Jolly Pumpkin La Roja

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

This one was my fourth Jolly Pumpkin beer and I was looking forward to it. The beer was a dark red-amber in color with a small white head. The smell was a little funky. The taste was very sour and tart. This one seemed almost the same as the Biere De Mars but without the nice fruity flavors. The mouthfeel was nice on this beer just like all the JP beers I’ve had. They definitely have the carbonation down. If I make a repeat purchase of a JP it is going to be the Oro or the Biere De Mars. This one fell a little short. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 06-07-2007 15:10:40

Blend 13-2008. Cloudy brown/amber beer with well distributed white foam. Brett mostly noticeable in aroma. Clean, light taste profile with slight citrus hop notes.

Pours a deep red with a good head and wonderful lace. The aroma is a little barnyard funky with some wood tones, some light spiciness and some light fruity tones. The flavor starts off with a sour on bitter kind of lemon rind flavor. The sourness is in no way overpowering but very prominent none the less. The flavor is funky with a raw woodiness and a distinct earthiness. Delicious.

This style is so interesting and diverse. The beer is just so funky and sour it’s hard to describe. Very complex in all areas. Just damn good.

A terrific, refreshing, and interesting sour ale. One of my favorite sours to date actually. A reddish tinged dark beer with sour cherry and "funk" aroma, but smells wondefully balanced, and not overpowering on the sour side. Spicy and complex, with a very smooth, refreshing taste...a bit smokey, presumably from the barrell aging. Nice sweetness to balance it all out. Will definitely get this one again and again.

Thanks to OleR for sharing a bottle. Pours dark reddish orange with a small offwhite head. Aroma is very acidic, spicy, fruity and vinegar. Flavour brings the expected sourness from the nose back, along with a complex mix of earthy and citrus notes, berries, spices, vague liquorice, wood and funky notes. Sparkly and fresh, very enjoyable.

Poured a medium red with a thin off white head. Nose was acidic, bright, fruity, slight chardonnay scents. Taste is citrus, tart strawberry, funky, vinegar, slight horse blanket. A dangerously drinkable sour.

750 mL bottle from Sam’s Quik Shop (Blend #8, 2007; bottled August 14, 2007). Brownish-red pour with a fizzy off-white head. Wonderful sour cherry, tart aroma. Big, bold sour flavor of lemon, cherry, blended with some oak; just spectacular. I’ve had this before and don’t remember it being this good. Maybe this is a great batch, maybe it benefitted from being cellared for 2 years. At any rate this is wonderful.