Category Archives: Country

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brasserie Cantillon, Lambic - Unblended

Cantillon Iris

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Brewery: Brasserie Cantillon
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6.5%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Unblended)
Other Notes: Fresh hops, no wheat

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The Iris beer, a spontaneous fermentation beer made with pure malt, is really unique. It matures for two years in oak-wood casks and undergoes a natural second fermentation in the bottle afterwards. The fresh hops gives the beer a bitter flavour. This characteristic, combined with the absence of wheat, constitute the main difference between the Iris and the other Cantillon beers, that are made with Lambic. Keep and serve at a temperature of 12°-15°. To be drunk preferably within the 10 years after the bottling date.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.24
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml corked and capped bottle, bottled on 9th January 2018. Poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden orange colour with a one and a half finger off white head that dissipates fairly quickly to a thin layer, while leaving some sparse lacing.
Aroma: Tart, funky barnyard, oak, apricot, grapefruit, citrus zest and rind.
Taste: Sour, lightly bitter, a hint of sweetness, funk, oak, apricot, peach, grapefruit zest, lemon and leather with a hint of floral and herbal.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to low carbonation.
Overall: Very enjoyable and great to drink. Even better when aged properly for a few years.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, USA, Wicked Weed Brewing, Wild Ale

Wicked Weed Omnipresence (Canvas Series)

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Brewery: Wicked Weed Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 9%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Barrel-aged American sour ale fermented with cabernet grapes

Brewer Description: (from bottle) When we got our hands on brand new Nadalie Foeders, we wanted to utilize their fresh oak character by taking advantage of the natural tannins in the French Oak. We thought, “What better way to pay homage to the craftsmanship of the French coopers than to incorporate the work of French vintners?” With this in mind, we rested one pound per gallon of whole Cabernet grapes in our Nadalie Foeders to produce a bold, acidic sour ale with a slightly dry crack that only freshly toasted French Oak can impart. The Cabernet grapes give the beer a balanced and Burgundian feel like no other.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.95
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 500ml bottle, batch # 1129, bottled on 26th August 2016. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A cloudy murky brown colour with a very slight red tint, and a one finger light tanned head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Tart, berries, cherry, grape, oak, vanilla, funk and lemon.
Taste: Tart, sour, vinous, mixed berries, lemon, with a hint of red wine, light oak and vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Nice good flavours of fruit, wine and barrel.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, USA, Wicked Weed Brewing, Wild Ale

Wicked Weed Persistence (Canvas Series)

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Brewery: Wicked Weed Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 9%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Canvas Series. Barrel-aged American sour ale fermented with cherries

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Persistence is a sour red ale aged in our foeder. One pound per gallon of Montmorency Cherries contributes a leathery accent to this Flanders-inspired ale. Once this beer reaches it’s peak, we blend the batch to attain the perfect balance of our house sour culture and North American cherries.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.76
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 500ml bottle of batch # 1122, bottled on 30th September 2016. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A murky brownish red colour with a one and a half finger off white head that dissipated fairly quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Tart, cherries, mixed berries, light leather with a strange but interesting hit of cinnamon.
Taste: Very similar to the aroma, tart, sour, cherry, some mixed berries, oak, leather and cinnamon.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: This was quite interesting as I enjoyed the cherry flavours coming from it, and you don’t feel the 9% ABV at all, but the cinnamon that appears on the finish was just not really my thing. I don’t even know where the cinnamon like flavours come from…

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Denmark, Lambic - Fruit, Mikkeller ApS

Mikkeller Spontanredgrape

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Brewery: Mikkeller ApS
Country: Denmark
ABV: 7.7%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: Brewed by Mikkeller at De Proef Brouwerij, Belgium

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Sour ale brewed with red grapes & aged on oak barrels.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.34
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.2

Intro: A 375ml bottle with a best before date of 4th July 2024. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy copper amber colour with a one finger light tanned head that dissipated quickly but left behind some spotty lacing.
Aroma: Funk, tart, vinous, grape, green apple, vinegar and a touch of oak.
Taste: Sour, tart, funk, oak, vinegar and lemon with light apple skin, light grape, and light red sour berries.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: The Spontan base comes through strongly but the fruit element, in this case red grape, was rather muted in comparison.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Hong Kong, Wild Ale, Young Master Brewery

Young Master Days Of Being Wild – Blueberry

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Brewery: Young Master Brewery
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 6.5%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Single foeder sour ale series – blueberry edition

Brewer Description: (from July 9th 2018, YM facebook post) The latest iteration of our Days of Being Wild Series, the blueberry edition is fermented in white wine barrels with dried and fresh blueberries. Bursting with fresh berry flavor, it has a silky body, refreshing tartness. Its cocktail of wild yeast strains gives it complex fruitiness with hints of spice and light funk. It pours deep purple with a mousse-like head and is the perfect beer for a summer afternoon.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.63
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 750ml bottle, 2018 release, bottle 198 of 215. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A deep purple reddish colour with a big three finger pinkish head that dissipated fairly quickly and left only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Lightly tart, blueberry, strong oak character, strong vanilla, light funk, grape skin and a touch of lemon.
Taste: Tart, lightly sour, grape, white wine, oak, light vanilla, blueberry, funk, grass, and lemon.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Maybe my expectations were too high given what I thought were good earlier variations. The blueberry is there, but I think it was overpowered by the strong oak character and vanilla, which just covered everything. I have another bottle, so I’m hoping that age will do it some wonders. We shall see.