Thursday was a bit of a milestone in my “Belgian Beer Challenge” mini-quest, to find all 100 beers as I reached beer number 60. This was Potteloereke by Huisbrouwerij Sint Canarus. I’d not come across this beer before nor any others from Sint Canarus and perhaps that’s not surprising considering the quote from their website:
“Homebrewery Sint Canarus, the biggest brewery between Deinze and Gent, is one of the smallest breweries in the world.The smallest brewery, but the greatest beers! Enter the world of Dr Canarus.”
First off, great label!
Potteloereke is a Belgian Strong Dark 
Ale, when poured it is a deep rich redish auburn colour, with a thick creamy cappuccino head, minus the obligatory coffee bean stencilled in cacao powder.
The aroma is of fresh doughy bread, it draws you in like the smell as you pass a good bakery, some Christmas pudding fruitiness there too, that smell is gooood.
First mouthful of taste is warm doughy and very malt driven, a real full chewy mouthful, slightly syrupy in taste but not in texture. As the beer warms and opens up a little you get some sherry, dates, boozy soaked fruits with chocolate and toffee. Finally, the long warm finish really lets you savour the reassuring kick of booze at the back of the throat.
Although it’s a seriously malty beer, it does have sort earthy hop terroir if that makes sense. Nothing that hits you full on, it delicately mingles in the background to balance everything out nicely.
After having the usual Twitter chat about Potteloereke with a few Belgian beer enthusiasts it seems Sint Canarus have quite a few more beers in the portfolio, if this is anything to go by I’d say they are definitely worth the effort.
Thanks to Tomas Danko for the Ratebeer link below.
I am interested in the actual brewery though, has anybody been to visit?
If so drop me some photos (or comments) and I’ll add them in here as an update.
https://twitter.com/#!/TomasDanko/status/121159106303238144
Cheers
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Beersay 