Flat Earth Rode Haring Flanders Red Ale

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

A steady pour into my 25cl tulip glass produces an almost three-finger thick, amber tinged, light tan colored head. The beer has a dark cherry color to it that shows a brilliantly clear, copper tinged, red stained hue when held up to the light. The aroma smells of fruit, musty earth, toasty malt and a touch of sourness. The sourness seems to accentuate a cherry like aromatic as well as a touch of cranberry and some other tart berry notes. This has a bit of a malt backbone to it, though perhaps not quite as much as one migh expect in the style, that reminds me of a touch of biscuit notes, a hint of caramelized malt and perhaps even a hint of walnuts. The tartness here is fairly light, but does seem to have a hint of acetic character to it along with the slightly more noticeable lactic character. A touch of musty, earthy aromas hint at a Brettanomyces presence, but this doesn't have a full on barnyard funkiness to it. Not a bad aroma, though it does seem a touch tame.

Pretty light bodied with a fairly high level of carbonation, the combination produces a fizzy, watered down effect after the first sip. Releasing some of the carbonation helps a bit, but this remains fairly light bodied; it is not quite watery though as it does have a touch of heft to it as it rolls across the tongue. This has a light, but persistent tartness to it that tastes of lactic acidity; there is a touch of a grapefruit effect here as well as some flavors similar to tart pomegranate and perhaps a touch of other berry like notes. There is a touch of astringency in the finish that mixes with the tartness, but tastes a little plastic like.

Not bad, but somehow not all that interesting either. This has a hint of complexity to it in the aroma, but the flavor is fairly bland for a beer of this style. It definitely needs more acidity, and more, even some, funkiness would be a welcome addition.