"This is the way the world ends.
Not with a bang but a whimper."
Quotations make for easy leads. Guilty. We've certainly used them in past articles. This time, we don't really even know what that T. S. Eliot stuff is about. Don't care. But we do know we don't want our column to go out with a whimper.
This is our last chance to talk about beer in this forum and we want to go out with a bang.
Do we really have a choice but to worship for one last time at the Beer Mecca that is Lion's Pride? No, that's rhetorical.
This week we did not want to mess around with anything gimmicky—no Beer Olympics, no Twisted Teas for Ivies—just beer, short and sweet.
We began our first column at Lion's Pride and so we will end our last one there as well, with just one glass per person (Ivies took a chunk out of our beer funds). No use dealing in anything but the best, thus... Brian had the La Madragore from BFM in Switzerland. Carl had the Gulden Draak from Brouwerij van Steenberge in Ertvelde, Belgium. Will had the Duchesse de Bourgogne from Brouwerij Verhaeghe in Vichte, Belgium.
Ranking these beers (or trying to pronounce them) would not do them justice. They are all too good. The Lion's Pride draught list is deeper than the Yankees' lineup right now, so go check it out for yourself.
The La Madragore provided us with perhaps our most unusual drinking experience of the outing. Ryan from Lion's Pride explained to us that the sourness of this Belgian-style Dark Ale came from the aging process.
The keg on tap is from 2006—good luck finding that anywhere else. It was rich and roasted tasting, almost stout-like in flavor and complexion. We had never before come across a sour beer that looked or tasted like this, and in case you are thinking that sourness would seem undesirable in a beer, we should clarify that Belgian brewers have been brewing sour beers for centuries. Such beers are becoming increasingly popular and accessible in the United States (Allagash, for example, just recently released its first batch) and we recommend you give them a shot.
The Gulden Draak was probably the least unique of the three beers this week, as Belgian Strong Dark Ales are fairly common (think Chimay Grand Reserve, Unibroue La Terrible, and Delirium Nocturnum.)
The Gulden Draak, though, rises head and shoulders above these similarly styled beers. It pours a dark brown color with some hints of red, and it tastes of dark fruits, subtly sweet brown sugar, grain, and spice. Other beers possess these flavors, but few achieve the harmony of Gulden Draak—an enlightened beverage!
The Duchesse de Bourgogne proved itself a highlight among highlights. A Flanders Red Ale, it tastes tart, verging on sour, with pleasant cherry sweetness alongside.
It reminds us of an acidic wine, but well complemented with caramel maltiness. This beer is a sipper, meant for slow enjoyment. Though we drank it slowly, we could have had one glass after the next.
It feels almost fluffy in the mouth. Often we tire of too much of a particularly good, complex beer, but we could drink this one for a long time. If only our wallets would keep pace with our appetites! The Orient still has not offered to cover our expenses/drinking habits.
Overall, we enjoyed the combination of beers tasted for this week's column as much as any we have previously featured. Certainly more of a bang than a whimper.
In closing: seniors, if you have not yet been to Lion's Pride, go before you graduate. Juniors/sophmores/23-year-old freshman hockey recruits, enjoy Lion's Pride to the fullest over your coming years here.
You won't find the Duchesse de Bourgogne, La Madragore, or Gulden Draak on too many draught lists this side of the Atlantic, and you most certainly won't find them all on the same draught list.
We've been fortunate to have Ryan and Leigh down at Lion's Pride guide us through some awesome beer selections over the past year.
Our beer IQ has bumped up more than a few points thanks to their efforts. Drinking beer as good as what they offer at Lion's Pride makes for lasting memories.
Additionally, we would like to thank our fellow drinkers Brian Powers, Garrick Sheldon, John Shennan, Bryce Spalding, and Carl Woock for providing us with good company and good material for the column at various points throughout the semester
It would not have been nearly as much fun to do the column without them.
Over the past semester we have covered good beers and bad beers, international beers and local beers, India Pale Ales and Russian Imperial Stouts.
Hopefully you have gotten a sense for the great diversity of beer out there and have gone out to explore some of it.
Beer culture is flourishing across the country (try as the police might to stifle it here around the College).
Whether you will be back in Maine next year or elsewhere, try to experience local beer culture whenever the opportunity presents itself.
We hope you have enjoyed our column and wish you the happiest of future beer drinking.
The Bowdoin Orient has a promotion in partnership with Bootleggers Beverage Warehouse in Topsham, Maine. This week only, Bowdoin students can receive 10 percent off BFM's La Madragore, Brouwerij van Steenberge's Gulden Draak, and Brouwerij Verhaeghe in Vichte's Duchesse de Bourgogne upon presentation of a Bowdoin ID.