When this week rolled around, I knew I had something special on hand. The recipe below, for a Rodenbach Grand Cru Cherry Pie really caught my eye, and I immediately went out to acquire the supplies.

Looks delicious right? Well getting the supplies turn out to be a bit more difficult than I expected. Apparently Cherry Preserves are not easy to come by, and Rodenbach Grand Cru is not readily available. I made a judgement call and went with Duchesse de Bourgogne (another Flanders Red Ale, that I decided would provide the same tart cherry flavors the Grand Cru would otherwise lend).

Following the recipe, I allowed the cherries to sit and absorb a bit of the Flanders Red overnight. Seeing that the bottle was already popped, I decided to sample a bit myself! Below are the pics, and a review

The beer pours a clear red to brown pour with a small light brown head. The very bubbly head really does not last long. Hints of vinegar, and a lot of tart cherries waft from the glass. Having just combined the beer in the dough recipe and soaking some tart cherries in it, the cherry smell really comes out well for me. It has been a long time since I had this beer last (on tap at Zeno’s Pub), and wow my palate has certainly evolved. The vinegar/sour flavor adds a nice accent to the very tart cherries. The lip smuckering taste really keeps you coming back for more. Light and carbonated well. The dryness of the beer coats your mouth with flavor as you drink. Great beer. Can’t wait to see how the pie turns out. Flavorful, tart, delicious.

I assembled the pie and readied it for the oven!

How delicious do those cherries look?

Above the pre-baking and below the post!

And now to top it all off with some whipped cream, open up a bottle of Hanssens Oude Kriek, and enjoy a boatload of tart, mind boggling-ly good, calorie filled cherry pie

The beer pours a nice, clear, red without any head. Looks to have a low amount of carbonation. Very tart smell, the vinegar and barnyard funk are strong but not dominant. A ton of cherries are noticed, sweet, wonderful cherries. The taste is extremely acidic, but the tart cherries and funk aren’t to be outdone. Very intricate taste that keeps you coming back. Acidic, low carbonation, not terribly drinkable. A sipping, after dinner beer for sure. This was great, paired nicely with the pie. Couldn’t do more than a glass though.

The pie was delicious. Tart, sweet, decadent, delicious. I would love to make this again.

Breakfast, it’s what’s for dinner! Beer, it’s what’s for breakfast!

I was first introduced to this beer when a group of friends and I were at Zeno’s Pub in State College. One looked at the tap list and quickly ordered us all a round of what he called “The Bacon Beer”. Skeptically I delved in…and was blown away. I picked up a bottle recently and wanted to try it with breakfast food. I’d say the experience was a good one!

Translucent brown pour with a small white head. Lacing is wonderful. Light roasted malts start the smell off before BAM bacon. Roasted hints, meat and wood mostly. Much like the smell, slight caramel malts start the taste off before the roasted rauchbier taste hits you. Honestly the most powerfully flavored rauchbier I’ve ever encountered. On the lighter side of medium bodied. Carbonation is good. I was blown away by this when I had it almost 10 months ago, but now that I’ve had it a few more times and delved into the style a bit, I’m sure this is top notch.

It pairs wonderfully with the eggs, bacon, and toast. While the flavor of the beer tastes a lot like bacon, the malts really add a new flavor profile to the meal. I won’t make this a habit (for obvious reasons) but I will certainly consider revisiting it!

Week 31: Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen, originally uploaded by RussWbeck.

Welcome to my blog, thanks for stopping by. The focus of this is to document my adventures in the world of craft beer. You can find me on BeerAdvocate as well. The blog as a whole can be found by scrolling down below this sticky post

For 2011, I decided to try my hand at 52 Beers in 52 Weeks. I do a post on a special beer I try each week, take a picture and review it. It can be found here: 52 Beers in 52 Weeks

I am also randomly doing posts as I pull beers out of the cellar, or get to try certain beers that have been aged. Those posts are compiled here: Cellar

Anything else that pops into my head I will post here: Other

I am putting together ideas of posts to do in 2012, I might do something like a different style for every month, or just keep the 52 Beers in 52 Days thing going, and suggestions are appreciated. You can reach me on twitter (@russwbeck) or at russwbeck (at) gmail.com. Thanks again!