Brewery Vivant Escoffier

Brewed by Brewery Vivant
Style: Sour Ale/Wild Ale
Grand Rapids, Michigan USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip, Tumbler

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16 oz. can. Orangish amber pour with a small off white head. Aroma of strong beligan yeast, apricot, cherry, caramel. I get some dust, some basement aromas, mild overripe fruit. Flavor is fruity, lots of dust and strong funk. Quite dry, with plenty of dried fruit undertones. Funkiness develops towards the finish, with moderate over ripe fruit. Interesting.

Big can. Pour is a fairly clear orange with lots of sudsy head that dies down to a thin film fairly quickly. Aromas have a thick apple edge to them with a little bit of white pepper and some faint funk. Flavor is similar to the nose. Lots of fruit (although it is more white grape juice than apple here), a little spice and just a hint of funk. The Brett presence is a kind of tingly pepperiness that adds nicely to the beer, but the sweetness of the fruit profile is nearly cloying. I have three cans left, and they will be aging for a long time.

Tap at CK. Pours a clear lighter orange. No head. Nose is acetic, some red wine, paper, pepper. Taste is not acetic, more aerated, spritzy, lightly sour and funky. Minerally. Palate is lightly bitter, herbal, minerally and spicy Brett character. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Poured with a golden hue. Smelled of ketchup. Lots of Carbonation, Tasted of citrus and had a bitter grapefruit finish. Also had some sweetness. Not as sour as I had hoped.

Copper with modest, creamy off-white head / Mild, sweet, stylish nose of cherry, oak, spun sugar, and light oak / Medium body, some woody astringency, a touch thin, / Flavors of oak, cherry, toast, and resin / Lacking in sufficient fruit and any real brett character.

Draft. Clear amber body, small beige head. Aroma is medium sweet, some cherry/sour, funk, light spicy. Taste is moderately sweet, cherry/Brett, some funk, light alcohol warming. Medium-full body, low carbonation.

1 pint can. Good drinking here. Earth and funk are prominent in this solid collaboration. Pours with a thin layer of starch white head, and bold, opaque, burnt orange. Aroma is of earth, barnyard, bread, caramel, and mild citrus. A good, hazy, funky nose. The palate is quite wet, decently carbonated, with prominent funk, as the other notes come off slightly muddled. Cheese, wood, bread, sour berry, pears, and more funk. Overall, I enjoyed. This is close to being great.

Draft. Clear deep golden color, white edge head. Aroma of lemon peel. Taste is softly sour, sourdough bread and citrus.

16 ounce can into tulip glass, no canning date, but probably August 2012. Pours fairly crystal clear golden orange color with a good 1-2 finger fluffy off white head with decent retention, that reduces to a ring of lace. Minimal spotty lacing on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of tart apple, pear, grape, apricot, grass, herbal, bread, earth, clove, honey, funk, and light yeast spiciness. Very nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity. Taste of tart apple, pear, grape, bread, grass, earth, clove, toast, honey, banana, light funk, and yeast spiciness. Fair amount of earthy tartness on the finish; with lingering notes of light fruit, bread, toast, grass, clove, banana, earth, and yeast spiciness on the finish for a good bit. Nice balance and complexity of flavors; fair amount of tartness that showcases a good amount of sweetness complexity; zero cloying sweetness present after the finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a fairly slick and crisp mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a small warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a very nice Belgian style wild ale. Nice flavor balance and complexity; and quite smooth to sip on. A very enjoyable offering.

Appearance is a slightly darker red than expected. Aroma, taste and feel are all very light, great for warmer weather drinking. Light on the floral Belgian smells and not overpowering.