Just got back from a morning filled with great beer and hospitality! This weekend is Wilder Fest fest here in Amsterdam and I booked the Nevel session to get more familiar with their beers and processes.

We tasted through 6 beers, 1 was a little too bitter for my taste but the other 5 were exceptional. My favorites were Rust, a BA Wild Ale that had big yuzu and other citrus notes, and Tumult Dark Wild Ale that very much reminded of a roasty Oud Bruin.
Something I’ve thought for a while but was confirmed today is that, for my taste, some of the beers need a bit of age; astringent bitters mellow and yeast (sacch or brett) derived flavours become bigger. The Tumult we tasted was a great example of this as it came from an older keg.

I was also impressed by Mattias’ ability to explain their beers in clear language without hiding behind buzz words, a rare skill today.

Also the team at In De Wildeman was highly attentive and friendly. I’ve been meaning to stop by more often, but if they put the pottekaas served today on the menu I’ll become a regular in no time.