3.6 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 15/20Sampled lightly chilled, December 2004
Pours a hazy amber color, and is topped by a frothy full tan head. As I pour I get hints of apricot, orange, dust, and musty wood. Interesting enough to go in for a deeper contemplative smell. Hmm, this one smells wild and musty, almost has the aroma of a beer that has been in a corked bottle for a while, though this hasn’t. I get fleeting spicy notes that are perhaps reminiscent of grains of paradise, ginger, clove, which then moves into malty notes mixed with musty wood notes. Quite an interesting mix of aromas, I am not quite to sure if the taste is going to be good or bad, it depends on which notes come through the most.
Ok, the taste, it is soft and lightly sweet up front, and then moves to a tangy, orange-like middle, then finishes with some astringency. Definitely an interesting beer. This beer is rich with a healthy dose of malt notes that are full of caramel, biscuits, and crusty French bread. The malt mixes with spicy notes of pepper, ginger, clove, and orange peel. There is a musty tartness to this beer that, though not overwhelming, certainly contributes to this beer. This beer finishes with a slightly hot, astringent finish that I am not quite able to pinpoint.
Ultimately, I think that this beer is a little out of wack, it is sort of in the gray zone between conventionally fermented single yeast strain fermented beers, infected beers, and beers that are fermented purposefully with wild, yet house derived character. This beer needs to decide which way it wants to go, and I would certainly be in favor of it going fully funky, if it can be kept in balance. Right now it is certainly interesting, certainly drinkable, and even enjoyable, but it seems a bit muddled by various competing fermentation by products. I could see a bottle of this beer being laid down for a year or two and becoming quite stellar, if not intriguingly different. While I am being quite critical here, this is a beer that I am quite enjoying, and I will look forward to procuring some more bottles of this beer. Cheers to Jolly Pumpkin for pushing the boundaries in the middle of America, and cheers to my personal Santa who delivered this treat to my doorstep.
3.5 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 2/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottle from Bruisin Ales. Blend 10. Pours brown with a half inch of khaki foam. Leaves lacing, sticky lacing. Definitely get he sour notes on the nose. Mouthfeel is a tad thin. Nice vanilla, oak, and fruit flavors which are nicely balanced but the sourness. Has a bit of an aftertaste. Other than the disappointing finsih, it’s a pretty good beer.
2.6 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 5/10 PALATE 2/5 OVERALL 8/20
Slightly cloudy orange brown. Smells of nutmeg brown sugar and yeast. Tastes aggresively sour and like a dusty basement. Doesn’t taste like pumpkin at all too acidic.
4.1 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Blend 11 is an excellent batch. Have tried some of the newer blends and they are just not the same.
---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone
3.7 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottled July 1, 2011, Blend 11.
Appearance: The body is clear with a garnet to mahogany tinge. The head is moderate in height with good retention. The head settles into a creamy light tan coating.
Aroma: The aroma is fruity with tart cherries and light vinegar notes. This is very wine-like in the aroma.
Taste: The first sip has a strong tart that caused me to pucker slightly and certainly woke up my tastebuds. On proceeding sips there’s a lot of fruit on the intro, cherries come to mind, with a mild to moderate tart. The tart becomes a bit more sour with vinegar notes and a dry oak on the finish.
Palate: Light to medium bodied with light to medium carbonation.
Overall: This is certainly a less approachable sour than Duchess, but it’s certainly mild in comparison to others. This is approachable, but certainly not for beginners.
3.8 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 16/20
Bottle at 16 Tons, Eugene. Blend 22, bottled 2011.12.12 Pours a deep reddish brown, little head. Sweetness, caramel, candy sugar, tartness, lacto dominate aroma. Body surprisingly not terribly lively, and just a bit of tartness. Finish is subtle, barrels definitely make themselves known. Nice, but not jaw-droppingly so.
3.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Bomber bottle share... Thanks, Donny. Aroma is a bretty sour. The appearance is a murky, lighter brown with a creamy head. The taste is sour, but different than normal, almost like the sourness was dialed back. This beer tastes a little darker than most sours I have had in the past. The palate is sour, but alright. Overall, a great beer. Would buy if I ever got the chance.
3.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Dark red colour. Sour caramel aroma. Taste is sweet, sour, fruity. tart.
3.9 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
(Bottle) The aroma is sweet, floral and spicy with a hint of brown sugar. The taste is round, sweet and fruity, including the taste of strawberries. The aftertaste is good and tangy with a slight tone of yeast. Very special!
4.4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 18/20
Pours deep ruby red. Lacto nose with sour cherries, palate starts with tart black cherries, white grapes, oak and a nice tart raspberry finish. Perfectly rounded and balanced. A perfect start into the world of proper sours.
3.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Shared between a few of us, this was a nice little dose of sourness, pour darky cloudy red, fruity aroma, crisp sourness, good beer indeed.
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