Malheur Bière Brut (Reserve)

750ml bottle, 2006 Michael Jackson limited edition (with extra Saaz hops). pours hazy golden with billowing white head. nose is spicy, yeasty, pear, and some leathery hop notes. flavor is sweet and boozy at first, peppery, sweet pear, leathery hop profile, and this dries out a bit towards the end. the feels a bit watery with a lively carbonation. tasty stuff but not worth the price.

2006 Michael Jackson limited editon 750 ml bottle thanks to drewbeerme for this sample that we put next to the Brut Noir. Tall fluffy white head that collapses on top of a hazy straw colored beer. The yeast and citrus grain nose remind me of a crisp belgian ale, but I’m quickly surprised when i taste it. Sweet belgian sugars, grain, pale malts, caramel, floral hops, and alcohol. Finishes dry with a hay funkiness. Decent but that alcohol is a little too much.

Bottle from the First Houston Tasting
Pours a cloudy, thin yellow with an aroma of zesty lemon champagne (sparkling wine if you wanna get technical). Flavor is fluffy dough with a slight coriander finish. Full mouthfeel. Not worth the price, but a good beer nonetheless.

I was really impressed with this one, and less so with the dark brut. Hazy yellow with a large white head. Sharp citrus pith in the aroma. Relatively dry. Apricot. A bit spicy. Straw malt.

Appearance: Pours a hazy, highly effervescent, pale yellow body with a large, fizzy white head. Smell: Pils malt with sweetish notes of flowers, lemon, peach, and spice with a subtle yeastiness. Taste: Pils maltiness and a soft, juicy fruitiness with a candi sugar sweetness. Subtle doughy yeast. A pinch of peppery spiciness crosses the tongue. Very light floral hoppiness and a perky acidity on the finish. Mouthfeel: Delicate, medium-thin body. Well carbonated. Drinkability: A refined, elegant drink not sullied one single bit by the fact that is was served alongside pork rinds.

750ml bottle. Soupy apricot murk heaped with alpine froth and misty with detritus. Woodsy dry aroma with touches of orange and clove. Smooth and dry at the ABV- drinks like a fruity Blonde of 6-7%. Hysterically spritzy like a dry champagne. Zesty white grapiness and creamy malt becoming bitterly boozy as it warms. Spritzy, easy-drinking, politely fruity strong ale, but was expecting a more assertive character from the use of champagne yeast.

750 ml bottle shared at Houston Beer Tasting. Very light cloudy yellow with thick, fluffy white head which dissipated slowly. Yeast and spice in the nose. This one smelled skunky to me. Taste is bready yeast with some citrus. Not quite good.

From a 750mL Bottle, Expiration Date 1/1/09. Purchased at Hi Times Wine Cellar 11/8/07. I gently chilled this down to 40F a few days before opening, but even after a careful decant, I still ended up with a mostly hazy, golden straw colored beer. An enormous head of tight bubbled, fizzy white rests on top. A tremendous pop resounded after un-corking, sending a vigorous shimmer of bubbles up from the bottom of the bottom, nearly gushing, which may have contributed to stirring up the small amount of yeast sediment that had collected in the bottom of the bottle. Lightly spicy phenols reach my nose, suggesting notes of white pepper, lime zest, doughy malt, and a freshy saaz hop herbalness. Clean apple rinds and dry honey. There’s even a distinct CO2 "aroma" coming from my glass; the high level of carbonation gives it this "club-soda" like nose. Medium light bodied, fizzy, sizzling mouthfeel. Incredibly light bodied for the ABV. Awesome pilsner malt flavor up front on the palate - gentle bready sweetness. It develops more of a spicy, graham cracker like chewiness mid palate, as the heft of the beer begins to become apparent and some of the spicy phenolic characters start to reveal themselves to the tongue. Toward the back end of the palate, some gentle raisin and pear fruits start to come out, but the dryness of the finish keeps them from lingering about too long. It’s interesting to note how clean the phenolic characters come through in this beer; they bring plenty of flavor complexity to the brew, but have this pure, almost lager-like quality to them. I know that sounds completely bizarre and contradictory, but that’s the only way I can describe it. I love the initial pilsner malt flavor and the distinctly belgian fruity esters that come out on the back end of the palate, but especially how the dryness and cleaness of the beer keep it dangerously drinkable the whole time. I’d like to get a little bit more hops in the finish, as that aspect was really my favorite part of the nose, but it seems to be a bit hidden. The fantastic palate and clean flavor complexities are what make this one a real winner.