Tag Archives: world cup 2018

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: South Korea

South Korea, 2002 a distant memory.

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: South Korea

2002 is but a distant memory. Fourth in the World Cup, an amazing achievement for South Korea and one that probably will never be got at again, either by them or indeed any Asian team. This time they got a bit unlucky with their group, drawing the world champions, Germany, and Mexico and Sweden is tough. 

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: South KoreaTheir first game against Sweden really is where they need some sort of result to have any chance of progressing, as Mexico in the next game might be reeling from a loss to Germany at the start and in no mood to lose two games on the bounce. Maybe they will be lucky in playing Germany last, as the Germans might be already through by then and go easy on them. Clutching at straws there, but I dont see much that Korea can do in this group. I think if they get a point it will surprise me!

They won just four games out of ten in the qualifiers, and their form in the friendlies is intermittent. But its not all bad, they do have one player of outstanding quality, Son Heung-min of Spurs, is really the type of player that could drag the team to a victory in a tight game. He always gives 100% and his passion might rub off on the team. It certainly needs to otherwise I see the The Taeguk Warriors returning home early. 

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ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Japan

Japan, unsettled.

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Japan

Back again for their 5th World Cup on the bounce, Japan disappointed greatly in the last World Cup, when in a relatively doable group with Ivory Coast, Greece and Colombia they came bottom scoring just two goals, one of which was a penalty. And with some pretty dire form in the recent friendlies, and losing to Saudi Arabia and UAE at home in the qualifiers, things dont look so great for this World Cup either.

With the bad form in mind the Japanese FA in their perceived wisdom decided to sack their manager Bosnian Vahid Halilhodzic, just two months before the games. Akira Nishino is the guy now in charge and I wish him luck but that’s a crazy decision by the Japanese football association. 

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: JapanKeisuke Honda is the main man with the team, a World Class player that gets Japan motoring but I think its time that the other players stepped up a little and gave the 30 year old some help. He can’t do it all on his own. 

This is a group that is definitely manageable for Japan. They play Colombia first, knowing if they can get a result in that game they have a fighting chance. Even if they dont, I would still fancy them to give both Poland and Senegal a good game. They wont make it easy for sure, but unfortunately I can only see Colombia and Senegal coming out of this group. 

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ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Colombia

Colombia, stars need to be on form.

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Colombia

Colombia impressed in the last World Cup, or more importantly James Rodríguez did. He was a bit of a revelation four years ago and scored some very impressive goals ending up as the tournament’s top scorer. A big move to real Madrid materialized, but he couldn’t recreate the same magic with the Spanish club and so was loaned out to Bayern therein after, where he has rediscovered some of his old form. Perhaps playing on the centre stage again will revive his career and Colombia can once again shine at the World Cup. I certainly hope so as when he is playing well he is a delight to watch. 

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: ColombiaTo be fair its not only about Rodríguez, they also have a good squad too. David Ospina is decent enough in goals, Juan Cuadrado is a real work horse in midfield, and Radamel Falcao up front is the type of striker that defenders hate to play against, in your face, strong, and has the ability to smash them in from all angles, albeit he can be lazy enough in games too. But he missed the last World Cup through injury so I am sure he will want to get going this time round. 

Luckily for them, they got by far the most open group of them all. Paired with Poland, Japan and Senegal, the top two places are up for grabs and could conceivable go to any of the four teams. Playing Japan first is a great advantage for Colombia who can hit the ground running with three points before they play Poland next. A point or more to Poland could give them a bit of breathing space in the last game with Senegal. I fully expect them to come out of this group, winning it most likely. If they do come out of this easy group, unfortunately things take a slide for the worst, as they then most likely will come up against either England or Belgium in round two. They might have a small chance against England, slight, but I wouldn’t give them much hope against a very strong Belgium team. That’s why Colombia really need their star players of Rodríguez, Cuadrado and Falcao to be on form. If not then they go come early enough. 

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: ColombiaPekerman is coach, a very defensive orientated and tactically inept manager. I do worry if they need a tactical substitution he might make a balls of it, like he did in 2006 when Argentina had Germany on the ropes, but let them back in the game and ended getting knocked out. I haven’t forgiven him for that (I am an Argentina fan) but lets see!

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ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Tunisia

Tunisia, might be painful!

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Tunisia

England met Tunisia last back in 1998 in the first round of the World Cup, and also in the opening game of the group. That time Tunisia suffered a 2-0 defeat in a game where they gave a pretty lacklustre performance. In fact Tunisia were pretty woeful in that group, losing the next game to Colombia and drawing with Romania to get a sole point. Hopefully this time round they can bring more to the table.

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: TunisiaThey qualified from an arguably easy enough group that contained Libya, DR Congo and Guinea, avoiding the big teams of Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Cameroon or Egypt for example. Ok they went through the campaign unbeaten but it really is hard to say what kind of team Tunisia are. They also didn’t do much in the last African Cup of Nations in 2017, going to out Burkina Faso in the last eight. 

Their squad also doesn’t show much to excite. A few players from the local Tunisian league and quite a few that play in France, but no stand put player. Added to this fact is that they will also be losing their main striker to injury, Youssef Msakni, the top scorer in the qualifying campaign, and that further dents any chances they might have had. In a group with Belgium and England I am sorry to say I dont expect a whole lot from Tunisia. Even in the Panama game, where they might be already out at that stage, they might struggle. I fear for them, I really do, sorry Tunisia!

But at least its not all doom and gloom. I had a great long chat with the very passionate and excited Souhail Khmira, who, amongst other things, is convinced that Tunisia will make the second rd…………lets see

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ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Sweden

Sweden, big team slayer!

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: Sweden

This time Sweden will be at a major tournament without Zlatan Ibrahimovic, their iconic centre forward. Will it harm their chances? I dont think so, if anything it might give them more of a chance to progress. They were far too reliant on him, playing virtually everything through him, and that hindered the development of the rest of them and stopped the team from playing with a natural style. Truth be told it never really worked for them as with the big Zlatan, and his even bigger ego, they never played particularly well and did nothing at the international level with him, not even qualifying for the last two World Cups. It could be a blessing in disguise. They were good enough without him too knock out an Italian team that just expected to walk into the World Cup.

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: SwedenThat game in Italy was really a defining moment for the team. They defended stoically for 90 minutes in the San Siro, onslaught after onslaught from the desperate Italians, but in the end they did it. What a result that sent shock waves around the World. The Azzuri wont be going to a World Cup, the first time since 1958. Wow, just wow!

Sweden have been rewarded with that result by getting a manageable draw in this years World Cup. Ok Germany will be tough, but you imagine in the first game they will beat South Korea, and if they could snatch a draw in their next two games either against Germany or Mexico, then they could qualify for the second round. I think they would be happy with that. Brazil would lie in wait in the second round, but they already knocked out the Italians so I am sure this game wont faze them. But I imagine Brazil in a World Cup are a totally different proposition to a mentally fucked Italian team on a cold November night in the San Siro. 

ThisDrinkingLife and The World Cup: SwedenAt the moment their squad dont have any star players that stand out, and they are struggling badly for form.  But they weren’t expected to get out of their qualifying group ahead of the Dutch, they definitely weren’t expected to knock Italy out, and they are not expected to get up to much this time round either. Team spirit can get you far in world football. The Swedes, I wonder would it be wise to disregard them again!!

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Carlsberg Lager

Carlsberg Lager

Carlsberg Lager

http://www.carlsberg.com/

Brewed by Carlsberg Danmark A/S  
Style: Euro Pale Lager 
Copenhagen, Denmark

Carlsberg Lager

Carlsberg, one of the most iconic beers in the World, and to be found in bars and pubs all across the planet. Founded by J. C. Jacobsen in 1847, in Copenhagen, Denmark, he called the company Carlsberg after his son Carl.

Jacobsen had a scientific bent and a keen interest in all things related to chemistry. With this he set up the Carlsberg Laboratory in 1875, which worked on scientific problems related to brewing. It featured a Department of Chemistry and a Department of Physiology. The Carlsberg Laboratory also developed the concept of pH and made advances in protein chemistry. They also did a bit of research into beer production as well!!

In 1876, J.C. Jacobsen established the Carlsberg Foundation, run by trustees from the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters, which managed the Carlsberg Laboratory as well as supporting scientific research within the fields of natural sciences, mathematics, philosophy, the humanities and social sciences in Denmark. 

Since Jacobsen’s death in 1887, the majority owner of the company has been the Carlsberg Foundation, as unfortunately he had a falling out with his son Carl and decided not to leave him the brewery after his passing. A bit unlucky for Carl. 

It also brews and controls, Tuborg, Kronenbourg, SuperBock, San Miguel (UK), Holsten, Somersby cider, Russia’s best-selling beer Baltika, Belgian Grimbergen abbey beers, Feldschlösschen in Switzerland, and more than 500 different beers in numerous countries all over the world, but especially in south east Asia and Europe.  Carlsberg also produce at home, Special Brew, a particularly strong lager, oh so well loved by street alcoholics and down and outs all across the UK, and Elephant beer, an export lager beer that references the history behind the The Elephant Gate outside the brewery in Copenhagen. I wasn’t such a fan of that beer, read my review here. 

The company is a big employer, with 41,000 people working for the company, primarily located in Western Europe, Eastern Europe and Asia. With an annual turnover reaching just under 10 Billion Dollars the company is a major player on the World beer market. 

But for all the beers and acquisitions, it is Carlsberg Lager that is the flagship beer brand in the Carlsberg Group’s portfolio. The 5% abv pilsner beer, first brewed in 1904, is sold to over 140 countries world wide, with its iconic Art Nouveau-style logo and even more well known advertising tagline “Probably the best lager in the world”. 

The beer is also very closely associated with the beautiful game of football. They were one of the major sponsors of Euro’s 2004, 2008 and 2012 and also UEFA Euro 2016 (where their ad-boards were changed to read their abridged tagline, “Probably”, due to France’s laws against alcohol advertising) and they were also a sponsor of the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Carlsberg also have a well known link with Liverpool F.C. having sponsored the club from 1992 and were advertised on their club shirts for many years. Carlsberg also sponsor, or have sponsored, F.C. Copenhagen, Havant and Waterlooville, Odense Boldklub, Hajduk Split and, Bulgarian team, Pirin Blagoevgrad. 

Review: 0,33l bottle of Carlsberg: ABV: 5%

A lager that is popular with football lovers the world over, as the beer likes to capitalise on its strong association with the round ball. It also sells by the bucket load in the supermarket as its relatively cheap and easy to find.

The export version that is sold throughout Europe. I think the UK version is different, less alcohol for the crazies to deal with.

Comes in a long dark green bottle, which looks a bit shite to be frank.

Initially on the pour get a nice white head, and a clear golden coloured beer. Goes all a bit flat after a while as the head dies a death, not really much of a looker.

Smell is not bad, nice and malty on the nose, some grains too. Ok for smell. 

For the taste, it is all bitterness and the hops are strong. I wish it had a cleaner smoother finish.

Full of sweet malts and the grain flavours are imposing.

I always find Carlsberg to be a little too strong for me, strong in the taste, it has that slight bitterness in the front that one doesn’t have with other lagers. Also a citrus bite to it. Some people like all this, I don’t though. It is definitely an acquired taste. It is manageable if I was at a party or something, or desperate, but I prefer to drink smoother lagers, ones that you don’t squirm when you drink them.

Not quaffable enough for my liking, but I can understand how some could like this beer. 

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Soo. Soors Beer

Soo. Soors Beer

Soo. Soors Beer

Brewed by Soorser Bier AG
Sursee, Switzerland

https://soobier.ch/

Soo. Soors Beer

Soorser Bier is an award winning regional brewery from Sursee, in central Switzerland. The small and young brewery is new and innovative, and offers beer lovers the golden chance to directly invest in the company via a share issue option. 

But what about the name? Soo. Soors Beer? WTF? But then you realise that the beer is actually from Sursee so it all makes perfect sense, and in actual fact is kind of clever really. It makes even more sense when you learn that the story goes that three men were mulling over a few beers and kind of depressed that they couldn’t drink a local beer from their home town, only sip generic large multinational beers and nothing from Sursee. And like all good beer chat their minds began to wander and definite plans were made to rectify this terrible anomaly by starting their own brewery in the town. Even after all that pub-talk, the idea began to take hold and more concrete plans were put into action. They had serious discussions with beer drinkers, with people in the business, publicans and restaurateurs. A serious business plan was drawn up. And again they sat together over a beer and a eureka moment came: “Soorser beer, we want that!”

On March 12, 2015, Herbert Blum, Alexander Oleschinsky and Karin Wagemann founded Soorser Bier AG with a share capital of CHF 100,000. Over time came more funding and more expertise, and they also offered beer lovers the opportunity to become part of the Soors beer history, ala Brewdog, offering shares to the public. Fortunately for them, the share capital was oversubscribed by 80,000 francs. 390 shareholders, most of them from Sursee, got on board, and the beer chat turned into something real. The brewery was set up and a master brewer with many years experience was hired. On April 22, 2016, less than a year after the founding of Soorser Bier AG, the first brew was prepared from the plant. 

If that wasn’t a great success already, in no time at all the brewery won “Switzerland’s Best Golden Ale 2016”, in the World Beer Awards, two years in succession. Just goes to show that with a little bit of effort and a lot of passion and guile dreams can be made, even if they are liquid influenced and a bit hazy to begin with! What a great story!

Review: 33cl. Bottle of Soo bier, Soo. echt, a golden ale: 5% ABV

On the bottle I can see that this beer is “handcrafted and brewed with love in Sursee”. Soo. Echet in my bad German I think means “So Real”

Apparently this beer won a World Beer Awards in 2016 as “Switzerland’s Best Golden Ale!”, I dont know what the competition was like but lets see if it stands up to its lofty reputation! 

On pour I get a very well carbonated beer that produces a big frothy white head and a cloudy looking, golden yellowish beer.

Found the smell to be quite interesting, very piercing on the nose, very citrusy, malty and yeasty. Smell definitely gets the senses aroused. 

On taste I get a very sweet tasting beer, very sweet. The malts and fruits hitting the senses early on. 

More heading towards the lager side of a Golden ale than the ale side.

Is smooth enough to drink, goes down ok with some light flavours and a good balance between the hops and the malts.  

Not going to blow your mind, but does the business perfectly, which is to enjoy the football with a nice refreshing beer at hand.

Review: 33cl. Bottle of Soo bier, Soo. happy, a German style Hefeweizen: 4.8% ABV

A happy go lucky beer that is meant to bring joy to your heart, hmm……ok, lets see! 

On the appearance we get a nice golden orange coloured beer with a lovely frothy white head. Good bit of carbonation.

Looks lovely, and the head maintains throughout.

A very strong aroma, of the fruits, the banana very strong on the nose. Cloves, citrus, and malts found too.

For the taste it is quite powerful with the hops explosive! Very hoppy, very fruity, and a very strong beer in the taste (and smell).

Banana, the cloves, the wheat, and the yeast are the main attractions in this beer. The fruits are so expressive in this beer its like a fruit juice with hops added in! I am sure I got my five a day drinking this baby!!

Is nice cold from the fridge, refreshing and crisp, after a while the initial shock of all the hops and fruits become very manageable that by the end you are fully revitalized.

A very tasty and full bodied beer, and if you are a fan of strong Hefeweizen’s then this beer is right up your street. 

Review: 33cl. Bottle of Soo bier, Magisch, a session IPA: 3.8% ABV

Magisch meaning this beer is full of “magic”, but lets see, right?

It is a session IPA which means it should be smooth and easy to digest with less malt than a regular IPA, and less ABV but with a more mouthy flavorable feel. 

Was quite carbonated in the pour, resulting in a very large frothy white head, a lot of foam.

Had a nice dark hazy orange colour.

Some lacing left on the glass. Head maintains throughout. 

Nice smell, a fruity aroma. Also get the light hops on the nose, a pleasant aroma. 

Got the hops at the start, light but there to awaken your taste buds. A very pronounced bitterness for sure. After a few more sips the hops settle down and the drink becomes more fuller on the tongue. 

Getting nice big creamy mouthfuls, nice and filling. 

Definitely very sessionable, as it says on the tin. As low alcohol session beers this one worked fine. 

I like it, very smooth, very easy to drink, nice fruity flavours and tastes, light bitterness, soft and crisp, and a very nice beer overall. 

Not a bad session beer at all here from Soo. Soors Beer. 

Review: 33cl. Bottle of Soo Deheime, a Swiss ale: 4.5% ABV

Barely from the local area with water from Sursee.

A nice hoppy aroma, light smelling, and also cereals and breaded notes are found on the nose.  

Looks nice on pour, a lovely light yellow colour with a good sized white frothy head. Looks good, very inviting. Some good carbonation going on, bubbling away. A hazy look appears after a while.  
Head maintains well enough. A nice looking beer.

For the taste, lovely cold from the fridge resulting in nice big mouthfuls, it is extremely smooth and very easy to drink. Its nice and crisp on the tongue and very refreshing. Nice.

Yeah, a good light ale, very smooth, only slightly hoppy, but very crisp and relaxing, a good beer, I like it.

Not the widest array of flavours or standout tastes, but its very relaxing to drink and a good enjoyable beer to while away the time. 
A bit of a taste of the barley, with the light hoppy taste, with a pleasant bitterness. 

Liked it, nothing extraordinary, but very, very smooth.

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Ožujsko, Croatia’s most popular beer

Ožujsko, Croatia’s most popular beer

Ožujsko beer

Brewed by Zagrebacka Pivovara (Molson Coors)
Style: Pale Lager
Zagreb, Croatia

www.ozujsko.com

Ožujsko, Croatia’s most popular beer

First produced way back in 1892, Ozujsko Pivo is the flagship brand produced by Zagrebačka Pivovara (Zagreb Brewery), the largest brewery in the country which has been of Molson Coors Brewing Company since 2013.

The beer was named after the month of March (Croatian: Ožujsko), when traditionally the best beer is made, but of course with developments in production this seasonality is no longer important for the quality of Ožujsko pivo, and now it can be brewed and enjoyed all year round. Ah modern technology, got to love it! 

The brewery Zagrebačka was founded when the brewers from the upper town of Zagreb realized that they were not able to produce enough beer for the ever-growing and developing city. Panic set in but not to worry as help was at hand. A joint stock company was set up to run Zagrebačka Pivovara on the 19th of May in 1892, with the notion of alleviating this awful situation in the city. The brewery at that time was one of the most modern developments not just in the locale but in the whole city of Zagreb, attracting visitors from all across the city to see the happenings of the new modern premises with its new cooling systems and boilers, and state of the art lightning system, and I suppose to sample the beer as well! Nowadays Zagrebačka has developed into Croatia’s largest brewery and, besides Ožujsko pivo, produces a variety of popular beer brands.

For the last 15 years, Ožujsko is the official sponsor of the Croatian national football team, going hand in hand with the success of the boys in red, white and blue.

Review: 0,5l Yellow Can of Ozujsko Pivo: 5.0% vol

In a very shiny yellowish can, looks a bit cheap. 

On the pour, from the can, very good, I got a very nice frothy white head with a lovely perfectly clear light golden colour, looks decent. Some lacing. 

Head maintained well. Good amount of lacing. It is a very nice beer to stand back and look at. Looks great in fact. 

Has the usual smell one can get from lagers, and malty and crisp. Ok, albeit very faint.

For the taste well its nothing that’s going to blow your mind, but its a typical full bodied lager, malty, light and clean, quaffable and not bad. Nice big mouthfuls to enjoy at the start.

Slightly hoppy and a little bitter but overall easy to drink and perfect to quench the thirst. 

Cold from the fridge, yeah did the business!

It is a decent lager, good enough to sit back and enjoy the football, and sure that’s what its all about at the end of the day, right? Satisfying and refreshing, smooth and quaffable. 

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Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science

Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science!

Dr. Brauwolf 

Brewed by Dr. Brauwolf 
Zurich, Switzerland

https://drbrauwolf.ch/

Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science

Dr. Brauwolf is a Swiss version of Breaking Bad, but instead of Walter White step forward Stefan Wolf, the owner and visionary behind Dr. Brauwolf. In the place of crystal meth we have beer. Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science! 

The brewery is still very new in the market, just opening in August 2017. They make 5 different beers and a monthly beer that changes every 30 days or so. All beers produced are the hard work of Lidka and Stefan, two young scientists, who bring a systematic and methodical view to the world of craft beer, with just a dash of fun as well to spice things up (no doubt!). 

Their tasting room (“The super lab!”) is open to all, and the couple are more than happy to invite people to their public tastings and brewery tours where you can have the chance to meet the brewers and to visit the company. But remember all you have to do is respect their chemistry! (cough!) 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Rye IPA: 6.1% ABV

Dr. Brauwolf ‘s “craft beer of the month” so this is a beer I am looking forward to so. 
Also on the label we are told that this is “where beer meets science”

It looks absolutely fantastic, a great white fluffy head, with a lovely colour of amber orange.

There is some slight lacing, and the head maintains well. There is some small amount of sediment buzzing around inside, showing that this beer is alive! 

It is truly an excellent looking beer, one of the best lookers I have had in a long time.

For the aroma, the smell is very good, a typical IPA smell, very fruity, and very hoppy. Not bad. 

On the taste it was very fruity, bit like a Club Orange with a load of hops in it, which sounds strange but that’s what it felt like to me. And everyone loves Club Orange! 

Was hoppy, got the sweet rye and barely, I got a bit of caramel (possibly from the Rye). Smooth enough to enjoy and very fruity, really like this beer a lot.

Hoppy, but light enough to enjoy for me who is someone who sometimes struggles with IPA’s, it was a beer that I drank over the hour, a beer to sit down, slowly sip and enjoy the football, perfect! 

Would love to drink some more of this beer, will definitely have to check it out again. Recommended. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Boho, a Czech style Pilsner: 5.2% ABV

Dr Brauwolf, Boho, a fresh local craft beer from Zurich, concentrating on the Bohemian Pilsner beer style. 

On pour, got a nice whitish head, light clear golden coloured beer, the nice Pilsner look that we all love so well. 
Head is fine, smallish but maintains well. 

Oh boy, the smell is strong and typical of a Pilsner. Malty and spicy, perfume aroma as well. Nice.

Went on a bit of a journey with this beer. To be honest wasn’t liking it initially, thought it was far too hoppy and bitter on the taste, a bit too sour and bitter at the front.

But after a while when I started to drink more of it, it settled down, or rather I did, and I started to enjoy the tastes. By the end I wished I had another few to skull down!

Definitely a very tasty brew, complex, the Saaz hops doing the business by the end. Got the spices and malts as well. 
A hoppy, strong pilsner. 

Ok, enjoyable enough. Yeah not bad.

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s H2OP, a non alcoholic Hop water: 0.0% ABV

This one stands out from the collection as it comes in a green bottle and its actually water! But it isn’t just any old water, it is water with hops! 

On the pour was a bit surprised as it was very fizzy, bubbling all over the place, was not exactly expecting that.

Looks ok, a well carbonated mineral water, nice and sparkling. 

Has a smell of hops, easy to find, and generally a pleasant smell. 

Get a hoppy taste. Has a slight citrus taste as well. 

Pure clean Swiss water with a hint of hops. Nice and refreshing. Better than tap water for sure!

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Red Ale: 4.8% ABV

A lot of carbonation, very lively on the pour. This resulted in a very frothy head. The colour was dark red. All looking great. Head settled well after a while.

A nice aroma of toasted malts was very prominent. 

Taste was light, a little sweet, with a nice caramel flavour. 

Soft on the tongue, very smooth and very easy to drink. Fruits at the back ground, the malts lingering, and the beer is perfectly balanced. 

Overall its a nice red ale, nothing that is going to amaze but good enough to enjoy while the TV is on the box.  Not bad. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Chocolate Stout: 7.4% ABV

A previous “craft beer of the month” choice from the Brauwolf boys. 

On pour, I get a lot of carbonation, a lot! When it all eventually settled it results in a very big frothy tanned head. The colour is pitch black. All in all its a nice looking beer, very nice appearance.  

Smell is very chocolaty, very nice on the nose. Get the chocolate malts, the cocoa and the barely. A nice aroma. 

On the taste I found it a little too sweet for me to be fully enjoyable. The chocolate was very strong in the taste and the hops were also quite difficult.

The malts, barely, and other flavours and tastes don’t really have a chance to shine as the coconut chocolate takes over from start to finish. 

If you like your chocolate heavy on then this is the beer for you, but I am not a chocolaty person so……..

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Witbier, a Belgian style wit beer: 4.6% ABV

A fresh local craft beer coming all the way from the wonderful city of Zurich.

Remember a Witbier (white beer in Flemish) is wheaty, fruity, and spicy, and usually very smooth. 

Decent enough white frothy head on the pour, a nice pale golden colour, looks ok, a typical Witbeer look. Head maintains very well. Not a bad looker. 

Nice sweet smell, very nice. Can smell the yeast and all that wheat, pleasant on the nose. 

Very fruity on taste, as to be expected got the orange peels straight away, very nice to taste, refreshing actually.

Also got the coriander easy enough to taste and also quite nice in the mouth. 

Yeah I liked this beer, was very easy to drink, very smooth, crisp tastes from the wheat, nice and fresh and very relaxing to drink. Nice one to experience on a beautiful hot summer’s day. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s APA, an American Pale Ale: 5.3% ABV

On pour I get a nice white frothy head and a dark golden orange colour. Looks good, very appealing. Some lacing.

The aroma is malty and very hoppy. Bit strong on the nose, very pronounced with the hops. 

Taste is hoppy, especially at the start, but its all slight and not over bearing.

It is light bitterness and light maltiness, its a light drinking beer, easy to drink and smooth.

Didn’t get many flavours or any fruit tastes, and overall it is the aroma that stands out in this brew. Too light in the taste for me. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Vanilla Cream Ale: 5.0% ABV

Another “craft beer of the month” special here. 

The appearance is not the best, truth be told it is not much to look at, and the head dies a death. Hazy amber colour. Some sediment Knocking around. 

Wow, what a fantastic smell.  Wow, the vanilla is very prominent on the nose. Also smells like a nice perfume as well. Lovely smell, nice.  

On the taste, got the vanilla ice cream, very overpowering but all good. It is so nice to taste I ran to the wife to get her to try, and she doesn’t even like beer! Just showing how exciting and fun this beer is. It really is a light vanilla ice cream, very soft on the tongue mixed with some malts and wheat to give you a fantastic beer. Don’t know if I would drink a lot of these beers but the brewer gets the balance just perfect.

What it lacks in looks, the taste and aroma certainly makes up for that. Lovely, very exciting beer. Recommended. A FUN beer! 

 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Black IPA: 6.0% ABV

A black IPA? Because it is black is it a porter or a stout, but how does that work in an IPA? So lets see…..a black IPA is a relatively new style originating from the US, basically it is a hop forward beer that happens to be as black as any stout! Can sometimes be classed as a Cascadian Dark Ale, a nod to where it originally came from, the Cascadia region of north-west USA and parts of British Columbia in Canada, and an Indian Black Ale, but overall it is termed a Black IPA.

Looks nice enough on the appearance, got a lovely creamy white head and a dark black coloured beer. Some good lacing. Not a bad looking beer.

Get a stouty smell, coffee aromas and toasted malts. Smells like a regular IPA too. 

Nice mouthfuls from the beginning. There is a slight “Guinness taste” there alright. But its not quite a full stout, and that’s why it is an IPA, even if it is full of the dark roasted malts and coffee flavours that you can expect from a regular stout but there is something else there.

It is not that bad, smooth and enjoyable enough all the same. 

The hops have a bit of a kick, a bit bitter and sweet, but its slight and manageable, a nod to the fact it is an IPA after all.

Overall it aint a bad beer, certainly worth a tryout and it just about strong enough and tasty enough to be enjoyable. 

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bierenvanbegeerte.be

Kamil

Kamil

Brewed by BierenVanBegeerte
Berchem, Belgium

www.bierenvanbegeerte.be

Kamil

Bieren Van Begeerte is a Belgian brewery that focuses on specialty and custom made beers.

Founded in 2001. Beginning small, in the centre of the beautiful medieval city of Antwerp, and with a lot of trial and error, but fire in their belly, they started to produce some very tasty beers that seemed popular with the general public. 

Kamil was their first baby! Proving to be a success leading them to expansion and a movement to a bigger brewery to Berchem on the outskirts of Antwerp. Onward and upwards! 

Since 2001, Bieren Van Begeerte have always relied on their own recipes with hop varieties that is grown with great care on their Lints hop field. As small-scale micro brewers, they value local quality produce with the best sourced ingredients resulting in beers that stand apart from the rest. Modern creations in a classic type beer market. 

Review: 33cl. Bottle of Kamil, a Belgian ale: 6.5% ABV

Lovely clear yellow coloured beer, with a nice smallish white head, looks ok. Some carbonation and good lacing. Head maintains. 

Smell is nice with sweet malts, and a bit citrusy, a strong enough smell and piercing on the nose
The smell is pleasant.

Initial taste is hoppy, a very hoppy taste, typical of a Belgian ale, hitting you at the start. Sweet and bitter.

Nice n tasty, lots of flavours and strong tastes. 
Hops are not too overbearing though, nice and light enough to appreciate. 
Full of tastes, getting the barley, the wheat, the fruits, and, of course, the hops. 

When you look at it you think it will be nice and calm, it looks lovely and unassuming but boy do the looks deceive, quite hoppy when you get into it. The calm before the storm so to speak!

A typical strongish Belgian ale, nice and tasty.  A good beer to sip and enjoy. 

Review: 75cl. Bottle of Kamil Greenstone, Strong Belgian Ale : 8% ABV

In a nice long brownish bottle, the Greenstone is a collaboration brew done with De Proefbrouwerij. 

A bottle fermented beer that uses organically grown barley malt. 

Had a lot of carbonation on the pour, took a little while to settle. But amongst all the froth emerged a lovely white headed beer with a nice dark hazy orange colour. It was very appetizing on the eye. 

Naturally it had good lacing, and the head maintained throughout (even if my sanity at drinking so much beer and watching the football didn’t!).

Top marks for appearance, it looked magnificent.

On the smell I got a very fruity aroma, of oranges and apples.

For the taste, I got a very strong hoppy beer, quelle surprise its a Belgian! The hops are strong and it is bitter, but they are manageable enough to enjoy, and actually add to the experience of this beer. 

Strong, nice to drink over time, and with the 75cl bottle you have that time needed to fully appreciate this beer.

A strong beer, with the spicy flavours, the hops, grains, the citrus, and the organic barley, all swirling around in your mouth, balanced and making this beer a particular favourite. Its playing a rock n roll tune with my taste buds. 

Full of tasty hops and very bitter. Great big mouthfuls to enjoy, and my head was buzzing a little after it, but my mood was pleasant and I was just happy to have enjoyed a good long beer. 

Review: 75cl. Bottle of Moktamee, Belgian Ale: 6.5% ABV

Moktamee is a specialty beer coming in a big 75cl bottle. 

The appearance is one of a very dark amber colour with some reddish hue, and a nice white frothy head that does stick around.

Some good lacing on the glass too.

Looks great, in fact looks better than that, looks majestic. A very good looking beer.

Has a hoppy enough smell on the nose. 

Oh my, the taste is very hoppy, very bitter, the hops making a very strong impression on the tongue. 

Nice big mouthfuls swilling around, lovely stuff, the barley, the wheat and toasted malts doing the business. 

Bit strong too, a good strong Belgian beer. 

Perhaps not overrun with a lot of unique flavours, but I thoroughly enjoyed it while I watched the football. Very hoppy but very manageable though, and it had me buzzing by the end of it. Loved it. 

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