7

Backlog

6.6

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

The 2014 edition in this series, basically a hopped up farmhouse ale, from a 75 cl bottle of three years old. Thick, moussy, egg-white, somewhat irregular head leaving behind a pattern of thick, papery lacing and showing excellent retention, atop an initially clear, pure ’old gold’ coloured beer with vague peachy tinge and minute dots of yeast spread throughout. Aroma of damp straw in a barn, pear peel, camomile tea, bread crust, raw string beans, parsnip, dry cloth, quite a lot of wet paper due to ageing, unripe peach, hints of rainwater, soap, green garden herbs, minerals, ’rusty’ oxidation and even a vague impression of propane gas (lightstruck - green bottle, must have seen daylight for a bit too long) which fortunately fades away after a while. Crisp, rather clean onset, restrained fruity notes of hard pear, unripe stonefruit and green apple, only very vaguely sweetish, bit sourish too, in an initially rather fizzy environment adding minerally notes but calming down after a while; smooth, lean, bit soapy mouthfeel. Sharpish cereally graininess underlies everything, with a subtly bready edge to it; something rainwater-like sits alongside while the hoppiness grows and becomes the biggest player in the game from the middle onwards. It develops a grassy, floral character retronasally, with an earthy, tonic water-ish bitterness colouring the finish, while the graininess, a dash of spicy phenols and some dried fruit notes continue as well as this recurring rusty oxidation note. Spicy and grassy bitterness lingers and forms the core of this beer, as is the case with the other editions (as well as several other of De Ranke’s beers) in this interesting series, which basically juggles with the recipes of the standard beers before hopping them up. Purely out of memory, I’d say this one comes very close to the 2013 edition, which I had at two years of age (also in a condition which was not very ideal for this type of beer - being much more lightstruck than this, but less oxidized at the same time); for me, both 2013 and 2014 editions are now the lesser in this series but only because I had them too old and aged in not the best of circumstances. I still have the 2016 edition in my cellar now and I plan to consume it soon, as apparently these beers do not keep very well, unsurprising of course for beers which emphasise hoppiness; the bitterness of the hops has remained, but I have no doubt that the aromas would have been more expressive and elegant when young. In all, this edition has still remained an enjoyable saison, with sufficient ’rural’ character to be credible as such. I am now on a mission to get my hands on the 2017 edition - assuming there will be one - as young as possible, because I had too many of these beers too old...

7

Appearance - 4 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8

Bottle 750ml. [ As De Ranke Hop Harvest 2014 ].[ Courtesy of tdtm82 ]. Unclear matt light to medium yellow - amber orange color with a small to average, fizzy, fair lacing, mostly diminishing, off-white head. Aroma is moderate malty, pale malt, moderate to heavy hoppy, grass, citrus, dry hops, moderate yeasty, belgium yeast. Flavor is moderate to light heavy sweet and bitter with a long duration, pale malt, dusty hops, dry, citrus, grass. Body is medium, texture is oily to watery, carbonation is soft. [20150812]

7

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 9

Pours clear amber / blonde. Good white head. Smell is surprisingly yeasty. Hoppy in the back ( it IS a year old, so... ) Taste is intensely bitter, very bitter ! Dry bitterness ( Style XX) but in contradiction to the 2015 version, this has a bigger amount of both malts and esp. yeast ( perhaps due to age ? ) so I feel like this has a better balance. therefor, I slightly prefer this one.

8

Aged well. Fantastic grassy hop element.

6.8

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

How: Bottle.
Where: Systembolaget.
Appearance: Amber colour with an off-white head.
Aroma: Floral, grass, bread, hops, a bit herbal.
Body: Medium body and carbonation.
Flavour: Malt, grass, yeast, spices, bread, a bit floral.

6.8

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Bottled@Oud Arsenaal, Antwerp. Hazy golden colour, small white head. Aroma is floral, some herbal notes along with mild grassy and some bready, but sweetish malts to it. Flavour is fruity, herbal, yeasty and mild floral notes along with some grass to it as well. Good summer beer, as it’s very refreshing, although not that special.

7.6

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

golden Amber color. Passionfruit, cherries and apricot in the nose. Mouth is full body with good biscuit character. Big bitter finish.

5.8

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Trockener, etwas hefiger Beginn. Ab dem Mittelteil konstant bitterer werdend, hopfige Noten sind vorhanden, stechen aber nicht übermäßig hervor. Trockenes Finish, Kräuter. 10/8/9/8/9/9

6.3

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Hazy gold/amber with a small head. Grassy aroma with notes of lemon, lime and hop resin. Crisp, hoppy and moderately bitter taste with apricot, peach and citrus.