Heritage Black Currant Rye Lager

Sweet fruits and hops to the nose, seemed very promising. Poured a nice reddish brown with little to no head yet still managed to leave behind good lacing. Flavour reminded me of an organic beer I had once not that long ago. Sweet berries (of course), rich malt, hops and astringent aftertaste. Mouthfeel was watery. On the whole, this was a refreshing beverage, but not a personal fav.

Juice? concentrate? Nice head, grows on you. Bittersweet overall. I think not the real thing, and a lager. Volo Cask Days. Colour for some points. Some rye, but not prominent.

deep red colour with mahogany highlights. Aroma reminds me of ginger ale - spicy and sweet. Not so much black currant in the aroma. Flavour is very sweet berry flavour balanced with a spiciness from the rye. Pours with little head though it leaves a nice belgian lace on the glass. tastes somewhat like mixing ribena and a coup de grisou. Well balanced between beer character and berry flavour although definitely leans more towards the black currant. Overall not a bad beer but finishes too sweet for my taste - especially in a quart bottle.

Clear amber w/ creamy, light beige foam. Aroma of wet cardboard & sweet berries. Light, syrupy feel. Sweet, artificial fruit flavour w/ notes of spoiled milk. Ugh!

Bottle. Ruby-pink tinged brown body with a small beige head, decent lacing. Fruity, currant - hint of syrupy not quite cough syrupy sweet notes. Fairly bland malt sweetness in the middle, very light fruit lingers very mildly. Average palate. Not great, but I think this one probably depends greatly on how much you like the flavour of currants.

650 ml bottle courtesy of Tupalev... thanks. Deep copper colour beer with a thick fast-fading off-white head. Sweet fruity aroma, blackcurrent along with some faint tart sourness. As the temperature comes up a bit there are some soft toast/biscuit malt notes. On the taste... gak! Very sweet and sugary, with a hint of light fruit. Some dirty higher alcohols and vegetables mix with an astringent soapy finish. Rapidly becomes cloyingly sweet. Pretty rough.

Solstice Series 2005. First bottle tasted in trade from Tupalev. A little sticky around the cap bot the bottled sounded good when it opened and it poured with a nice lasting foam. Copper coloured. Looks very good for a fruit beer. Aroma of an empty can. Tart but too sweet is the first taste impression. Somehow has a pickle juice quality. Not too tasty; a complicated mixture that has no joy.

Bottle: Poured a deep reddish color ale with a medium off-white head with minimal retention. Aroma of black currant chemically reproduced syrup. Taste is also dominated by this syrup with a weird mix of malt (rye?). Body is thin and carbonation is very low. A new low for this brewery?