with a huge head of three fingers in height, unfortunately froathy in texture, so it goes down really really fast, leaving but a thin line around the glass and no lacing whatsoever. Only a bit hazy and little activity in the glass.

Nice fruity and hoppy aroma. Mostly berries aromas, such as white mulberries.

Taste is bitter and quite on the hoppy side.

Medium to thick on the body, average carbonation and dry on the palate.

Very highly drinkable, the low alcohol helps on that and the price was not that high. Will keep it in mind.

3.48/5

look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Trio Brouwerij Extra Stout

ABV 7,2%

  Small bottle of 330 ml, poured into a snifter. Ingredients are water, barley and hops. I got it in the Netherlands where it's actually made, although on the label says that is imported by a company in Suriname. Blank crown cap, no brand or anything written on it.Smell is  sweet from the bottle.
  Pours a totally black coloured beer, with half finger of beige head, with low retention. Also, no lacing left behind. I expected the head to be a bit more creamy and with better retention. Another, more hard pour gave me two fingers of head this time, with slighty better retention and better lacing. Let's just assume I didn't pour it right the first time.
  Smell is weird, sour but also sweet at the same time. Reminds me of a sort of very sweet red wine. Some toffee and dark chocolate aromas.
  I get this feeling on the taste too. It's mostly sweet, with only slight sour traces. Alcohol only on the aftertaste and even then, not so much. Good. Light flavour of roasted malts also.
  Average thickness and light carbonation. Very dry on the palate.

 Nice beer, easily drinkable. but that's because it's a bit flat. Some more thickness and carbonation would do this beer good.

3.33/5

look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Texels Bock

ABV 7%

After a visit at Texel island a couple a years ago, I came back with a selection of beers from the Texels brewery and this one was one of the best amongst them. I got it again this year and I realized I hadn't written a review, so here it is.

300 ml bottle, poured into a snifter. Bottle fermented.

Pours a very dark ruby colour, almost brown, with two fingers of thick, creamy head, beige in colour and with excellent retention. Some light lacing is being left at first around the glass.

Smell of caramel, roasted malts and dark chocolate. If you smell hard enough you get an alcohol smell too.

Taste is slighty sweet at first, then turning into a softly bitter taste, leaving on the aftertaste flavours of biter chocolate and caramel.

Full body and as much carbonation as needed.

A grea beer, I can see why it keeps winning "best bock beer" prize in the Netherlands.

3.9/5

look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bavaria Hooghe Bock

ABV 6,5%

300 ml bottle, at home. Poured into my snifter glass. Ingredients are water, barley, wheat and hops. 

Pours a dark ruby coloured beer, a couple of tones paler than other bocks I had recently but still, very beautiful. One and a half fingers of beige head, with very good retention. Some very light lacing left behind on the glass, where the foam has touched it.

Very strong aroma of caramel and roasted malts, then some toffee.

On the taste is sweet in general, with slighty bitter aftertaste. At first caramel and dark fruits, then a faint taste of dark bitter chocolate.

Thin to medium on the body and very dry on the palate. Carbonation is average.

Nice beer, easily drinkable, maybe a bit too sweet for a bock.

3.43/5

look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

La Trappe Bockbier

ABV 7%

Untill now this is the best bock beer I've tried this year. Those monks really know what they're doing.

This is the only Trappist bock beer and the only bock beer that continues to ferment slightly in the bottle, at least according to their website.

Small bottle of 300 ml. Ingredients arewater,  barley, wheat and oat malts, yeast and aromatic hops. Some yeast can be found in the bottle of course.

Pours a very dark ruby coloured beer, with a huge beige head of 3-4 fingers in height, thick and creamy, with excellent retention. Heavy lacing around the glass as the foam is going down, but never away. A thin layer of foam persists around the glass, while a big chunk of it lingers on the centre of the beer's surface. Shake your glass a bit and another thin line of foam appears again, with almost the same sustainable retention.

A fantastic aroma on the nose from the hops. Light caramel , alcohol, some apricot, plums and other dark fruits.

Taste is great too. Sort of sweet at first but with a definitely bitter aftertaste. Caramel, coffee and dark bitter chocolate flavours.

Medium thickness on the body and average carbonation.Quite dry on the palate, with this dryness helping the bitter taste to stay longer in the  outh.

As I wrote before, this is the best bock beer I've tasted this far. I will surely get some more to drink during the cold days of autumn plus another couple to keep in my cellar.

Hertog Jan Bockbier

                                  
ABV 6,5%

I got a couple of those in a supermarket since they didn't have anything better. Your dutch bottle of 300 ml, poured into a snifter. Smells a bit sour as I open the bottle.
Once poured, it gave me a dark ruby coloured beer, with one finger of beige head, with average retention. Light lacing around the glass at first, then nothing. Some traces of foam insist during the whole drinking process.
On the nose alcohol, light caramel and if you inhale deep enough, a smell of burned wood. Although subtle, it makes a difference. Oh, also some dark fruits.
Taste is more sweet than bitter. Bitterness is more obvious on the back of the tongue though and for a little while lingers around the mouth. Mostly flavours of roasted malt and caramel.
Nice thick body. High carbonation.
Well, nothing too impressive, but with the dryness on the palate, the alcohol abscent from the taste and only present as a warming feeling, this beer has a high drinkability.

3.1/5
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3



                                         

Grolsch Herfstbock

I had this last year and I wasn't planning to get it again this year too, but it was on offer, so here it is.
A standard dutch bottle of 300 ml, with an ABV of 6.5%. Ingredients include sugar to sweeten it and caramel as a colouring agent. Poured into a snifter glass.

It pours a beer with a dark ruby colour, but not so deep as in other bock beers I had recently. Two fingers of beige head, that disappeared quickly, leaving behind light lacing.
On the aroma mostly caramel, it's missing all the characteristic aromas of a bock.
Taste is sweet, aftertaste is sweet too. Again, mostly caramel and that's pretty much it. At least alcohol is not that obvious.
On the body is quite thin, with light carbonation. Very flat for a bock.
Overall, I was disappointed by this one, having recently tried quite a few of the other bock beers on the market. They tend to be sipping beers but this one goes down as easy as an ordinary lager and I don't mean it in a complimentary way. It's not bad, but it's not that good for a bock beer.

2.85/5
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Best Bier

ABV 5%.

Made from Bavaria Brewery.

I got this one in a supermarket about a kilometer from my neighboorhood, where I had gone just to check out if I could find a new beer. Well, I got me a new beer but I was a bit disappointing from my findings, since they only had it in cans (where I prefer bottles), the beer looks cheap and also it's called Best and any product which is called Best is going to be average, if you're lucky.

Poured into my standard glass for pilseners. Pale golden yellow colour, with lots of bubbes rising to the surface and two fingers of white head, froathy at first but as it was losing in height, it was gaining in density. The end result was one finger of thick, soapy head, which left some light lacing around the glass. Not bad at all. 

On the aroma not uch to report, typical smell of an average pilsener, maybe with some more hay aroma.

Taste is neutral, nothing too offensive either, but at least leaves behind a nice, bitter aftertaste.

Thin on the body with average carbonation, but far from the watery beer I was expecting.

All in all, a decent brew, not the Best in any case, and for the price of 1,14/liter is a very good choice if you want a cheap beer for parties etc. To my surprise, it turned out to be pleasantly drinkable. So I guess as we shouldn't judge a book by its cover, we shouldn't judge a beer from its can.

3.03/5

look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Budels Organic Pilsener

ABV 5%

Best before 3/2013.

This beer is made of organic ingredients. The lat biologicI tried was quite disappointing, so let's see if it was just that or all the bio beers taste equally bad.

Standard dutch bottle of 300 ml, poured into a nirmal glass.Golden yellow colour with a small white head, one finger in height, quickly gone,leaving just a thin strip around the beer's surface. Average activity in the glass.

Nice aroma, a bit hoppy, but other than than I couldn't perceive anything else.

Taste i very nice too, on the bitter side. A great difference from my previous bio-beer, which tasted more like wet hay. This one is actually pretty good.

Nice body, medium thick and just the right amount of carbonation.

Overall, I found this one pretty decent brew. Usually when something is biologic or made with organic stuff, it doesn't have any taste or it tastes really bad, but that was not the case with this beer. Too high of a price for a pilsner though, so I don't see myself buying any time soon in the near future.

3.38/5

look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Jopen Trinitas Tripel

ABV 9%

Bottle of 330 ml, with a long neck, pretty similar to the bottles of american beers. From the back label, roughly translated "This is a beer with three grains, Trinitas is the Trinity (the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit). In Germany according to the beer purity law, the holy trinity is water, malt and hops. Our own unity of three is barley, wheat and oats". 

First smell as soon as I opened the bottle, was yeast, with a fruity aroma following straight away. Once poured into my chalice, it gave me a one and a half fingers of off-white, short lasting head, creamy in texture. It left me with some heavy lacing around the glass. Colour of the beer was deep orange, slighty hazy.

Aroma is not much different once poured than it is when you first open the bottle. Bready at first, with a fruity smell following, mostly those fruits being peaches and apricots. Some alcohol smell lies beneath them, but it;s very faint and is only traceable if you really insist to perceive all of the aromas.

Alcohol is much more obvious on the taste though. Some of the apricots can be found on the taste as well, alog with some caramelized malts, the latter being quite weak, or balanced, if you prefer, with the drying, bitter finish of the hops.

Medium thickness on the body and average carbonation.

Overall, it was a good beer and I quite liked it I must say, although I didn't have enough time to really enjoy it, not that it would make any great difference if I did. Nothing to be really excited about, but a decent and honest tripel that won't disappoint you.

3.23/5

look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Schulten Brau Rosé

I knew something was odd with this beer from the moment I opened the 6-bottle package and took a look at the bottle. The beer seemed to be too clear for a rose, even though I was looking at it while it was still in its brown bottle.
The most Rosé beers I had till now were Wit beers with some strawberries/raspberries juice and/or a coloring agent, in order to get that characteristic pink colour. And because of that, those roses tend to be quite hazy and in most cases non transparent at all.
That was not the case with this one. As I had suspected, it was very clear and certainly not pink/rose in colour. More like a deep golden colour with an orange hue, or, if you prefer, a deep copper colour. I poured my second bottle on a flute glass as recommended and doing that, I was finally able to get an one-and-a-half fingers of white head, slowly dissloving, untill it was completely gone. Not much activity in the glass.
Aroma was very artificial and generic, reminded me of raspberries juice and cough syrup.
Very sweet in taste, but once again very artificial. The berries taste covers everything else and leaves a fruity aftertaste as expected, only more sour.
Very thin on the body and to make things worse, a huge amount of carbonation, which in combination with the fruity aroma and taste, make you feel that you're drinking a carbonated berries juice.
I didn't have any high hopes for this beer, but it was even worse than I expected.

2.23/5
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Hertog Jan Karakter

I am still taking those damn pills for my skin fungus infection and I still have to take them for another five days. But tonight I decided I had enough of not having any beer. So what better way to go back to my beer drinking than with a 7,5% ABV beer? While I am waiting for my spare ribs to be ready, I thought to post the review I had posted on beeradvocate, only much much altered, since now that I used a more suitable glass, what I perceived from this one was quite different than half a year ago.

Poured from a 300 ml bottle into a Chimay chalice. Colour is light amber, kind of ruby once it's hold against the light. Head of one finger in height, brownish in color that doesn't last long. Aroma is fruity and to be more specific, that of dark fruits, like plums and dates.The taste is sort of metallic, but other than that sweet, with the dark fruits element much more obvious. Some caramel too, but mostly on the aftertaste. The alcohol very nicely conceiled.Medium thickness on the body, light carbonation. A little dry on the palate.Another very good beer from Hertog Jan.

3.38/5

Keizerskroon Premium Pilsener

ABV 5,0%

This specific brand is exclusively sold only into two specific supermarket chains, the EMTE and the GOLFF. The closest branch to me is sixteen kilometers away.

Colour is golden yellow, with two fingers of white head that disappears completely, very fast, leaving no lacing on the glass. Some bubbles rising to the top on a steady pace. On the official website I saw a nice photo with a creamy, thick head, I wonder why I didn't get the same too. Oh, well..

Pleasant aroma of malts, but very faint. 

Some sweetness from the malts is traceable into its taste, but again, very faint. All in all this beer has a very neutral taste. 

Very clear on the body, medium thin and right amount of carbonation for my taste. 

Overall a beer that was very pleasant in drinking it, and maybe the lack of a unique taste works on its favor.Still, much better than the majority of pilsners on this market.

2.9/5 

Tasty Lady

ABV 6,2%

I did a little search before I open this bottle, and is registered on both the sites I use in order to find information about a beer, as an IPA. I would say that this was my first IPA but something on the taste makes me feel pretty sure that I have tried something similar before.Yes, this tastes more like a belgian strong ale.
A 330 ml bottle, with the silliest label I've seen on a beer so far, just the two eyes of a woman, looking at me, trying to seduce me (?), then the beer's name and on te bottom the words "By women". Poured into my sort-of-tulip glass, this bottle gave me a deep orange coloured beer, with one finger of white head, a few bubbles rising to the top and lots of tiny things floating in it, I guess is unfiltered, although I didn't find any info about that.On the second pour the beer was even more hazy.
Aroma is sort of fruity, with just some hoppy and citrus notes, as described on the bottle.
Taste is bitter as expected, and even more bitter on the aftertaste. Very pleasantly drinkable, although maybe I should have left it a bit more in the fridge.
On the body it has medium thickness, and light carbonation.
Hmm, not a bad one, but if this is how IPA's taste like, then according to the popularity of the genre this must have been a poor sample.

3.5/5

Bavaria 0,0% Rosé

ABV 0,0%

A bottle of 300 ml, at home. On RB is not considered a beer for a number of reasons that I can't really understand. To me, since it has water, hops and malts, is as beer as many others out there. Bottle says to roll it three times and then pour it. That, I didn't do. The bottle gave me a light pink coloured beer, quite hazy. One finger of head that dissolved quickly and left a very thin layer on the surface and some lacing around the glass.
Aroma is of fruits of course,  mostly raspberries and some strawberries. But underneath those smells someone can find the annoying corn smell, thankfully not so strong.
Taste is also of raspberries, very sweet. Leaves behind a subtle corn aftertaste.
Very thin body, almost watery, with light carbonation.
As someone can guess this is for people who are driving later, for pregnant women etc. With that in mind it's not that bad.

2.8/5

Hollandia Super Strong

Without flash                                                                With flash

Okay, I got two photos of this one,because on the left one the can shows so nice and refreshing but on the right one the beer in the glass looks better and you can actually see the real colour.
On with the review!
ABV 7,9%
Another one made by Bavaria. I wonder if there is a complete list somewhere out there with all the beers they have made over the years, both for their own brand as well as contracted.

Can of 500 ml as you can see on the photos.Deep golden yellow colour with a white, thick head, measuring two fingers in height. Lots of bubbles feeding the head, while it goes slowly but steady down, leaving some light lacing on the glass.
Not much on the aroma front, just lots of malts and just a faint smell of alcohol.
Taste is not at all bad,just as sweet as your average lager, with a bitter aftertaste that goes leaves fast your mouth and a soft pinch on the tongue from the alcohol.
Body is quite to my surprise full and is lightly carbonated.
Well, I certainly didn't expect this one to turn that good I must say. I would definitely recommend it to someone wanting a stronger pils, is so much better than other wider available beers out there.


3.4/5
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Brand Weizen

ABV 5,1%
300 ml bottle, poured into its original Brand Weizen glass. I expected a huge head with good retention but instead I got one two fingers in size that didn't last long. Colour is hazy orange, quite transparent for the kind.
Aroma is fruity as expected, with banana, clove and bubblegum the most obvious smells.
Taste follows the aroma, only less sweet than someone would expect from the smell. Some slight bitterness on the aftertaste too.
Carbonation is average and it's quite thin on the body.
A bit dissapointed by this one on the appearance and on the body, but other than that is a pleasant beer to drink.





2.93/5 
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

I got just today a 6pack of those, since they were offering a free weizen glass with it, and who am I to snob such an offer. For 5.10 euros I can say that it didn't hurt that much.Since weizens are considered summer beers, I thought I should re-review it. In comparison to my old review, this was a disaster (on my old review I gave it an overall score of 4/5), maybe because back then I didn't have a weizen glass or experience of the kind.

Bavaria Pilsener

    ABV 5%

Bottle of 300 ml, ABV is 5%.
Pours a golden yellow colour, with a two finger head that won't last long.Some bubbles in the glass.
Smell of malts, nothing special.
Lightly bitter taste.
Medium thin on the palate and slighty carbonated.
Just another average pilsener, good thing that is so cheap you can buy 36 bottles for 9,99.

One of the cheapest beers in the Netherlands and the most likely to be on offer, in a supermarket's weekly brochure. Quite often is three small crates for 9,99 as I state in my review. Bavaria Brewery produces so many beers, is really difficult to keep track of all of them. Just visit this link to take a look for yourself


2.63/5
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Gulpener Pilsner

For some reason I am fond of Gulpener, maybe because I don't find it so often in my local supermarket, maybe because the first crate I bought came with some tupil bulbs..
Appearance is typical for a pilsner, golden yellow colour with a two finger head, average retention, and quite an activity in the glass.Smells as any other cheap lager out there, this is not how I remember it, or I wasn't as educated in beer as before I join BA. Drinking it out the bottle played its role too.
Taste is better but nothing above the average, slighty bitter and malty.
Average thickness and carbonation on the body, leaves some dryness on the palate.
Overall, pleasantly drinkable but Gulpener has better ones to offer, then again if you just want a pilsnerer this will cover you. And as their slogan is "To the future" (where hopefully this beer wil improve a bit).

ABV 5%
 That was my old review, posted on beeradvocate, and things haven't change, maybe because it's only two months before. Last week I got two crates of this, since they were on a Buy 2 - Pay For 1 offer, but unfortunately they were a bit skunked. Maybe that was the reason for the offer. They are once again on offer this week, but I think I'll skip it.
Standard 300 ml bottle, poured into a Heineken glass, as you can see on the next photo.

2.9/5
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Albert Heijn Pilsener

The house brand of the Albert Heijn supermarket chain in the Netherlands.
A bottle of 300 ml, the standard small bottle of the Netherlands, poured into a Heineken glass.
Deep golden colour on the appearance, with a rich white head. Some bubbles rising to the top to feed the head while others are stuck on my glass's walls. Head after a while loses 3/4 of its size but stills is more than enough to cover the beers's surface, whilst leaving light lacing on the glass.
Not much on the aroma front, some malts and some a smell of old bread, not unpleasant though. Preety typical aroma I would say.
On the taste is quite neutral, very difficult to distinguish something. Maybe some light bitterness, mostly notable on the aftertaste.
Light on the body and medium to light carbonation, leaves your palate dry.
Not a bad beer with this hot weather, served ice cold and for 34 cents is one of the better options out there that follows the triptych of thirst quencher-good quality-low price

Appearance 3,5
Aroma 3
Taste 2,5
Mouthfeel 3
Overall 3

2.8/5
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3