Category Archives: 4 – Good (buy)

Almanac Peach de Brettaville

Brewery: Almanac Beer Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 6.5%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Farm to barrel

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Farmhouse ale aged in wine barrels with peaches.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.27
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 375ml bottle, bottled in November 2015, and poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy golden straw orange colour with a one finger white head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Tart, mildly funky, light oak with some peach, pineapple and lemon. Think along the lines of sour peach ring gummy candy.
Taste: Sour and tangy with only light funkiness. Fruity peach with a sharp citrus lemon and orange peel flavour and acidity. There is also a touch of vinegar, white wine and earthy oak.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with high carbonation.
Overall: This is good. A very nice sour from Almanac that is tasty and easy to drink.

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

almanac-peach-de-brettaville-3

Crooked Stave Petite Sour Pure Guava

Brewery: Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project
Country: USA
ABV: 5.5%
Style: American Wild Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Mixed fermentation ale aged in oak with tropical fruits.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.13
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 375ml bottle bottled in August 2015, poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy golden colour with a less than one finger white head that dissipated almost immediately and leaves only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Funk, sour, tartness and oak. Tropical fruit, mostly guava, passionfruit and mango.
Taste: Sour, tart and funky. Fruit is a bit light, but its there. Citrus lemon followed by some tropical guava and grapes. Lightly oaky on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: Nice tart sourness but the fruit especially guava (since that is in the name) was on the light side.

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

crooked-stave-petite-sour-pure-guava-3

Avery Pump[KY]n

Brewery: Avery Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 15%
Style: Pumpkin Ale
Other Notes: Porter brewed with Pumpkin & Spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, clove) Aged in Bourbon Barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) What’s in a name? Sometimes the simplest can be the most descriptive, and in this case, derisive and divisive! After much internal debate (ad nauseum! Bourb[KY]n, anyone?), we decided a single letter change was the best way to embody the Bourbon barrel-aging that adds layers of complexity to an already exquisitely spiced pumpkin porter.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.31
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 12 fl oz foiled bottle, Batch No.2, bottled on 7th November 2015. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: It poured a clear dark brown amber colour with pretty much no khaki coloured head, but some sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Pumpkin pie, vanilla, cinnamon and a hit of boozy bourbon.
Taste: Sweet and spicy. Pumpkin pie, caramel, brown sugar, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and all-spice with notes of oak and bourbon booziness.
Mouthfeel: Lightly syrupy, full bodied, alcohol warming with light to moderate carbonation.
Overall: Wow this was nice. A Pumpkin Ale that’s perhaps approaching a Winter Warmer. Great pumpkin pie spice flavours and good use of the barrel. Its quite boozy at 15% and you do get it in the aroma and taste yet at the same time, I like it, which is rare for me. Perhaps it just works for this particular style. If more Pumpkin Ales were like this, I would definitely go for the style. Good job by Avery on this one.

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

avery-pumpkyn-3

Cebruery Guimaras Gose

Brewery: The Cebruery
Country: Philippines
ABV: 4.3%
Style: Gose – Fruit
Other Notes: 7 IBUs. Hundreds of kilos of mangos

Brewer Description: (from bottle) First brewed in the 16th century near Leipzig, whose local water source was heavy in salts, the light, sour wheat beer that became known as Gose gets its characteristic tartness from a mixed yeast/Lactobacillus fermentation. We’re committed to bringing this historic style back from the brink of extinction but with a local twist, utilizing locally sourced souring bacteria, Filipino sea salt, and adding hundreds of kilos of mangoes to each and every batch. The interplay of salty and sour pairs beautifully with the subdued biscuity pilsner malts, earthy citrus zest of the coriander, and our unique combination of dry hops for that little something extra.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.85
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 330ml bottle with no visible bottled on or best before date. Poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy golden straw orange colour with a two finger white head that had decent retention but not much lacing.
Aroma: Not too strong, but what I do get is lightly doughy with fruity mango and pineapple.
Taste: Sour, tart, mango with some light saltiness.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: I like it. It is refreshing, easy to drink and has lots of mango, which I enjoy.

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

cebruery-guimaras-gose-3

Dupont x Lost Abbey Deux Amis

Brewery: Brasserie Dupont x The Lost Abbey
Country: Belgium
ABV: 7%
Style: Belgian Saison
Other Notes: Hops – Amarillo and Simcoe

Brewer Description: (from bottle) French for “two friends,” Deux Amis commemorates the ground-breaking collaboration between Belgium’s Brasserie Dupont and America’s Lost Abbey Brewery. It brings together two brewers who have long shared a mutual reverence – Olivier Dedeycker, the fourth-generation Master Brewer at Dupont and Tomme Arthur, the acclaimed Brew Master of Lost Abbey. Deux Amis has been brewed at Brasserie Dupont in Belgium and crafted using traditional methods the brewery has perfected over the past century. It receives its decidedly stateside flavor from the addition of American Amarillo and Simcoe hops. The result of this kinship is a dry, refreshing Old World Saison full of New World flavors.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.04
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A corked and caged 750ml bottle, 2016 cork with a best before date of May 2018. Poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy golden orange colour with a huge three finger white head that had decent retention and left foamy sticky lacing.
Aroma: Strong Belgian yeast, clove, banana plus melon with a touch of lemon zest, orange and white pepper spice.
Taste: Lightly doughy, approaching overripe banana sweetness, clove, lemon zest, orange rind, honey, grass and pepper spice.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, medium to light bodied with lively moderate to high carbonation and a dry finish.
Overall: A good refreshing Saison that is easy to drink. Good stuff from two brewery/brewers that I like.

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

dupont-x-lost-abbey-deux-amis-3