Worthwhile French Beers: Hellemus

I may have mentioned that we brought back some beer from Lille.  It turns out Nick got a photo of the lineup, so now I can share it with you.

We haven’t come close to getting through them yet, seeing as most of these are bières de garde, a potent (around 8%, usually) style similar to Belgian brews.  It’s sipping beer.  So far, we found the La Choulette Blonde to be unremarkable, and while their Ambrée was pretty good, we neglected to make any tasting notes, which greatly decreases the chance of it getting its own post (that is, until I can get my hands on some more).  But when I tasted this one:

I immediately smiled and exclaimed, “This tastes like grapefruit!  I bet it would make a great brunch beer!”  Nick found it to be a bit on the sweet side, which I argued is one of the things that would make it so good for morning consumption (when events warrant).  I didn’t find the sweetness to be distracting, balanced as it was with the distinct tang of grapefruit.

The literature on the back of the bottle explains that Hellemus Blonde des Flandres is a natural, traditionally produced bière de garde.  It is unfiltered and unpasteurized, and they claim that the carefully chosen malts and hops assure a unique, authentic flavor.  I’ll say.

Originally published on Croque-Camille.