Brewed By: New Belgium Brewing Company in Fort Collins, Colorado
Purchased: 22oz bomber from Binny's in Illinois; 2013
Style/ABV: American Sour Ale/Flanders Red, 6.0%
Reported IBUs: 18
Tonight's beer has been reviewed many times over, and it's a straight up Divine Brew with the exception of its price. But I feel compelled to jot down my thoughts on the 2013 version of La Folie anyway. Hate the playa, I guess.
I haven't really talked much about Flanders Red Ales, though I have talked about the Flanders Brown Ale/Oud Bruin. The most known Flanders Red is probably Rodenbach's Grand Cru, which is straight up sex (and on my to-review list). I've had it before, I'll have it again...it's good.
Rather than waxing on about Flanders Reds, I'm going to link to this solid article: Flanders Red and Brown. In short, the Flanders Red Ale originated has roots in Belgium and England, where old and young beer were blended together to compensate for any sourness/acidity in aged beer. The sourness/acidity came from aging beer in wooden casks, where the beer picked up tannins and flavor from the wood, and was also liable to wild organisms (Brettanomyces, Acetobacter, etc.).
Nowadays, fermentation is a bit more controlled, as breweries like Rodenbach intentionally introduce organisms and control the stages/duration of fermentation. This style of beer is often aged for anywhere from 18 months to 3 years, and is often blended with part old and part young beer. These beers feature complex aromas, and have intense fruit, sour, and acidic characters. With that said, I digress. About New Belgium:
I haven't really talked much about Flanders Red Ales, though I have talked about the Flanders Brown Ale/Oud Bruin. The most known Flanders Red is probably Rodenbach's Grand Cru, which is straight up sex (and on my to-review list). I've had it before, I'll have it again...it's good.
Rather than waxing on about Flanders Reds, I'm going to link to this solid article: Flanders Red and Brown. In short, the Flanders Red Ale originated has roots in Belgium and England, where old and young beer were blended together to compensate for any sourness/acidity in aged beer. The sourness/acidity came from aging beer in wooden casks, where the beer picked up tannins and flavor from the wood, and was also liable to wild organisms (Brettanomyces, Acetobacter, etc.).
Nowadays, fermentation is a bit more controlled, as breweries like Rodenbach intentionally introduce organisms and control the stages/duration of fermentation. This style of beer is often aged for anywhere from 18 months to 3 years, and is often blended with part old and part young beer. These beers feature complex aromas, and have intense fruit, sour, and acidic characters. With that said, I digress. About New Belgium:
As I mentioned, La Folie is kind of a big deal. This beer dates back to 2004, and was conceived with Peter Bouckaert from the Rodenbach brewery. The La Folie is wood-conditioned, aged in French Oak barrels, and is then blended to perfection. At one point in time, La Folie was corked with live bugs and all (I think 2009 was the last year). As it currently stands, the beer is now pasteurized, bottle-conditioned with house yeast, and capped on a bottling line. A lot of people have complained about this, but Lauren Salazar does a great Q&A explaining why this was done HERE. The long story short is that pasteurizing the beer "locks in" the ideal blend, and capping the beer has allowed New Belgium to increase production for this beer. The La Folie clocks in at 6.0%, packs 18 IBUs, and is brewed with Target hops, and Pale, Munich, Carpils, C-80, and Chocolate malts. Let's glass this up and see how the 2013 La Folie stacks up.New Belgium is based out of Fort Collins, and opened in 1991 when founder Jeff Lebesch took his home-brewing into the commercial world. For reference, New Belgium is the thrid-largest craft brewery in the United States. You can read more about New Belgium if you check out their website.
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| La Folie 2013 |
Let's talk about the aroma on this. There's a lot of stuff going on here, and it's all fantastic. Up front I'm getting big malty cherries, cherry cola, wood, and vanilla. Behind the soda shop goodness is some serious watermelon, red apple vinegar, apples, fruit skin, and some citrus. There's some must as well, with elusive chocolate and spice. Finally, the soda shop goodness you get up front, mixed with the must, kicks your nose: I'm getting Brett funk, horse blanket, band-aid, and butcher shop. It all comes and goes, and you could just smell this all day.
I'm starting off a bit cooler, and will see how this fares as it warms. Even on the cool side, this is very sour up front, with sour watermelon, Black Cherry Warheads, apple cider vinegar, a hint of acetone, granny smith apples, and tons of citrus. There's wood on the back, and elusive chocolate/vanilla abound in the aftertaste. As I walked away from this, I was getting big raspberry and jam on the aftertaste. As this warms up, you get more apple vinegar, and more wood. I'm also picking up mild Brett funk.
This beer is as described: mouth puckering. I don't know if it's thirst quenching. This is dry as hell on the finish. You get nice acidity up front, immediately followed by sourness. The sourness maintains until the dry finish. The mouthfeel is medium-full, with light carbonation that is obviously hindered by the sour. Palate depth is great for the style...complexity is high, but you feel like it could go even higher. Sour-acid up front with citrus, lemon, watermelon, Black Cherry Warheads; mid-palate rolls into more sour citrus, apple, wood, vanilla, hints of malt; the back is fading sour, lingering citrus, wood, dry.
Rating: Divine Brew
I gotta go with a Light Divine Brew on this. As I feel this destroying my teeth, I can only help but think this is a winner. This is sour, bold, complex, and yada yada yada. You now have herpes. The only downside is a bomber of this is between 15-17 dollars, which is expensive. At least compared to Rodenbach's Grand Cru. This is maybe the best New Belgium beer, and certainly a shining example of mainstream American Sours. Food pairings: aggressive cheeses, meats, and chocolate. Or, just drink solo. This is worth checking out, especially if you're looking for a solid beer that kicks up the sour. The sour is strong, and the flavors follow close behind.
I gotta go with a Light Divine Brew on this. As I feel this destroying my teeth, I can only help but think this is a winner. This is sour, bold, complex, and yada yada yada. You now have herpes. The only downside is a bomber of this is between 15-17 dollars, which is expensive. At least compared to Rodenbach's Grand Cru. This is maybe the best New Belgium beer, and certainly a shining example of mainstream American Sours. Food pairings: aggressive cheeses, meats, and chocolate. Or, just drink solo. This is worth checking out, especially if you're looking for a solid beer that kicks up the sour. The sour is strong, and the flavors follow close behind.
Random Thought: Evidently "La Folie" translates to this is madness or some shit. Cool story, 300.
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