Beer with me: A belgian visitor - Reynard
Reinaert
Sun and dark, she followed him
His teeth did brightly shine
And he led her up a-the mountains
Did that sly old Reynardine
Reinaert is one of those names it is really hard to live up to, but which will nevertheless draw me in almost every time, no questions asked. Specifically, the label on this bottle made me think of the fantastic version of the folk song Reynardine played by the Fairport Convention. Generally, Beer with me has been intended to catalogue Danish beers, but this bottle was donated by my beer-buddy in Northern France, Julien, who brought it all the way up here, along with a few other bottles that disappeared before I could collect myself enough to review them, so I am very happy to make an exception.
The very first thing that struck me about this beer was the smell of barley wine (I believe my immediate reaction, when I sniffed the bottle, was something along the lines of ”whew!”). I was steeling myself, and preparing to get hammered, but Reinaert actually only sneaks in at 7% alcohol, so it really is not all that dramatic, for a Belgian. I opened it at too cool a temperature, coming right out of our storage room, so at first it seemed quite light, but with roasted and bready/winous notes. It is cloudy (due to the fermentation in the bottle) and somewhat… primitive-tasting, but really quite nice! It does not strike me as very Belgian, I would perhaps say German or Danish, but considering the rich variety of Belgian breweries, perhaps the nationality itself would be an empty description.
Did I like it? Yes! Would I buy it again? I might, but I would probably not seek it out. A charming stranger that lures you into the mountain with him? Not quite. More like a man in green that pulls you down at the foot of the bush and gets you pregnant. There is a certain charm in that, as well.
Sun and dark, she followed him
His teeth did brightly shine
And he led her up a-the mountains
Did that sly old Reynardine
Click to viewReinaert is one of those names it is really hard to live up to, but which will nevertheless draw me in almost every time, no questions asked. Specifically, the label on this bottle made me think of the fantastic version of the folk song Reynardine played by the Fairport Convention. Generally, Beer with me has been intended to catalogue Danish beers, but this bottle was donated by my beer-buddy in Northern France, Julien, who brought it all the way up here, along with a few other bottles that disappeared before I could collect myself enough to review them, so I am very happy to make an exception.
The very first thing that struck me about this beer was the smell of barley wine (I believe my immediate reaction, when I sniffed the bottle, was something along the lines of ”whew!”). I was steeling myself, and preparing to get hammered, but Reinaert actually only sneaks in at 7% alcohol, so it really is not all that dramatic, for a Belgian. I opened it at too cool a temperature, coming right out of our storage room, so at first it seemed quite light, but with roasted and bready/winous notes. It is cloudy (due to the fermentation in the bottle) and somewhat… primitive-tasting, but really quite nice! It does not strike me as very Belgian, I would perhaps say German or Danish, but considering the rich variety of Belgian breweries, perhaps the nationality itself would be an empty description.
Did I like it? Yes! Would I buy it again? I might, but I would probably not seek it out. A charming stranger that lures you into the mountain with him? Not quite. More like a man in green that pulls you down at the foot of the bush and gets you pregnant. There is a certain charm in that, as well.