Pizza Port Cuvee de Tomme

375mL Bottle. May 2007 Release. Rosy rich, brandied nose of caramelized fig and walnut puree, jamming with a balsamic and strawberry coulis, swiftly tart and citric with stunning clarity and piquant musk. Could use some more strength and softness, but a beautiful floral bouquet nonetheless. The color of this beer is the most handsome blood red liquor alive, with capitulating fringes of gold and sunset orange. Rimmed in a tinted crisp line of goatskin. Deeply cored in crystalline clear ruby. Ah, heavenly carbonation. Wow, rushing a multitude of cataclysmic flavors upon the palate in unhurried abyss. A puckering Lambic sourness brightens up the front end with a totality of cherry juice and wildness. Acidity rise and evaporates into the sinuses, leaving a sheen of caramelized rum raisin cake on the roof of the mouth. The best part of this beer is the duality of both sourness and heavy-handed Belgian malt sugar. Truly the best of both worlds. Drying out towards the backend, with only slight alcoholic burps of heat. A peep of oxidation sidles in with an aged out EKG-like touch, which somehow seems out of place with this beer. Maybe I would have appreciated fully aged hops instead of the tired base beer’s hops? There’s some peculiar indescribable funk laying heavy on the smack. Subtle, yet active carbonation keeps the flavors popping on the tongue. The acidity on top of the largeness of the beer helps pare down the heat and barrel character. I could see how this could get rampantly over-acidic with time or barrel mismanagement. Faint edges of acetone. Lots of tangible acid notes, from fresh blood orange reduction, to palpable freshly squeezed Ruby Red Grapefruit and some musty 10-year balsamic. Everything melds so fantastically. I think it has the best unified flavor, having been borne of some many individual components. Big fermented Belgian, Sour Cherries, Brett, Barrel and time. All these elements melt together into an alchemical magic that makes this beer what it is. I can compare it only to Rodenbach Alexander, with this beer I pine for a little more cherry complexity and some earthiness from pits. Bravo Tomme. I’m glad to be able to give this a full workout without having been totally inebriated.


2001 North Vineyard. 750mL. Originally reviewed 5/7/2007. 5/10/5/10/20=5.0 Tomme produces an unlabeled bottle with cryptic Sharpie markings on the cap. According to him, an unreleased early vintage. Pouring into the glass a cherubic Indian ruby sapphire, glowing with clear glassy edges and a blood rim. Aroma carries one away into an overwhelming presence of intense red fruits from across the board, cherries and raisins percolate in the core of my brain. So bright, alive and refined. Absolutely stunning. Finally passing my lips, this lubricious liquid takes form as a mindnumbing shapeshifter. What first presents itself as a unmarked, world class malt and fruit chimeric belgian strong ale, quickly cloaks itself in a world of sourness. The best of both worlds! Trying to parse out the intricate corners of the beer, I’m at a loss, it’s all too much. Rodenbach Alexander quickly comes to mind. The fruit character so deft, real and upfront. Palate couldn’t be more satisfying, yet exacting. I’ll rate again with a bottle of the current batch, but I needed to expunge my thoughts with this rarest of gems.

Purchased this at Port 1st Anniversary. Poured a cloudy brown orange with no head. Aroma of sour cherries, oak, and raisins. Very strong taste of cherries and finishes with sweetness, and of course, tartness. A must have.

From 375 ml. purchased at the 1st anniversary at the brewery. Immediate smells hit the room as soon as the cork came out. Cherries, fresh cut daisies, roses, plums, and apricots. Poured a brownish purple, and had no head. Tastes of sour cherries, raisins, plums, and spices. Might be a bit young. It should age nicely. I dont think anyone will be dissapointed if they enjoyed this as soon as they received it. Very Very good.

Sampled at the woodshop Tasting. White Label. Poured a clear brown color with almost no head. Aroma was sour with some funk, cherry, oak and yeast. Flavor was sour funk and oak with a slightly thin body. Not much of the alcohol is noticable in the taste, but does have a tart finish.

25 oz bottle, black label, via trade w/ someone a long time ago that I can’t recall now. Pours a very dark garnet to ruby colored body under a fizzy and foamy one finger beige head that faded to a partial covering. The aroma is all over the place. Chocolate, cherry, light brett, heavy fruitiness, alcohol, plum, light oak, almost reminiscent of some Flemish Sours. The flavor is still quite fruity up front with lightly tangy sour cherry and bretty funkiness. Finishes with oak, a ton of alcohol, whiskey, and a dry lingering brettiness. My only problem is that there is way too much alcohol flavor on the finish for me, which is enhanced by the whisky/oak flavor that reinforces the booziness of it. Extremely warming sensation on the finish. Mouthfeel is full bodied and really almost bordering on sticky and cloying, but the fizzy champagne-like brett derived carbonation really cuts through it making it quite lively. Very fine pinpoint carbonation. This was really tasty and loaded with flavor, but I couldn’t stop wishing that the ABV was about 5% lower. With all the fruit, brett, and the barrel aging they just didn’t need to use an 11% ABV base beer.

[265-20070413] 1pt9.4floz (c/o HogTownHarry, w/ him, blankboy, jerc, mds, tupalev). Sour cherry apple aroma. Hazy, dark red brown body with a medium-lasting creamy light tan head. Bitter apple cherry flavour has more bite. Medium-full bodied super sour puckerer. Maybe too much sharp bite here. [7/4/7/3/16] 3.7

[588B-20070908] 375mL @ Sourfest 2007 (Buffalo, NY, w/ rudolf, frylock, IPFreely, jerc, swoopjones). Super alcohol-drenched raisins or dark fruit aroma. Cloudy, dark brown body with a quick head of bubbles. Raisin malt alcohol flavour has very light notes of oak wood barrel and dried fig. Full body is smooth if a little sour. Nice wood characteristics. [6/3/8/4/15] 3.6

My 1600th rating! Thanks to HogTownHarry for sharing this rare treat for this occasion. Bottle (750ml) shared with HogTownHarry, jerc, mabel, mds & tupalev. Pours a murky reddish-brown with an average size diminishing off-white head. Wonderful aroma of sweet malt, oak, cherries, spices and hops. Complex tart flavour of malt, sour cherries, oak, hops, Belgian yeast and more. Medium to full bodied, bubbly mouthfeel. What a fan-friggin’-tastic beer, thanks again Harry!

Bottle shared with Blankboy, Hogtown Harry, Jerc, Mds, and Mabel, Harry’s bottle had back to back with Mother of All Beers. Cheery red dark brown, no head. Lovely aroma - cherry malt, yeast. Sharp cherry taste, some sourness - complex and tasty. Sharper but less complex than Mother - but still full of flavour and outstanding.