Goose Island Pere Jacques
July 5th, 2008 beckelGoose Island out of Chicago, Illinois make some pretty decent beers. The beer I am drinking now, Pere Jacques is the first of their limited availability line that I have tried before. It is inspired by a brewery tour trip the brewers took in Belgium, and named after the gentleman who personally allowed them to tour his abbot. This particular batch is vintage December 2007. Considering its Belgian inspired roots the head of this beer is a bit different. A bit tan and somewhat plentiful but it fades very rapidly. The color of this beer is great, deep dark cherry color that light is barely able to penetrate. Smell is mostly of fruits, perhaps cherry or cranberry to name a few, quite pungent and nice. Mouthfeel is rather light. Flavor is predominately of many fermented fruits and Belgian yeast, though malt sweetness is also very present, particularly in the finish. Alcohol is somewhat present. It is impressive how well the intense fruit flavor in the beginning is smoothed out by the malts in the end, well balanced indeed. This beer packs a 9% ABV but you probably wont notice. Not exactly a beer for hop heads with 26 IBU but don’t let that discourage you. Not a super complex beer, but it certainly contains many flavors and the malt and yeast used are very nice. As someone who isn’t super big on fruity ales, this one is darn good. Maybe not every day drinking, but definately a worthy choice when you want something sweet, but still a complex ale. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
