Cresent Moon's New Belgium Tasting

It was a great night at Max and Joe’s (Crescent Moon’s Belgium bar/party room) last night. Eric Salazar (brewer) and his wife Lauren (quality control) from New Belgium were on hand to provide excellent information on the beers they were serving.

Eric and Lauren with the Omaha New Belgium rep in the middle (can't remember his name, but hopefuly Matt will add it as a comment).


Lauren’s great personality gave her the ability to keep everyone’s attention throughout the night. Although, as one would expect, it became harder at the end after the crowd had consumed all those wonderful beers. Eric stepped in a few times to give details on the brewing and fermentation process, and also answered questions from the beer geek table (Todd Wyatt, Matt Dinges, and myself).

I want to thank Eric and Lauren for making the trip to Omaha. We really appreciate them coming over. They made it a great experience by providing details we would have not known otherwise, and taking the time to personally speak with us.

Here’s a rundown of the beers we had, the order they were served, and my take on them:

1. Mothership Wit (Organic)

Big citrus nose with orange and lemon notes, and some spice. Cloudy with a very pale color. Lots of coriander flavor with a good spice bite.

2. 1554 Brussels Style Black Ale

As confirmed by Eric, I had heard form a tour guide at the brewery several years ago, this is actually a lager. In order to sell in states like Texas, they need to market it as an ale since Texas does not allow lagers with a ABV higher than 5%. He also informed me they use Target hops for bittering and that’s it...no aroma hops.

Light roast aroma with a clean smell. Dark brown to amber color with a thin head. Lots of chocolate flavor with a good roast balance.

3. 2 Below

Wonderful hop aroma with some citrus and a mild spice. Gold to orange in color with a big head a first that thins out after a short time. Complex flavors...sweet, malty, bitter (from hops and other flavors). Long finish and good mouthfeel.

4. La Folie

Big and bold acidic aroma with a slightly sweet note. Red to golden color with no head. Acidic and sour. Remains on the tongue long after it has gone down.

5. La Folie Falling Rock Edition

Not as acidic smelling as regular La Folie. Cloudier and headier too...but may have been the pour. Similar in taste, but a little more sour.

6. Eric’s Ale

This was Eric’s own recipe that he got to brew as a result of him winning the Lips of Faith contest. This is a contest open to everyone at the brewery. They are allowed to brew any kind of beer they want. I believe this was one of the only recipes the brewery actually considered serving to the public.

It’s a pale base with barley, wheat, and oats that is soured in barrels. There is peach concentrate added during fermentation, plus I think he mentioned cherries during the boil. There are other details he provided that I cannot quite remember. Hopefully Eric will comment if I have misstated the above, since I gave him our blog address.

Bready, yeasty, and sour aroma. Golden color with no head. Tastes similar to 2 Below but acidic and sour with a hint of peach. Perfect sour finish on the tongue.

7. Le Terroir

Hoppy and acidic aroma. Golden and cloudy with a thin white head. Sour at first, then mellows out with sweet fruit flavors. Finishes with a sweet and sour taste.