Category Archives: Wild Ale

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Hong Kong, Wild Ale, Yardley Brothers Brewing

Yardley Brothers Frederiksdal Cherry Sour Ale

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Brewery: Yardley Brothers Brewing
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 7%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: 2020 Limited release. Aged in French oak Beaujolais barrels. Collaboration with Frederiksdal Kirsebærvin and Good Beer Project

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A collaboration with world-renowned cherry wine producer Frederiksdal, this sour ale was aged in a French oak Beaujolais barrel for 12 months and blended with Stevnsbær cherries.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.16
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 375ml bottle, 2020 vintage, bottle 454 of 500. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A very nice ruby red colour with a two finger pink head that had good retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Slightly tart, cherry, oak, with notes of vanilla, almond and maybe red wine.
Taste: Moderately sour, cherry, red berries, red wine, oak, with light notes of cinnamon.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Looks great with some nice flavours. Don’t know much about Beaujolais, so not sure if it’s just the way Beaujolais barrels are, but more and stronger barrel character with some funk would have added some interesting complexities to the beer.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Odd Breed Wild Ales, USA, Wild Ale

Odd Breed Agronomics of Squander

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Brewery: Odd Breed Wild Ales
Country: USA
ABV: 6.5%
Style: Wild Ale
Other Notes: Wild Ale with Blackberries and Blackcurrants

Brewer Description: (from bottle) This brew was blended from two Sangiovese puncheons of our turbid mashed wild ales; half was barrel aged for eight months and half was aged 16 months. We refermented and conditioned the blend on over 700 pounds of blackberries and blackcurrants for three months. Blackcurrants lend bright acidity with flavors reminiscent of passionfruit and black raspberries with plenty of tannins, while the blackberries lend some sweetness and jam-like notes with earthy undertones. Our mixed culture adds some funk and nuance to this fruit forward wild fruit ale.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.01
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 750ml corked and capped bottle, bottled on 5th June 2020. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy strawberry red with a slight orange hue, and a two finger pinkish head that dissipated quite quickly to a thin replenishing cap, while leaving only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Lightly tart, Ribena, blackcurrant, blackberry, jammy, with nice woody notes.
Taste: Sour, tart, blackcurrant, berry seeds, oak, blackberry, and a touch jammy.
Mouthfeel: Acidic, medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: The aroma was wonderful, but taste while having great fruity flavours, was on the borderline of being overly sour and acidic for me. I’m also not getting much, if any, funk, which I think would have helped balanced the sour and acidity.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Netherlands, Nevel x Tommie Sjef Wild Ales, Wild Ale

Nevel x Tommie Sjef Twee

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Brewery: Nevel x Tommie Sjef Wild Ales
Country: Netherlands
ABV: 5.8%
Style: Wild Ale
Other Notes: Batch #1. Wild blonde ale aged on oak barrels, collab with Tommie Sjef Wild Ales. Fruity, funky and mineral

Brewer Description: (from website) Man can only see himself when he mirrors himself in another person. When oneness divides itself in two, it results in a meeting of souls, the creation of something new, the incarnation of a child. Without the concept of two there is no together, without being together there is no Twee.

This collab with Tommie Sjef Wild Ales is a blend of a two-year-old beer from his barrelhouse blended with a young saison from our brewery. This blend was put back in barrels for a year until it was rich enough to be harvested. To finetune its balance we blended it for a second time with a young barrel-aged beer. Twee can therefore be seen as a double bière de coupage. It is a wonderfully rustic beer with outspoken fruity notes of orange, peach and apricot. Its taste profile is defined by aged hops and our wild house culture, offering a good dose of dried hay, damp cellar and mineral stone. There is a good balance between sour and bitter notes in the rich structure of this beer.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.77
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 375ml bottle, batch #1, bottled on 2nd October 2019, drink within 3 years. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that had pretty good retention, and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, funky, hay, straw, oak, apricot, orange, with a light but lasting leather and herbal notes.
Taste: Lightly sour, tart, funky, orange, grapefruit, apricot, hay, straw, oak.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Aroma wasn’t as good as the taste, but overall it was enjoyable and easy to drink.

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

The Ale Apothecary Sauvie

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Brewery: The Ale Apothecary
Country: USA
ABV: 8.10%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: A wild fermentation ale aged in wine barrels with hops grown on Sauvie Island

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Made of Mecca Grade Estate barley & rye malts and Crystal hops grown by Sauvie Island Hops on the farming island near Portland. We are honored to purchase and use all the Crystal hops that Jordan and Maya grow each year. 100% naturally carbonated with honey, and 100% Oregon. Unfiltered, open-fermented & barrel-aged.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.33
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, bottled on 29th October 2019. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that had decent retention, and eventually settled to a thin fluffy cap, while leaving nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, peach, apricot, sweet grape, tangy, citrus, orange, oak.
Taste: Sour, tart, gummy candy like fruitiness, peach, apricot, grape, citrus, lemon, oak.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Really enjoyable and easy to drink, with great aromas and gummy candy like fruitiness in the flavour.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, The Ale Apothecary, USA, Wild Ale

The Ale Apothecary Field Spirits

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Brewery: The Ale Apothecary
Country: USA
ABV: 9.33%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: A wild fermentation ale brewed with rye and honey, aged in wine barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Mecca Grade Estate Malt shares our vision of small family business and this beer is our celebration of what they do. Made of 4 different grains from their farm in Madras, we age this beer in fresh pinot noir barrels from Domaine Drouhin in the Willamette Valley. 100% naturally carbonated with honey, and 100% Oregon. Unfiltered, open-fermented & barrel-aged.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.99
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle, bottled on 28th June 2019. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy dark amber copper colour, with a thin khaki head that dissipated quickly to a ring around the glass, while leaving some lacing.
Aroma: Light tartness, grape, dark fruit, plum, cherry, honey, oak, vanilla, and a splash of lime zest.
Taste: Tart, lightly sour, grape, lightly vinous, caramel malt, lemon juice, honey, oak, with light rye spiciness on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Enjoyable, but carbonation was a little light for my liking.