While saison originates from Wallonia, the Flanders region, as one could expect, offers Flemish beers. The BJCP divides them into Flanders Red Ale and Oud Bruin. The former originates from the western part of the region, and the latter from the eastern part. However, the division is not as simple as it may seem. The beers are quite similar. Representatives of the style referred to as Red Ale by the BJCP should be more reddish in colour, while Oud Bruin should be rather brownish. In reality it differs greatly. Many original examples of Flemish beers, irrespective of their colour, are simply called Oud Bruin collectively, which means “the Old Brown”. It is old not only because the tradition dates back to the Middle Ages, but also because the beer is aged, i.e. matured in barrels. According to some sources, the red version is only a variation on the Oud Bruin style. The Flanders Red Ale name tends to be used more by breweries outside Belgium.
