Brace yourselves, folks, the Cuvée des Jacobins from Bockor Brewery is the sourest beer I’ve written about here. Like the other two sour ales we’ve discussed (Panil Barriquée and Rodenbach Classic), it’s a Flemish red.
Bockor uses the traditional lambic technique to spontaneously ferment this beer. The Coles Notes explanation of the process is this: the brewing proceeds as usual until the cooling stage, when, in this case, the wort (unfermented beer) is stored overnight in shallow metal containers (called coolships) that are exposed to the night air by strategically placed holes in the brewery’s roof. Whatever strains of wild yeast and bacteria happen to be carried by the breeze (or live in the brewery itself) take up residence in the wort and ferment it into beer.
The special red malt used to make that wort gives the finished beer an auburn hue. The nose balances acetic acid (clean and tart) with lactic acid (funky and herbal) and sweeter aromas of ripe berries.
A mouth stuffed alternately with handfuls of sour cherries and raspberries is the only way to describe the flavour. And it’s no surprise that 18 months in French oak barrels give this beer a well-rounded complexity with a hint of vanilla and a wine-like tannic finish.
I think it’s worth the risk of being repetitive to again mention that great beer is really quite affordable. How many world-class bottles of wine can you find in Ontario for three bucks a serving?
That comparison is especially relevant because this beer substitutes tart and tannic for bitter and hoppy, and I think it will appeal to wine drinkers. While we’re on the topic of wine-related comparisons, I’ll encourage you to go ahead and purchase a case of this beer. As with other sour ales, that 2015 “best before” date is really more of a “things will start to get interesting by” date.
Brouwerij Bockor Cuvée des Jacobins Rouge, $3.30 for a 330 mL bottle, LCBO #318758
In addition to covering beer, new restaurants and food trucks for Post City, David Ort writes about food and drink for several Toronto publications including Spotlight Toronto and his own site, Food With Legs. For more of his thoughts on food, beer and life in general, follow him on Twitter.