Category Archives: 2 – Maybe (likely wouldn’t buy, might drink)

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), Beer Reviews, Denmark, Lambic - Fruit, Mikkeller ApS

Mikkeller Spontanapricot

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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 apricots & aged in oak barrels.

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.3
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.1

Intro: A 375ml bottle with a best before date of 27th January 2025. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy copper orange colour with a one finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Funky, sour, tart, unripe apple cider vinegar with hints of apricot.
Taste: Sour, tart, green apple and vinegar with hints of apricot and funk.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: The vinegar and sourness was overpowering and hid much of the funk and fruit.

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), Beer Reviews, Birra del Borgo, Flanders Oud Bruin, Italy

Birra del Borgo Vecchia Ducale

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Brewery: Birra del Borgo
Country: Italy
ABV: 8.5%
Style: Belgian Flanders Oud Bruin

Brewer Description: (from website) Inspired by the Oud Bruin, we left our Ducale rest in barrel for over a year and then we bottled it with extra young beer. The result is a sweet and bitter beer, with wine hints and an astringent finish.

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.12
My ratebeer.com rating: 2.9

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of February 2020. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: Dark brown in colour with a bronze ruby hue and pretty much no head or lacing.
Aroma: Tart-ish, balsamic vinegar, cherry, prunes, vinous and lightly woody.
Taste: Oak, woody, sour, balsamic, cherry, vinous with hints of light toffee and astringency.
Mouthfeel: Acetic harshness, light to medium bodied with extremely low carbonation.
Overall: This was on and off for me. At times it seemed ok, but perhaps it was the combination of acetic harshness and the lack of carbonation that ultimately led me to lean on the lower end. Just didn’t work for me when compared to the classic Oud Bruin’s.

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), American Pale Ale, Beer Reviews, Brewski, Sweden

Brewski Pineapple Unplugged

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Brewery: Brewski
Country: Sweden
ABV: 4.7%
Style: American Pale Ale
Other Notes: American Pale Ale. Only real fruit inside!

Brewer Description: (from bottle) I am an American Pale Ale with crazy amounts of pineapple and a hoppy unplugged attitude. Who are you? Just as a person can have different moods, who say a beer couldn’t? How do they say? “Thursday I don’t care about you’, or whatever, just let me wear these babies! I am still the same pineapple beer. Just as you, the days are different and so is my mood. Today I am Thursday.

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.07
My ratebeer.com rating: 3

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 19th April 2019, ‘B7 for lo??? (it was cut off)’. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A hazy golden straw yellow colour with a big three finger big bubbled white head that dissipated fairly quickly but left some sticky lacing.
Aroma: Pineapple, grass, dankness and hay with a touch of citrus zest.
Taste: Lightly sweet pineapple to start with hints of citrus zest, chalky and floral notes, but the finish is extremely weak with close to not much flavour if at all.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied with high carbonation.
Overall: It started out well enough with good pineapple flavours, but unfortunately the flavours just kind of fell off to nothing on the finish.

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), Beer Reviews, Hong Kong, Stout - Imperial, Young Master Brewery

Young Master Hak Mo Sheung Raspberry

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Brewery: Young Master Brewery
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 10.1%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Raspberry Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels. Fresh raspberry and Valrhona cacao nibs. 45 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from website) Aged in Heaven Hill Bourbon barrels from America for six months and fermented a second time with fresh raspberry and Valrhona cacao nibs. Reminiscent of a rich black forest gâteau, this is the perfect digestif after a nice meal.

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.07
My ratebeer.com rating: 3

Intro: A 330ml bottle, 2017 release with a best before date of 31st December 2022. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a thin tanned head that disappeared quickly to a ring around that glass while leaving only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Gummy candy raspberry, plasticky, milk chocolate and roasted malts.
Taste: Tart, candied raspberry, artificial cherry, milk chocolate, cocoa and boozy on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with low carbonation.
Overall: A bit odd in that it felt like two different things were going on at the same time with the tart candied fruit of raspberry and cherry which was quite strong and tasted a bit artificial, and secondly the roasty malt, milk chocolate, cocoa and booziness which was trying to balance except that the booze felt over the top, and in the end the two just didn’t mesh together well. This one just didn’t work for me. As a side note, I tried the Con Chile Ancho Y Panca version right after, and preferred it a lot more.

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), American IPA, Beer Reviews, Garage Project, New Zealand

Garage Project Hippity Dippity

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Brewery: Garage Project
Country: New Zealand
ABV: 7.4%
Style: American IPA
Other Notes: Brett IPA

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Some friends come with a little extra. Hippity Dippity hoppy IPA, fermented with a very special strain of Brettanomyces captured and cultured by a like-minded friend and generously shared with us. Its unique mango and tropical fruit forward flavour marries perfectly with Amarillo, Citra and Galaxy hops to create an IPA with a startling fruit cocktail punch. Here’s to friends with benefits.

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.3
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.1

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 4th March 2018. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden straw yellow colour with a big three finger white head that had good retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Tropical mango, barnyard, leather and brett.
Taste: Lightly bitter and lightly sour, mango, brett, citrus peel, apricot and a touch of pepper spice.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to low carbonation.
Overall: I think the brett was a bit overpowering with not enough sour, bitter or tropical fruit in the taste.