Rodenbach Vin de Céréale
2004 Vintage, from a single "Foeder" (N° 135)(barrel), ripened for 3 years, uncoloured.
3.8
371 reviews
Roeselare, Belgium
Community reviews
Bottle share at Ken’s 20K. Many thanks to Ian for bringing this one! As ’Rodenbach Vin de Céréale’. Paper covered 2004 vintage, 10%, #016044. Dark orange with no head. Aroma is varnish, glue, vinegar, apple. Body is rounded, smooth, soft carbonation. Taste is quite harsh, acidic, glue, apple, varnish, booze. Quite rough really. Lacking balance. I struggled with this one.
Clear rose with no head. Aroma is tart, medium body, low carbonation, and no lacing. Taste is tart and cherries. Good.
Bottle shared at the Moeder Lambic cellar session 2015. poured a really clear chesnut cognac colour with some fussy bubbles on top. aroma of vineous porto notes, fainted red fruits, graham crackers, and dry cereal. taste is old fainted red fruits, old musty vinegar, old scaramel malts / barley, faint sour notes. this one is def. over it’s peak. and i was not a fan of it. mouthfeel is pretty full bodied do.
Bottle shared at the Moeder Lambic cellar session 2015. Pours clear orange brown with a tiny ring tan head. Aroma is vinous with oak, mold, tart old fruits, cereal and vinegar. Flavour is light to moderate sweet and moderate sour. Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
[2004 vintage] Beautiful clear coppery amber color with a slightly bubbly head. Not a stray trail of fizz in the glass. The aroma is pungent and fills the room as the cork pops lethargically out of the bottle. A rich nectar, like dark honey with a deep sourness provides the primary aroma. Undertones of rye bread, apricot and cherries are also notable. Upon hitting the tongue, you first notice the flat oily texture of the beer. This hasn’t changed since the beer was first released. Almost no fizz to speak of but an unctuous, honey-like consistency. Very complex flavor that interweaves leathery earth tones with strong oakiness and a fruity finish of red apples and tart raspberries. The interplay of sweet and sour allows it to overcome the 10% ABV which seems almost unnoticeable. Has improved with age and pairs perfectly with goat cheese.
375 ml bottle, vintage 2004, during Brussels vacation. Brownish amber with no head. Aroma is vinous, lots of barrel notes, wood, red wine, light nail polish, grapes. Taste is nicely balanced, sour, vinegar, wood, barrell, grapes with a long beautiful finish.
375ml bottle, Vintage 2004, shared by ippopotamo36 @Buskers (Rome). Thank you very much Alberto for sharing this gem! Pours light pink-ruby color with a light foam that rapidly disappears. Aroma is powerful and brutal, cherry, wine, sour notes and lot of vinegar. Flavour is very sour with vinegar, barley, cherry, alcohol and some Porto notes in the end. Full body, low carbonation. Astonishing!
2004 bottle, thanks to my friend Martin Ridge. Drunk in Kortrijik.
Golden copper glow. Lacing around the edge. Aroma is very much like old Thomas O’Hardy. Some oxidation is creeping in. Lactose, grains, caramel and smoked cheese. Taste is redcurrants, cherry tart, burnt caramel, fudge, oak, lactose. Utterby amazing. My tastebuds were pretty weary by then so I’m not sure how accurate this review is but it was an epic beer.
Bottle 0.75l at Kulminator Antwerpen Belgium with my bro ippopotamo36.Ajdeeee Alberto.Thank you budalo.Hi Dirk & Leen! Great time.Pour it clear amber whiskey color with small head.On the nose caramel.Taste and aroma of sweet caramel,tart, sour cherry, classic note of Rodenbach yeast.Great one.
At Kulminator Antwerp-Belgium, bottle. Ciao Mortlach. Pours a great light amber color, semi-filtered with a minimal non-head. Nose: a mix of caramel and barley. Stunning. Smooth Chardonnay. Mouth: very mild tartness, grains, far away caramel with tart sour notes. Unique!
Bottle - pours a murky brown. The smell is raisins, vinegar, and sourness. The taste is nicely tart with vinegar, dark fruits, and berries. It’s pretty good for a 10yr old beer.
There was a bit of a vinegar smell. The alcohol is super mild. Really fresh. Almost no head. Unbelievable.
Pours deep reddish brown with finger thick tan head. Subtle in all ways; tartness, fruit, malt. It was hard to get this one and I’m glad I tried it, but I wouldn’t trade the farm to get another.
2004 brought back by Todd and shared. Thanks! (I think this is the 3rd time I’ve had this, so it’s nice to actually have the rating.)
A: Clear brown color, no head, some lacing.
N: Nail polish, wine grape, honey, grapefruit rind and lemon zest.
T: Tart, slightly sweet, and some acetone.
M: Light body. Very acidic.
O: This is probably the best of the 3 bottles I have tried. The other two were much sweeter, this one has a pleasing tartness. I am worried about its age, 10 years old might be pushing the limit on what it can do.
2004 bottle shared at the Portland tasting, thanks
Clear golden with a small white head, no lacing. Aroma of dark fruit, mild sweet caramel. Taste is fruity, grapes and vinegar
Nice
Exceptional Rodenbach release in 2008, unblended beer taken from one specific wooden barrel, brewed four years earlier. Thin, loose, unstable, light beige head, colour deep amber, clear, notably lighter than expected from a Rodenbach. Complex vinous and extremely estery aroma, mango, passion fruit, sour cherries, dry sherry, tomato, hay, vanilla, woody tannins, white wine, champagne, sour yoghurt. Tart onset with a soft, lactic acidity and a hint of sharp citric acidity, utterly fruity, refreshing and cleansing the palate, sweet caramelly and honeyish malt base, very vinous and almost champagne-like, long finish, complex, woody, tart and drying, almost reminiscent of a lightly sweetened geuze, alcohol very well hidden. Fantastic brew with huge ageing potential, I tasted a 10 year old sample recently and it had developed a more mellow and rounded, but very noble, even more vinous character. I hope they do this again someday.
Bottle shared by Bytemesis! Yet another want-list beer! Apple and pear in the nose, some cherry. Nearly a still pour. Very tart and winey flavors with some slightly sweet malt character. Low on the pie-like flavors, some light cherry as it warms and a mild acidity throughout. Seems as though there are some oxidation issues, but given the age, I’m not surprised. Enjoyable.
Bottle, 2004 vintage from Secret Santa - thanks! Shared at the homer "welcome to California" tasting. Pours crystal clear reddish amber, tiny off-white head that dissipates quickly leaving minimal lacing. Aroma is funky basements, a bit of fruitiness, apple, vinous - white wine. Flavor is oxidized yes, medium sweet, light tart and light funk. Ciderlike in some ways. Medium body. Interesting experience.
2004 bottle. Looks like clear apple cider. Pungent fruity aroma, sour apple. Sour flavor, a bite of lactose, bread and alcohol. Interesting, not bad for a ten year old beer but it doesn’t quite come together with the best.
Bottle from Tom Foley split with Matt Capone, Kevin Wilk & Tom. Pours hazy brown to red with little head. Nose is acetic acid, funk and earthy notes. First sip is mild cherries, bit of oxidation, mild acetone. Beautiful finish which stArts fruity switches to sour quickly. Great beer . Thanks, Tom.
Bottle: Served in a Chouffe glass:
No head. Clear amber colored beer.
Aromas of red berries, apricot, fish fond, perfume, wood, some caramel and marzipan.
Flavour is a tart mix of wood, grapes, red fruit, vinegar, some malts, some flowers, light spicy, some fruity dry or dry fruity tones and some berries.
Aftertaste is a mix of dry, tart, grapes, malts, wilder yeast and berries.
Low carbo, watery mouthfeel, medium to fuller bodied and a spicy light dry watery texture.
Interesting, even after 10 years, damn interesting!
Old rating from the Kulminator. Pours copper/amber color bubbles stuck to the side of the glass and old a tiny wisp of a head. The smell is vinegar, oak, cherry and grapes. The taste is super complex with oak, mild cherry, vinegar - super crisp with a dry finish. Light/medium body with light carbonation.
Bottle sampled 3/15/14
Flat, lifeless and clear ruby-amber liquid in the glass.
Prunes, tons of toffee and caramel. Over-ripened red fruits. Concentrated sweet strawberry jam and tons of vanilla from the oxidation. Smells like it’s going to be very, very, very sweet....
And not surprisingly, it is very, very, very sweet. I found very little flemish brown ale here and quite a bit of a barleywine with light to moderate Belgian influences. Very light on the acetic aspects, with just ripe red fruitiness and an ever so slight aceto-lactic tartness. Tons of toffee and caramel, light soy and lots of vanilla-like oxidative notes. Pretty low on the alcohol though!
I can’t envision how this would have been particularly good when younger. It’s just powerfully caramelly beer with very little tartness for balance. Would have had less oxidation, but just as much punishing sweetness. Very convinced a lot of this beer’s reputation was hype and rarity.
If Alexander can be near a 5.0 after 10-12 years of age, than screw this stuff /end-justification-for-why-I’m-rating-this-rant. Ugh, Palm....Call me up when they discover a single Foeder of aged pre-Palm bier....
May be slightly flat and a touch oxidized but I still really enjoyed this. Nose was wet oak, cherry, creamed corn(odd), walnuts, and toast. Taste is puckering tartness, some cardboard, cherries, grainy sweetness.
Wow this is great tons of great flavors this is great. Fruits and tartness take over this palate. Slightly oxidized and flat, the complexity is mindblowing, tons of dark fruits, tartness, light herbs and spices. The belgians really crush it to sour browns.
Dan supplied the bottle (not an RB user). Many thanks! Had consumed at RB NE Meetup while everyone talked about boring stuff and played with their phones. Aromas of puke, corn on the cob, acidulated malt, and apricots. Tastes of everything described with the addition of cat urine, white sage, pomegranate, and sweat. Quite possibly, the best beer of the tasting.
Taste at RBNG. Thanks, Dan! Pours light golden brown. Aroma is potent. Cereal, yogurt funk. Very smooth champagne like sour with tart cherry and a touch of earthiness. Very nice! I could drink a lot of this.
Thanks YouBrewIDrink(sp?)
A - Looks like Brandy or a Cognac. totally still.
S - The nose is so brandy /lightly touted cognac. Dessert wine notes as well. Nice Cherry pie and honey.
T - Very interesting. Huge grape and sauvignon taste with a very sharp acidic bite at the finish.
M - Totally flat, oily and silky
O - Obviously it has become past its prime.
Hazy red/amber colour. Soft carbonation. Very complex "oud bruin". Tart aroma with notes of green apples and balsamic vinegar. Some sweetness also. Very well balanced. Another fanastic sour red/brown.
Bottled. Poured clear, lightly ruddy orange with a loose ring of head.. looked mostly flat (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). The aroma picked up rich darker fruit, cognac, and a kiss of agave nectar with toasted oak and warm alcohol accents.. very well balanced. The flavor found tart oak, vinegar, and spicy fruit skins on the tip of the tongue, with warmer fruity sugars and tart cherries behind.. finished with a lot more oak and cherry, with some follow-up belly warmth. Medium-bodied with very low carbonation on the palate.. moderate-plus sourness.. great balance.. this was excellent!