Tag Archives: barrel aged

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

de Garde The Law of Winter

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Brewery: de Garde Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 6%
Style: American Wild Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A spontaneous Wild Ale aged in oak barrels for three years with cider apples, vanilla beans, cinnamon, allspice, ginger & orange zest. Bottled still.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.91
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 1 pint 9.4 fl. oz. corked and capped bottle, bottled still in November 2019. Poured into an Alvinne teku glass.
Appearance: It was a hazy golden colour with only a minimal white head and no lacing.
Aroma: Sweet, apple cider, vanilla, orange zest, almost perfumy, with a splash of cinnamon on the finish.
Taste: Sour, tart, apple, cidery, grapefruit, orange, funky, oak, vanilla, perfumy, with some light spice notes.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with very soft carbonation.
Overall: Interesting wintery holiday aroma and flavours. But I think that the combination especially of orange zest and vanilla was perhaps too perfumy for me. It was mostly fine on the aroma, but too much on the flavour. The apple cidery notes were good though.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, de Garde Brewing, USA, Wild Ale

de Garde Ivy

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Brewery: de Garde Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 6%
Style: American Wild Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A spontaneous Wild Ale aged in oak barrels for two years.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.31
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 1 pint 9.4 fl. oz. corked and capped bottle, with no clear bottled on or best before date. Poured into an Alvinne teku glass.
Appearance: A very slightly hazy golden orange colour with a big two finger white head that had good retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Lightly tart, funky, musty, damp wood, citrus, lemon zest, lime, wet straw.
Taste: Sour, lightly tart, funky, hay, oak, grapefruit, honey, stone fruit, peach, lime, citrus peel, light bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Balanced and enjoyable with good aroma and flavours.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Trillium Brewing Company, USA, Wild Ale

Trillium Fated Farmer – Red Currant

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Brewery: Trillium Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 6.7%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Barrel fermented wild ale. Hops – Aged Hops. Malts – Valley Pilsner and Valley Wheat. Adjunct – Red Currants

Brewer Description: (from website) Our Fated Farmer Series is a landmark step toward realizing our foundational vision for Trillium: Build a place that intuitively celebrates the intersection of New England farming, agriculture, brewing and an integrated community experience. The grist of each of the dynamic Fated Farmer wild ales is set on the structure of Valley Malt and is barrel fermented in 500L puncheons with our Native New England Wild Culture and aged for 5-7 months, before refermenting on freshly harvested fruit.

Fated Farmer: Red Currant (sourced from Wards Berry Farm in Sharon, MA) presents a warm, orange-pink hue, with a leaping nose of rose of pinot noir, and hints of strawberry and fermentation derived overripe stonefruit. The palate leads with tart wild berry flavor and mellows into a subtle sweetness, slight tannic structure and snappy, pleasing finish.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.28
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 750ml bottle, bottled on 21st December 2017. Poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: A slightly hazy golden orange colour with a thin white head that dissipated quickly, while leaving only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Soft funky, oak, vanilla, red berry tartness, with yellow stone fruit.
Taste: Sour, tart, mixed berries, red currant, stone fruit, peach, with soft vinegar notes.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Good balance of funk, fruit and barrel in both aroma and taste, but it is especially so in the aroma. I didn’t get to try it fresh, but I think some age might have had a good effect on it.

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

Trillium Fated Farmer – Cranberry

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Brewery: Trillium Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 6.8%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Barrel fermented wild ale. Hops – Aged Hops. Malts – Valley Pilsner and Valley Wheat. Adjunct – Cranberry

Brewer Description: (from website) Our Fated Farmer Series is a landmark step toward realizing our foundational vision for Trillium: Build a place that intuitively celebrates the intersection of New England farming, agriculture, brewing, and integrated community experience. The grist of each of the dynamic Fated Farmer wild ales is set on the structure of Valley Malt and is barrel fermented in 500L puncheons with our Native New England Wild Culture and aged for 5-7 months, before re-fermenting on freshly harvested fruit.

Fresh, locally-sourced Cape Cod cranberries provide a brilliant ruby hue to the latest interpretation of Fated Farmer. Bright red fruit aromas from cranberry to raspberry spring from the glass, while a bouquet of floral tones offers a depth of flavor to each sip. Subtly sweet, with an energizing acidity and underlying native yeast character, Cranberry Fated Farmer finishes nimble and refreshing.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.97
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 750ml bottle, bottled on 19th October 2018. Poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: A hazy amber orange colour with a one finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly to a ring around the glass, while leaving some lacing.
Aroma: Tart, cranberry, oak, with light floral notes, and bits of nail polish here and there.
Taste: Sour, tart, cranberry, herbal, funk, lemon zest and oak.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, prickly acidic, with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Enjoyable aroma and flavours, although the acidity felt a little bit on the harsh side at times.

5 - Excellent (must buy), Beer Reviews, Denmark, Mikkeller Baghaven, Wild Ale

Mikkeller Baghaven Kriek Vanilje

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Brewery: Mikkeller Baghaven
Country: Denmark
ABV: 7%
Style: Wild Ale
Other Notes: Blend 1, aged 18 months

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Oak fermented Danish Wild Ale with cherries, vanilla, and a hint of cinnamon.

My rating: 5
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.83
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.7

Intro: A 750ml corked and caged bottle, blend 1, with a best before date of July 2024. Poured into a Mikkeller Baghaven Zalto Bordeaux stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy deep reddish purple colour with a one finger purple head that had decent retention but eventually settled to a thin cap, while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, cherry, cinnamon, vanilla, and oak.
Taste: Lightly sour, tart, cherry, cinnamon, cherry pit, almond, oak, with hints of vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: Wow, excellent and really enjoyable aroma and flavours that align to my palate. Must buy in my opinion.