Comparison
Oud Bruin vs Kettle sour
What is the difference between Oud Bruin and Kettle sour?
The short answer
The main difference is malt intensity: Oud Bruin has far more of it than Kettle sour. Oud Bruin also leads on yeast fruitiness (esters) and caramel & toffee; Kettle sour on dryness.
Generated from the two style records. No editor has written this comparison up, so it carries no verdict beyond what the data supports.
Where they overlap
They share comparable acidity, sweetness, overlapping strength ranges, the same style family — the boundary between them is narrower than the comparison suggests.
Side by side
| Oud Bruin | Kettle sour | |
|---|---|---|
| Family | Sour & wild | Sour & wild |
| Fermentation | Mixed fermentation | Mixed fermentation |
| Origin | Belgium | United States |
| Category status — One of these is a more settled category than the other, which is worth knowing before treating the comparison as exact. | Established | Commercial category |
| Strength | 4–8% ABV | 3.5–6% ABV |
| Bitterness (IBU) — IBU measures iso-alpha acids in the lab. It does not track perceived bitterness, which residual sweetness, body and roast all alter — compare the sensory rows below for how each actually tastes. | 20–25 IBU | 2–10 IBU |
| Colour | Deep reddish brown to dark brown — 15–22 SRM, 30–43 EBC | Straw to fruit-derived colour — 3–20 SRM, 6–39 EBC |
| Original gravity | 1.040–1.074 | 1.036–1.055 |
| Final gravity | 1.008–1.012 | 1.004–1.012 |
| Serving temperature | 9–12°C | 4–8°C |
| Carbonation | 2–3 vol CO₂ | 2–3 vol CO₂ |
| Glassware | Goblet | Tulip glass |
| Clarity | clear | hazy |
How they taste different
| Character | Oud Bruin | Kettle sour |
|---|---|---|
| Malt intensity | Moderate | Not characteristic |
| Dryness | Not characteristic | Moderate |
| Yeast fruitiness (esters) | Moderate | Not characteristic |
| Caramel & toffee | Moderate | Not characteristic |
| Berry | Not characteristic | Low–High |
| Bitterness | Trace–Low | None |
| Tropical fruit | Not characteristic | Trace–Moderate |
| Funk | Trace–Low | None |
| Body | Moderate | Trace–Low |
| Chocolate & cocoa | Trace–Low | Not characteristic |
Which should you choose?
- You want more malt intensity → Oud Bruin
- You want more dryness → Kettle sour
Derived from where the two actually differ. Neither is better — this is a question of which difference you want.