You think this is easy? You think being a beer reviewer is easy? It’s not. Just ask my liver. And then there are the hangovers. We won’t even go there. If those things were not bad enough, you get that occasional rare beer with precious little information available, even on the internet. Usually, with some hard sleuthing, you can find something. But it’s not easy.
Take Burgkopf Beer Kriek Ale With Cherry, for example. On the label, it’s called a Belgian style Ale with Cherry Juice. Let’s see what else we can find there. Brewed and canned in Lithuania. Producer: UAB “Kauen craft”….Kaunas, Lithuania. There’s more. Imported by Blue Spring Imports, www.spiritgroups.com.
The latter seemed a promising lead, so I went there, but not much to be found on Burgkopf Kriek. They do mention the Burgkopf Pils, but not the Kriek. OK. Binging “UAB Kauen craft got me to their website: https://kauencraft.lt/. They have a line of beers bearing a striking resemblance to Burgkopf under the Gurmans brand. One of those is GURMANS” vyšnių kriek.
Bing translates the details on that beer to the following:
"Gurmans" Cherry Kriek. Special technology in Beer alk. 5.0% Vol., 0, 5l
Cherry Kriek "Gurmans" is produced from barley and wheat malt;
The product contains 15.4% cherry juice;
14% Plato of dry matter.
Color 21 EBC.
Bitterness 20 IBU
My can of Burgkopf Kriek also states it has an alcohol content of 5% by volume. It was a bargain at $6.98 for a 4-pack of 16-ounce cans. It’s not really a Kriek, more like a cherry wheat beer.
Burgkopf Beer Kriek Ale With Cherry pours to a deep ruby color with a thin head formation on a vigorous pour and a faint cherry nose. Taking a sip, the beer has a light maltiness with lighter wheat notes. A bright but restrained cherry fruit character emerges with perhaps a touch of almond but there’s not much Belgian character here. The beer finishes balanced to perhaps just a tad sweet. A refreshing enough fruit beer for me and you can’t argue with the price. Just in time for the hot summer months.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled, canned
(D)=Draft
(G)=Growler