Duchesse De Bourgogne

Brouwerij Verhaeghe's Duchesse De Bourgogne

Specs: 6% alc.
Style: Flemish Sour Ale
Country: Belgium


I first tasted this last month at Stone Brewery's 12th Anniversary Celebration and felt that it might have been the best Flemish sour I ever had. Duchesse had the normal sweetness and acidity of a sour, but the taste of fruit was more crisp and, in turn, subdued some of the sourness - finishing with a balance of all the flavors tasted throughout (which I felt was quite a feet). The brewery's literature notes that Duchesse is fermented in oak barrels and a combination of 8 and 18 month-old barrels are blended together. You really can taste this process, as two similar flavor profiles emerge - one that is more tart and another which is more balanced. It seemed that the taste of Duchesse was a progression from the strong taste of the young brew into the more stable older version. So, enjoying this beer as much as I did, I purchased a bottle last week. However, there is a big difference between the bottle and draft versions of this brew. Unfortunately, the more accessible version is also the less impressive. The bottled Duchesse just doesn't seem to have the ebb and flow of flavors that the draft version did. What results is a more balanced beer, but also one that doesn't have the strong tart fruit (cherry?) flavor or the distinction between the old and new barrels. That said, the bottled Duchesse is the most session-like of the Flemish sours (I do mean that as a compliment) that I have tasted and would be the right choice for someone who desires a very smooth and balanced sour.

Rating: Draft - ****1/2
Bottle - ***3/4