Jolly Pumpkin La Roja

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

Reddish brown pour with very light head (maybe I didn’t pour it well?). Aroma of cherries, wood....almost smells like a light cabernet, call me crazy. Tastes like sour cherries/berries/grapes with a bit of a woody character, probably due to the aging. Interesting beer at the very least, though not something I’d likely seek out at its price of $11/750ML

Clear brown body with a red shine, beige head; The initial aromas are very Belgium sour, behind it it is a little to dirty and wooden; Super fresh balanced slightly sour body; Very long mellow quite lemon peel acidy finish, it never really disappears but simply very slowly dissolves itself , lots of character and a character that I really enjoy, not simple nor easy going, but still very very drinkable.

Pours a reddish amber color with big creamy head. Sour fruit in the aroma, and definitely some sour apple in the flavor. A very unique beer, like nothing I’ve ever had before.

Pours a very cloudy orange colour with a medium off-white head that leaves some spotty lacing. The aroma is enticing and complex, with tart cherries, wood, lemon zest, nougat, barnyard funk, dilute vinegar all overlain with a salty crust. The flavour really displays the spicy, funky belgian yeast stain, tasting sharp, acetic and peppery. The mid palate flavours feature caramel sweetness, sour passion fruits, wood and vanilla, grassy hops, and vinegar, all meaded together to create a bright, refreshing, salty flavour profile. The finish and aftertaste bring fourth flavours of wood, nougat and tart apples that are absent in the intitial flavour. The body is medium in thickness and watery feeling on the palate, with a dry, slightly alcoholic finish.

Pours a cloudy oranger amber with some suspended yeast in it. The head is rather thin and leaves no laceing along the sides of the glass. I dont even have to put my nose to it to get a good aroma. It has some lemon grass and a salty funk, and there is some traces of red wine vinegar. As you sip on the beer it is rather interesting in the fact that it is very bitter on the tip og your tounge. there is also some salty funky along the sides of your mouth. This is a exactly what te style says it is sour. there is not much furit or other herbal flavors in it. Although it is very good since i do enjoy sour stuff.

750 ml bottle. Pours a nearly opaque amber, bordering on brown. Lots and lots of head. It has a sour/funky aroma like other JP beers, with some berry. I’m starting to love that JP scent. A lot of carbonation. Taste has a lot of sour apple, with a bit of malt. Some caramel at the end. Medium mouthfeel. Very nice.

750ml bottle. Blend 11 2007. Served in a Duvel tulip. Poured a hazy amber/brown with a low head. Really nice fruity aroma with some sour cherries and anise. Starts out tart and fruity, but not nearly as sour as the aroma would suggest. Effervescent mouthfeel. There is some woody flavors and vanilla in the finish. Hint of spice. Interesting take on the style.

Dirty-beige, good head, fast gone over dark hazy red-amber beer, with plummeting UFO’s. Brett nose, wet (cherry)wood, cherrystones, and some moorplants (bog myrtle?). Soft, mild, but very present (red) fruit - not necessarily cherries, rather strawberries. Less Brett in the taste, faint (fruity) sourness. Wood especially retronasal - bit of woodstripper and dried fruits. Extremely carbonated without becoming fizzy. Surprisingly light bodied, but not empy. Definitely one of the best tries/batches I’ve had from J.P. A sour ale to challenge the best Belgians. Thanks to CK!