New Glarus Unplugged Enigma

Formerly brewed at New Glarus Brewing Company
Style: Sour Ale
New Glarus, Wisconsin USA

Another special beer provided by aspidites. Pours a dark red with a thin head. Aroma of slightly sour cherries, peanuts, dust a little oak and vanilla. The flavor is not too sour, just some dull cherry flavor, more peanuts, more dust. The oak might have just started taking over, or it could have been over the hill. Either way, of all the sours I tried today, this was not the best. I bet this was great when fresher.

RBSG 2007 Grand Tasting. Hazy amber body with a small white head. Sweet caramel, molassas and fruit aroma. Sweet molassas and sour cherry flavor.

I REALLY liked this beer. Huge mix of flavors and aroma, and simply giving a laundry list of them won’t do it justice, but suffice to say that cherry and oak are big players, and red wine, too. It’s very spritzy, and that’s what kkeps it interesting. Never heavy or cloying, its a fruit beer that doesn’t wear out its welcome. Awesome stuff. Thanks to Buckybeer for the trade!

Bottle from iowaherkeye, Thanks Joey! Nose of cherries, funk, chocolate, but no hops! Hazy cherry brown with a good beige head. tart cherries lead off the flavor into chocolate, caramel, oak, and funk.

Got this in a trade with badbeer - thanks, man! - it certainly does take a little while for this beautiful beer to breath - the flavor after the initial pour was quite acidic and metallic, but after ten minutes or so, it was a totally different beer (what a strange experience) - quite a cloudy amber, with a thin ring of foam - aroma of cherry (of course), vanilla, oak, caramel, some wintery spices - moderately sweet and mildly acidic up front, with the cherries making their presence felt early - these qualities quickly take a back seat, as a big oak and vanilla presence settles in, followed by some light caramel and chocolate - a very subtle hint of smoke, nutmeg, and whiskey comes in before the finish returns flavors of cherry, slight acidity, and an enjoyable, dry sourness - no one makes fruit beers better than New Glarus, and this is one of their best.

Bottle. Clear reddish, amber coulour with absolutely no head. Sour aroma with notes of vanilla, fruit, wine, and dried fruit. Malty flavour with a lot of acid, sourness and with a warm feeling from the alcohol.

12 oz bottle, courtesy of Holdenn. Yummmm. This beer is the epitome of oak. This is oak 101. Aroma is intense vanilla and oak (surprise surprise), popcorn, sour apple. Sourness is very underplayed in aroma. Flavor is a very gentle sourness with a strong oak backbone, very very drinkable and rich. My better judgement tells me to rate this lower because it doesn’t really have much complexity, and is kind of one dimensional, but it’s just so delicious...

Dark muddy colored with a fine tan head. Rather odd but pleasant aroma of sourish berries, candy, cake, a bit of marzipan and almond. Flavor is sour but no way near as sour as many other sour ales. Berries, orange, vanilla, cookie and grapefruit in the end. Not the typical sour ale, more candied, but still very nice and unique. I like it a lot! Thanks Paps for this candy in a bottle!