Kasteel katch-up

Beers from Van Honsebrouck's Kasteel range have come and gone on this blog over the years, so I passed by the core-looking set when I saw it in the local supermarket. But it turns out I've never tried any of these so had to make a purchase on a subsequent visit. Let's see what we've got here.

Kastell Blond is a whole 7% ABV, putting it a step ahead of the likes of Leffe Blond. I still wasn't expecting it to be anything other than a plain Belgian blonde ale. To be honest, it isn't really, but I've been so starved of Belgian delight over the past year that I was still very happy with it. While maybe a little sweeter than the norm, packed with tinned-fruit-in-syrup flavours, it manages also to stay light and unsticky. There's an almost lager-like clean grain in the finish. It's a no-fuss sort of quality that -- on another day, in a different mood -- I might dismiss as bland. Right now, I'll take it.

I thought Kasteel Rouge was going to be something like a dubbel, maybe as a Chimay parallel. In fact, it's a fruit beer. Out with the kriek glass, so. And it's very krieky -- an assault of sweet cherry juice, right from the start. I found it hard to believe this candyboy is all of 8% ABV. Normally one would expect a buzz of hot cough syrup, but it stays light and clean, just like the blond. The blended recipe includes a certain proportion of Kasteel Brune, and if you look closely there is a little of the caramel and toffee one would expect from that style. Really, however, the cherry conquers all. I like cherry flavours so wasn't bothered by the lack of complexity here.

The sun comes up and the world still turns, and Van H now has a Belgian IPA in the range, looking like it's been there forever. Kasteel Hoppy is the lightest of today's bunch, being just 6.5% ABV. It's a bright polished gold in the glass. "Hoppy" does not describe the aroma. It smells like Duvel: that subtle mix of honey and grains with a little waxy dryness. I lazily assumed that it would be American-hopped, so would smell of grapefruit and perfume, but the label wears the "Belgische Hop" badge. And why not? I still have a right to expect it to be hop-forward though. The flavour has hops, but I don't know if I'd say it's all-caps hoppy. Under the honey and rye cracker there's a meadowy floral thing, and a mildly metallic tang. None of this is beyond the remit of a standard Belgian blonde, however. The shout-out to locally sourced hops was nice, but I was underwhelmed by the resulting taste.

There are plenty of better Belgian options out there at the moment, and these aren't going to replace them. I will draw the sweet kriek fans' attention to the Rouge and leave it at that.