Brouwerij Strubbe is a small brewery in the town of Ichtegem, just south-west of Bruges in West Flanders. It is now owned and operated by the seventh generation of the Strubbe family.
Despite the relatively central location, Strubbe beers aren’t commonly seen on café and restaurant menus, though if there is one it is almost sure to be this beer. As we’ve said before, the tem ‘Grand Cru’ is usually assigned to a brewery’s best beer. In this case, the labels proclaims this is the best beer of Ichtegem. And that claim is probably correct!
Time for the sour beer warning for all our sour-shy members. The Flanders Red Ale is a mixed fermentation beer that starts off like a normal brown beer which is then transferred to wooden barrels; in this case for 24 months. It is in the barrels that the beer picks up the sour flavour.
At first there is a welcome sweetness from the malts that presents more like dark fruits. But it doesn’t take long for the balsamic vinegar acidity to grip the sides of your tongue. There is that lovely balance of sweet and sour that vie for supremacy, but the acidity wins out in the long aftertaste.
This is a mixed fermentation ale aged in oak barrels for one year
The classic Flanders Red Ale - the Duchesse of Burgundy
Verhaeghe's Duchesse with 20kg of sour Limburg cherries added per 100 litres of beer
Verhaeghe's famous Duchesse De Bourgogne with the addition of sour cherries and chocolate essence
A delicious blend of two Petrus beers used to create this traditional Flanders Red ale
by Brouwerij Rodenbach (Palm Breweries)
The tribute beer to Alexander Rodenbach, reintroduced in 2016, 30 years after it was first created
by Brouwerij Rodenbach (Palm Breweries)
A Flemish Red Ale featuring 67% aged beer and 33% young beer
The original flanders oud bruin from the old family brewery Verhaeghe, this is an unblended cask aged beer
