Jolly Pumpkin La Roja

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

Bottle from Butters. Smells a little sour. Tastes sour with some caramel and oak flavors. Flavor is not too good, really enjoy the finish.

Cloudy amber body with a soft white head - Sweet and malty, huge tart component of cherry and, maybe apple, and a sour wood hint. Yeasty with a noticeable spice presence. The caramel malt is really present in heavy doses - with an near-bready quality - especially on the finish, where is is soft and soothing. My first Jolly Pumpkin ale - truly a work of art - a superb and unique drink.

Pours hazy brown with a big head. Big sour nose contains notes of lemon, hay, burlap, cobwebs, and apple skins. Flavor is very reflective of the aroma with a slight licorice note hidden beneath the aroma players. Some slight alcohol evident at the end, with a long dry finish. Very good, more balanced than many sour ales I’ve enjoyed.

Appearance: Hazy orange with a touch of red. Light off-white caramel colored head. Not a very strong head; maybe one-and-a-half fingers at most. Smell: I get a ton of tart cherries, granny smith apple, a little raspberry jam, and some yeast. As it warms, it presents some more intense aromas of humid cave, grape bubblegum, and even the smallest amount of caramel. Taste: You really get the tart flavors right off the bat here. Apples; tart cherries; lots of lemon juice; (again) little caramel; not much alcohol. Palate: Tart and refreshing, very acidic with a round mouth feel. The flavors hit your mouth way up front and are sort of an afterthought once they’ve gone down. La Roja is as effervescent as champagne. Overall: For being so tart, this one really rounds out nicely with the fruit components. There is a perfect amount of carbonation and a fair amount of lacing. This style of beer reminds me a lot of a lambic, but there is a deeper flavor profile and much more vibrant aromas in this style than the lambic. Overall, La Roja tastes like a Belgian Ale that has been soured beyond belief. It’s not for just anyone, but I rather enjoyed it. (Blend 1, 2008)

Thursday the 11th of September 2008 The Woodlands LaQuinta Inns 8:36pm La Roja - Blend 10 edition 2007 ... Dry and delicuous ... dark gold, pure gold, enjoyment...hurricane ike sucks!

Ahhh, I have had this beer more than any other JP brew. I have been trying different versions since the first oval labels appeared in NY (about 3 years ago). Its been up and down but it has really hit its stride here. I used to find that batches were not so good fresh but also not so good with too much time on it. So there was just a nice peak time in the middle. However, I think the batches of the more recent stuff aren’t limited this way. This is Blend 11, 2007, bottled on 12/14/07. Probably fridged the whole time, bought it at a store. It pours a clear cola brown color with a small head that leads to a long lasting lacing. Aroma is the best part of this beer, right away there is an authentic Flanders sour, aceto aroma. It is stingy aceto, with a bit of armpit sourness, and a thin balsamic vinegar. There is an authentic cherry-like aspect as well. The great part of the beer is it is actually does not have the traditional JP character and really comes off as a Flanders sour brew. I can keep smelling this for a while. Taste is playing with these aspects as well. It’s definitely less sour but that authentic cherry-like, faintly balsamic, Flanders sour aspect. Its a bit thinner n the flavor then I would like. There is a hint of sweetness at the back end. The mouthfeel is average, the carbonation is a bit subdued. The bottom of the bottle creates a thicker head, a thicker body, and lead shaving-like floaties. Its a bit, just faintly cheek tingling and dry. This is my fav regular offering.

Dark brown colored with hazy appearance. Medium sized yellow head. Interesting wooden cherry vanilla aroma, some sweet raisins also here. Medium bodied. Flavor is drier with cherry notes still, some wooden notes also here. Aftertaste is still strongly sour. Ok one, still somehow one dimensional.

Bottle. Tiny bit of a gusher. Pours an almost opaque brownish color with a large beige head that falls off at a healthy pace leaving a little bit of lacing on the sides. Aroma is wine cork funk, heather, sour cherry, yeast. Body is a little thin, and has a light sweetness. Finishes with a gentle sour that lingers nicely. Very subtle beer, and while I wouldn’t mind if it was a bit more brash and assertive, it’s still quite nice.