Jolly Pumpkin La Roja

Glad this one didn’t go all Mt. Vesuvious on me. Reddish cloudy color. Light overall with some fruits. Sour and funky but not overly funky. Nice bite and overall nice for me.

75 cl bottle. Pours violently into the glass, orange glowing bronze with a dense offwhite head. Strong sour fruit aroma, cherry and other fruits, hints of vanilla oak, as well as Brettanomyces farmyard. Good sour fruit flavours, mellow vanilla, noticeable alcohol. Soft and full-bodied. Seriously good stuff.

Very fine balance of sweet and sour. This one is very tart, but without the cripsness of some sweeter sours like Duchess. Very complex. Apples and pears dominate among the flavors, the mouthfeel is full bodied though not very filling. The carbonation is lively but it doesn’t fill up your stomach. Very nice brew.

Rating #400!!

My first Jolly Pumpkin gusher. Odd because I bought it a few weeks ago and let it sit in the fridge until tonight. Ah well, I didn’t lose much thankfully. Stunning brown body with red running all the way through. 2 finger thick off white head, fully lasting and leaves tons of coating lacing. Finally fades to a thick layer of foam after quite some time. Nose has huge doses of Brettanomyces, oak barrels, sour cherry pie filling, barnyard and funked up yeast . Very drying at first sip, almost shockingly so. I assume this is all the Brett’s doing. Beyond that is a very crisp dose of cherry, earthy wooden notes, vinegar and sour candy. Midway though a ton of peppery spice comes into play, further enhancing the drying sensation. Apples and other assorted berries show up towards the end, and also a red wine hint is noted. Medium bodied, very drying but ultimately extremely drinkable. Finish is interminably long, with doses in turn of Brett, yeast, cherry, apple, pepper and finally more wood that carries on seemingly forever. A wonderful experience, and one that demands taking your sweet time with.

So I misremembered what i bought and thought I was drinking an American amber. This is more of a Flemish sour, and the Brett nearly flipped me out. Hazy orange, small head, moderate carbonation, a little lace. Looks great. A little funk in the nose which I was not expecting, thinking I was drinking an amber. Works amazingly well with the citrus-zest and citrus juice marinade on my smoked pork ... spice bite to the beer matches the bite on the pork rub, and citrus in the pork complements the orange and lemon tartness of the beer. A successful, if accidental, pairing.

A very nice version of a flemish sour, for beginers. Its all there except its toned down a lot. Very enjoyable and refreshing. First whole bottle of sour i can complete. Im not a big fan of the style so this was excelent for me.

Pours overexcited: sudsy, frothy, and fun with a huge boomy head. Musty nose, slight sour cherry. Slightly thin body but works for the style. Astringent and bone dry. Sour too.

Fiery orange-red colour. Lots of head, from the gushing bottle. Has a clean gooseberry tartness and some grapey notes. Spritzy body carries some dusty yeast character. Has a pleasing fruity depth that salvages the beer from that fizz.