New Belgium Brewing of Fort Collins, Colorado is a relatively new entry into the Twin Cities beer scene having made their debut here just a couple of years ago with their flagship brand Fat Tire. Since then they have slowly been adding to the collection of beers available to Minnesota’s thirsty beer drinkers. While we can now get most of the New Belgium product line, it may come as a surprise to those less familiar with the brewery that they have a series of Belgian style sour beers. These include Transatlantique Kriek, a cherry lambic style collaboration brew with Brouwerij Boon,  a holiday seasonal raspberry lambic called Frambozen, and the Lips of Faith series of beers created by brewery employees. The best of these beers is La Folie, a Flanders red style ale aged in French oak barrels for one to three years. La Folie is arguably the best beer in the New Belgium lineup. Here’s my notes.

La Folie
New Belgium Brewing, Fort Collins, Colorado
Style: Flanders Red Ale
Serving Style: 750 ml Bottle

Aroma: Caramel malt with hints of toast. Loads of fruit, predominantly cherries. Light acidic sourness.
Appearance: Beautiful, clear dark mahogany red. Good size tan head that dissipated relatively quickly.
Flavor: After an initial burst of balsamic vinegar-like sourness a world of malt opens up. Caramel, toast, and chocolate compete for center stage with loads of fruitiness, cherries and currents. Tart and refreshing. Dry finish lingers on sour cherry/berry.
Mouthfeel: Medium-light body. High carbonation. Dry.
Overall Impression: By far the best beer that New Belgium makes. Complex. Well developed sour that still leaves a good base of malt character intact. And that malt character retains a good bit of complexity in its own right. It’s even pleasant to look at. Nice beer. More please!