4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, The Ale Apothecary, USA, Wild Ale - Dark

The Ale Apothecary Be Still

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Brewery: The Ale Apothecary
Country: USA
ABV: 8.53%
Style: Wild Ale – Dark
Other Notes: 1600 bottles

Brewer Description: (from hanging neck tag) .wild & open fermented in the woods of OR. .Mecca Grade Estate Malt + roasted barley. .infused with cocoa nibs & cascara. .aged in OR pinot + rye whiskey barrels. .presented barrel-quiet without carbonation. .1600 bottles.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.12

Intro: A 500ml corked bottle, batch from 7th September 2017, poured into a Tilquin stemmed glass.
Appearance: A clear dark orange brown colour, with a thin head most likely from the pour, and sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Very aromatic as soon as the cork was removed. Tart, fruity, red currants, fig, cherry, fruit vinegar, with finishing notes of chocolate and cocoa.
Taste: Light tartness, fruity, dark fruit, red berries, plum, fig, red currant, cherry, light notes of chocolate and cocoa, and a splash of spicy rye whiskey.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied, with no carbonation “this beer is still”.
Overall: Great aroma that just wanted to burst out. Some nice complexity and flavours that work together. This is clearly an Ale Apothecary type beer in my book.

4 - Good (buy), 8 Wired Brewing Co., Beer Reviews, New Zealand, Stout - Imperial

8 Wired iStout Double Espresso

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Brewery: 8 Wired Brewing Co.
Country: New Zealand
ABV: 13.5%
Style: Stout – Imperial
Other Notes: 15th Birthday. Imperial Stout brewed with coffee

Brewer Description: (from can) Søren has always wanted to brew an espresso imperial stout, so for 8 Wired’s 15th birthday, he finally got around to making one! We’ve taken the base recipe for the iconic iStout, and cranked the ABV right up. Using an intense, rich, espresso blend from our friends at Rush, this is truly one mighty coffee experience!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.33

Intro: A 330ml can, with a best before date of July 2027, poured into a Bokke tasting glass.
Appearance: Dark dark brown to black in colour, with a half finger brown head that had good retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Roasty, freshly ground coffee bean, espresso, chocolate.
Taste: Roasty, espresso, coffee, dark chocolate, with a nice bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Rich, full bodied, with soft carbonation.
Overall: An enjoyable sipper with old school coffee Imperial Stout aroma and flavours. Nice strong roast, coffee, and a lasting bitterness that compliments and rounds it all off.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Japan, Stout - Milk / Sweet, Vertere

Vertere Globba

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Brewery: Vertere
Country: Japan
ABV: 7%
Style: Stout – Milk / Sweet

Brewer Description: (from can) Chai Latte Stout.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 500ml can with a best before date of 10th June 2026, poured into a Bokke tasting glass.
Appearance: Dark dark brown in colour with a one finger tanned head that dissipated fairly quickly, but settled to a ring around the glass while leaving some lacing.
Aroma: Chai spice dominated, cinnamon, ginger, cardamon, green apple, light roast.
Taste: Lightly sweet, chai spices, cinnamon, brown sugar, ginger, cardamon, light roast, toasted malts, with some light bitterness on the backend.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: This “Chai Latte Stout”, is chai spice dominated, especially the cinnamon and ginger, while the latte and stout portion can be found, but are considerably more muted. It basically means that as long as you enjoy chai spices, you are probably more likely to enjoy this.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, BreWskey, Canada, Sour Ale - Smoothie / Soda / Pastry

BreWskey Brew Juice: Sour Patch

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Brewery: BreWskey
Country: Canada
ABV: 5.2%
Style: Sour Ale – Smoothie

Brewer Description: (from can in French) Cerise, fraise, framboise, lime, citron, orange et bonbons “sour patch”.

(translated to English) Cherry, strawberry, raspberry, lime, lemon, orange and sour patch candies.

My rating: 4+
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.43

Intro: A 473ml can, canned on 2nd May 2025, poured into a winebar glass.
Appearance: A dark thick pink guava colour, milkshake like texture, big bubbles, and a good amount of sediment on the glass.
Aroma: Candy, strawberry, cherry, raspberry, and citrus lime lemon notes.
Taste: Sweet, sour patch candy milkshake, mixed berries, lemon lime candy.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: It’s pretty much as described like a sour patch smoothie, while the aroma and flavours are what I enjoy.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Scotland, Sour Ale - Smoothie / Soda / Pastry, Vault City Brewing

Vault City Red Berry Waffle Cone Shortcake Triple Scoop

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Brewery: Vault City Brewing
Country: Scotland
ABV: 8.4%
Style: Sour Ale – Pastry

Brewer Description: (from can) Our favourite flavours of ice cream are the inspiration for our latest dessert sours, back again in a series of single, double, and triple scoops… Layers of juicy strawberries, cherries, raspberries and blackberries are added to a triple serving of smooth vanilla ice cream served in a golden waffle cone with generous toppings of crumbly shortcake biscuit.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 440ml can, canned on 7th May 2025, poured into a winebar glass.
Appearance: A dark reddish purple colour with a thin half finger pinkish head that had decent retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Red berry jammy, strawberry ice cream, raspberry, vanilla, with notes of waffle biscuits.
Taste: Sweet and a touch sour, strawberry jam, red berry compote, vanilla, waffle biscuits, sour cherry.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: An enjoyable dessert sour with a wonderful aroma and nice flavours.

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