Jolly Pumpkin La Roja Grand Reserve

Brewed by Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Style: Sour Ale/Wild Ale
Dexter, Michigan USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip, Tumbler

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   add pic

Bottle that moejuck/baldwizard gave me for graduating pharmacy school. Who gives away their favorite overall beer as a gift, only Joe. Thanks again. I had this at a tasting a long time ago and never rated it. Pours a beautiful deep red with some brown hues and a very light carbonation. Aroma is very sharp and acidic with some of the oak coming through. Flavor is mind blowingly good. Very acetic but still delicious. One of my favorite american sours.

Bottle via Mike, thanks again for this! Pours a deep amber with no head. Faint bubbles on the second glass with a very aggressive pour. Aroma is mild with funk and like vanilla/bourbon character. Taste is very tart up front, lemon, funk and then leaves the palate with light bourbon and vanilla notes, very faint. Overall, a nice sour but was honestly expecting more from this with the bourbon aging and Jolly Pumpkins track record.

Bottle at a tasting at James’ place courtesy of James and his giant cellar. Pours a hazed brown with ruby and copper highlights under a thin white head. A bit of the ol’ Jolly Pumpkin funk, a touch of acetone. Medium bodied, funky, a good amount of lemony acid. Long funkiness, more sour acid, fruity notes, and more nutty acetone. Good, but a bit heavy handed on the acetone.

Bottle. Pours dark brown. Nose/taste of tart cherry vinegar, old cheese, wood and soured dark fruits. Finishes very acidic. Medium body.

Bottle with friends including James who shared this sour concoction. Red tinted brown pour. Very cloudy. Not much head or lacing to note. Aromas of wood, cheese, sour cherries, cinnamon, onions. Taste was the same with some great oaky notes coming through. So much more full flavored and complex then regular la roja. Refreshing and easy.

(Bottle from Rayl101!) Pours clear amber color with no head. Aroma is pit fruit, cherries, and oak. Taste is sweet and tart. Thinner bodied with a dry finish. Easy drinking considering the abv.

Bottle split with pat, Dallas and vin. Pours a deep brown hazy amber body with light off white lacing. Aroma is funky wood, sour cherry, tart fruit. Mouthfeel is medium with notes of sweet cherries, wood, sour tartness, and bourbon.

Bottle. Split amongst James, Dallas, and Vinnie. Courtesy of Vinnie. Aroma of funky oak, some savory, dank cheese and some crazy tart cherry notes. Tastes like mellow vanilla, oak, dark sour cherries, and mouth-drying balsamic vinegar in the finish. This is excellent. Very restrained and complex, yet mellow and not remotely agressive. Tart up front but fades to a smooth, dry ending. Great beer. Adds a wrinkle into the complexity of La Roja.

Bottle with pat James and Vinny. Pours a nice brown. Slight head. Smell is nice sourness with some slight cherry fruit. Taste is tart, not really funky, and very mellow. Big vanilla flavor from the oak. Not bad.

From notes. First reviewed 1/7/2012. Poured from a 330 mL bottle into a snifter. Thanks to bauermj for bringing this over. This has almost no head from light carbonation and a bright copper color with transparent edges. The aroma is very sour and scorches the nose a little bit. Toasted bread and caramel malt fade behind a soft funky presence with a nice sour cider aroma. The flavor is sour more than anything. Lemon citrus fronts light toasted bread and a bit of caramel malt. Some cherry in the background. It is sour all the way through. This is lighter, more dry, and flatter than the regular La Roja I have had. I can’t quite decide if I like this better than an aged La Roja or not. It is more sour and lighter bodied than the regular.

Batch 48. The beer is a murky dark amber color with minimal head formation. As expected, quite a bit of vinegar. Sort of a blend of balsamic and red wine vinegars. A bit of toffee sweetness and perhaps a hint of acetone. A nice oakiness and mild vanilla. Not much fruit on the nose. The intensity of the vinegar is equal to the aroma. A decent amount of cherry and red grape flavor with a nice wine note. A hint of vanilla along with some tannic oak. Nice flavors, but the acetic quality makes it a bit tough to drink.