Sour Beer Starter: Cuvee des Jacobins Rogue

I continued my journey towards discovering sour beers with Cuvee des Jacobins Rogue, a Flemish Red Ale brewed by Brouwerij Bockor NV in Belgium. Flemish red ales are typically fermented in oak barrels intentionally contaminated with Lactobacillus, which produces lactic acid during fermentation. This lactic acid give the beer its sour flavor. Belgian red malts are used to make the wort, providing its eponymous red color. The aged beer is often blended with freshly brewed beer to generate contrasting flavor and some mellowing of the acidity.

Cuvee des Jacobins RogueCuvee des Jacobins Rogue pours a deep maroon with a mild white head. The sourness is very evident in the smell, along with some fruitiness. The tart acidity hits like a punch in the mouth, while other sours finish with a mild pucker this beer is assertively sour. The fruit flavors are also present, with cherry, plum and some lemon. There is no discernible hop character, but the sourness keeps the beer from being sweet or malty. The beer is medium bodied, but the tart flavor makes it a slow sipper. It comes as no surprise that the acid in the beer leaves a mouth-puckering aftertaste. While the Petrus Oud Bruin I reviewed last week was a nice introductory to the sour style, this beer was a little overwhelming for a newbie like myself. I’ll probably try and revisit the Flemish red style once I have a little more experience with less assertive sour beers.

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