Jackie O's Cellar Cuvee 5

Another beer I received in a beer trade with the Beer Club 4 Men was Jackie O’s Cellar Cuvee 5. The beer pours a black color with a thin bubbly tan colored head. The aroma consists of chocolate, raisin, fig, caramel, toasted malts, maple syrup, and oak. The taste is smooth and sweet with lots of maple syrup on the front end. A dark chocolate bitterness balances with some fig and raisin. Oak dryness and a bourbon sweetness accompanied by dry brandy comes out in the finish. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. I thought the mixing of an amber ale and an oatmeal stout after aging in barrels provided an amazing blend and complex liquid on my palate that kept me on my toes throughout the experience.

Brouwerij Lindemans Gueuze Cuvee Rene

Out of curiosity, I looked up Brouwerij Lindemans Gueuze Cuvee Rene on BeerAdvocate while at Abbey Bar at Appalachian Brewing Company. I hadn’t seen this beer before, and it didn’t look like the typical Lindeman’s product. To my surprise, the ratings came back as a 91 from users and a 100 from the brothers, and a friend and I decided to order it. The beer pours a golden color with a foamy white head. The aroma is funky and reminiscent of a barnyard with lemon, earth, and hay. The taste is tart and lightly puckering. Most of the puckering comes from a lemon flavor that is accented nicely with hay, funk, and pepper. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. This was a surprisingly good beer from a most unexpected place. I thoroughly enjoyed this example of a gueuze, and I most definitely would order it again.