Thus spoke Zoetzuur, “Sweet & Sour.”

Whenever I see this bottle on the shelf, I think of Nietzsche’s token Persian prophet from his epic work, Zarathustra, which comes across in English as Zoroaster.  It sounds uncannily like Zoetzuur.  While Zarathustra represents perhaps the rediscovered and empowered self of man, Zoetzuur, from the Flemish, means “sweet and sour,” which actually reminds me quite a bit of the attitude of the Nihilist’s great philosophical work.

But how was the beer?

I’ll skip to the resolution of the review and state, It was fantastic! The reason I liked Zoetzuur so much, was due to it’s incredible balance and mildness, while maintaining considerable complexity.  This would be a great beer to serve to a young beer geek as an introduction into sour beers.

This beer, which utilizes brettanomyces as well as classic Belgian yeast strain(s?) has a simple grain bill:  Pilsner, Munich, and Caramel malts. What is interesting, is that the brewery–DeProef–deviates from tradition and uses Tomohawk hops, a Pacific Northwest hop, in addition to Saaz hops.  Additionally, black cherry juice was utilized to maintain equilibrium.  It always amazes me how Belgian breweries can achieve such complexity with such simple ingredients.

The Pour:

The beer pours an beautiful burnt umber.  Depending on the light it looks more orange/red at times, or it displays copper and brown colors.  There is decent (3/4 inch) head that lingers a lot longer than other beers of the Flanders style.  The ale is predictably thin.  It is not at fizzy as other Belgian style beers, and the cork had not exploded off; rather it popped with ease.

The Nose:

Often the reviews I have read for Flanders style beers mention a lack of complexity in both the nose and the flavor.  I just don’t get this.  There are aromas that are hard to pinpoint, but they are there, nonetheless.   Up front some very fruity acidic tones greet  the nose.  Apples and grapes dominate the nose, with hints of cherry.  Unlike many sour ales, you can smell the sweet cararmel.  It is quite candy like, but there are notes of vanilla and mildly funky cheese, like gorgonzola.

The Taste:

This beer is marvelously balanced.  I oohed and aghhed with each sip.  The beer is boldly sweet, and it works well.  While I picked up on the black cherries right away (without having read of their use in the beer) the acidity of the beer created an extreme apple flavor, with worked amazingly well with not only the mild sour flavors but with the sweet caramel flavors.  The raw field flavors of dry vegetation were very unique.  Teh sourness never made me pucker up, as there was always equally counteracting sweet notes.  The beer finishes on a tart lemony note.  Interestingly, the beer is silky smooth.

Overall Thoughts:

As was aforementioned, this is a great intro-into-sours beer, but it is also a great beer for the seasoned sour nerd.  And besides, like any good vintage sour ale, if one desires a bit more pucker, just slip a bottle into your cellar for a few years.

Nate’s Rating:

Overall Satisfaction:  

Among Other Sour Ales:  

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