Lagunitas Sonoma Farmhouse Gueuze

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: Sour Ale/Wild Ale
Petaluma, California USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip, Tumbler

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Draft on tap at The Map Room (Chicago, IL). A pleasant surprise to find on tap in the city. Pours a rich muddy brownish hue, gentle touches of orange and ruby glow, very hazy, with a frothy offwhite head atop that settles to a foamy layer, laces ok. Aromas are a melange of Farmhouse yeast and sour and tart fruits. Firm pear and crab apple, gentle cherry, wet oak, and mellow farmhouse yeast. Some bretty dryness, hay, and some mellow sticky malts. Lactic elements play well on the nose, a fairly vibrant nose, an ugly pour. Initial is sweet and fruity up front, banana and pears meet a firm lactic quality, tons of yogurt, Belgian yeast create that telltale honey fruit sweetness. Gentle oak, into the middle picks up a touch of girth, some prickly dry brett and oak, gentle cherry, vanilla smooth front end trails into a more dry and wild bretty backend. Dry and firm, a touch hot and perhaps winey tannins giving a kiss on the back. The nose is rich and very fruity tailing into a more wild backend offering. An odd one, but interesting. The finish redeems it a bit more but still leaves it a touch hot, distinct Belgian yeast elements on the nose and up front sweeten this up. Not bad, glad to have a chance to try it. It’s blended well, perhaps getting away from a sour front (something I’d prefer a bit more). I wonder how strong this is in the ABV department because even for the style you can start to feel it into the finish and as you consume more. Not bad.

12oz pour at Maproom Sunday. poured brownish with a near white head. aroma and flavor were cherry, wine, and oak. body had a nice dry finish.

Tap at Lagunitas. Slightly murky orange-amber pour with a thin white head. Sour cherry, Brett, wheat, and a bit of pineapple. Delicious.

11oz glass at brewpub. Good aroma tart. Funk. Green apple, pineapple, decent yeastiness about it. Tad hazed brownish orange. No head, minor lace. Tart flavor, lite body, oily mouthfeel, tart finish. Considering the source, I’m impressed, thought for.sure it would be hoppy, fairly well executed. Good funk in aroma, nice tart.flavor.

Draft at brewpub. Pour is golden with a small white head. Aroma and flavor loaded with barrel and fruit notes along with hints of hop, Belgian spice, pineapple, and a touch of Bret. Not what I expected. Not tartness more fruit and spice. Interesting. Bubblegum.

In short: A strange no-style sweet, woody and barnyard amber ale. Meh
How: Tap at Rattle ’N’ Hum, NY
The look: Clear amber body topped by a beige ring of foam
In long: Nose is a bit barnyard, old wood barrels. Taste is a bit strange. Strong spicy sensation, vinous notes, barnyard, lots of wood, candies, fruits, lots of metal/rust, some acidity, brown sugar, leafy hops. Sweetness clashes with the rest of the beer. Basically I thought this beer was here and there and lacked a direction. Not much of a Sour/Wild ale (current ratebeer style) but I don’t think it fits in any category. More an strange experiment that didn’t turn out very well. Not sure what the Gueuze is doing in the beer name, because as a Gueuze this beer is as fake as these: ( * ) ( * )

On tap at Rattle n Hum, NYC. Was not expecting to see this style from Lagunitas, regardless of its provenance. Cloudy deep gold pour with pink grapefruit hues at the edges perhaps. Medium carbonation and a nice full mouthfeel, not too acetic on the finish. Lemon, mild tannins, funk and yeast in the flavors, certainly comes across more like a wild than a gueuze but it was fairly well rendered whatever you call it. Good to see Lag branching out.

Tap at Redlight or Sourfest. Dark gold pour, very clear with a thick white head. Musty earthy hop aroma with a hint of sour tart lemon. Smooth crisp malt with a nice earthy hop bite in the taste. With a little warming, resiny citrus hops and lemon tartness start to poke through in the flavor as well. Damn good brew.

On tap at Rattle n Hum. Poured a clear light amber with a white head that dissipated quickly to the edges. Aroma had a bit of funk, some sour fruits and a bit of grassy and pine hops. Flavor was similar with slight sourness and funkiness but a bit too much hopines in a gueuze for me.

Fruity, sweet, mild tart nose. Flavor carries that thru with the sweet fruit making it almost soda po like in flavor. Quite refreshing and makes you ready to brave the hot streets of NYC again. Solid but coulda used more funk, yo.