Tag Archives: Wild Ale

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.

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

The Ale Apothecary La Tache – Fresh Hop

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Brewery: The Ale Apothecary
Country: USA
ABV: 7.09%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Fresh Hop version. Mixed fermentation ale aged in wine barrels

Brewer Description: (from tag on bottle) the beer formerly known as La Tache. (* wild & open fermented in the woods of OR. * Mecca Grade Estate Malt + wheat + Goshie Farms hops. * barrel-aged over a year & dry-hopped in oak. * OR honey + sour wort + our yeast = 100% natural carbonation from bottle fermentation.)

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

Intro: A 750ml bottle, batch bottled on 20th November 2017. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy golden colour with a two finger white head that had pretty good retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, citrusy, lemon zest, orange rind, grass, funk, with hints of peach in the background.
Taste: Sour, tart, sour, yup I said it twice. Lemon juice and lemon with a hint of oak.
Mouthfeel: Dry, medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Refreshingly sour, and I could imagine it being way too sour for some, but I like it. This fresh hop version seems to have lost some of the tropical peach, apricot and grape flavours I was getting in the original La Tache. The result is pure citrusy lemon which I found to be very refreshing, especially on hot days.

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

The Ale Apothecary OJ Dan

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Brewery: The Ale Apothecary
Country: USA
ABV: 7.62%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Mixed fermentation ale aged in wine barrels

Brewer Description: (from tag and label on bottle) OJ Dan (this experiment got a little juicy). OJ Dan the OG becomes the OJ. (* named in honor of our brewer Jareds’ Pa, 592 bottles produced. * Sauvie Island Hops + Mecca Grade malt + fresh orange juice. * aged in 2nd use Bulleit rye barrels and finished in an oak puncheon. * OR honey + sour wort + our yeast = 100% natural carbonation from bottle fermentation.)

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.86
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 750ml bottle, batch bottled on 21st September 2017. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: First pour was a very lightly hazy golden colour (but subsequent pours were a much more cloudy golden orange colour), with a big four finger white head that had pretty good retention and left lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, orange juice, citrus zest, tropical stone fruit like mango and peach with a touch of oak and funk.
Taste: Orange juice and citrus zest with a touch of rye whiskey, oak and funk.
Mouthfeel: Acidic, medium bodied with high carbonation.
Overall: The aroma was really nice, but taste while not bad, was a bit one dimensional, with orange juice and a splash of rye whiskey. The strong acidity and high carbonation does not make it easy to discern other flavours. I still think it’s worth a try though. I have to say though, that the more and more I drink it, the more it’s growing on me.

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

Victory Sour Monkey

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Brewery: Victory Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 9.5%
Style: American Wild Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) This electrifying transformation of our famed Golden Monkey may just blow your mind. Tastefully twisted to offer nuances of sweet fruit and a sharp tang of tartness, this exhilarating combination of flavors makes this brew a Monkey all its own. Respect the Monkey and taste Victory!

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.74
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 1 pint 9.4 fl. oz. corked and caged bottle, bottled on 1st July 2015… wow, pulled from the cellar just over 3 years old. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy light copper colour with a less than half finger white head that disappeared almost immediately while leaving behind some sparse lacing.
Aroma: Tart, grape, prunes, plum, apple and lemon with maybe some light funk.
Taste: Sour, tart, grape, prunes, lemon and apple cider.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Not bad, but there didn’t seem to be much complexity to it. Not getting much funk or wood. It was just straight sour and fruit. I was very surprised that it was 9.5% ABV though, as it did not feel anywhere near that at all.

4 - Good (buy), 8 Wired Brewing Co., Beer Reviews, New Zealand, Wild Ale

8 Wired Snake Charmer

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Brewery: 8 Wired Brewing Co.
Country: New Zealand
ABV: 7.7%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Barrel aged Sour Ale with blackcurrants. 2017 vintage

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A sour ale brewed the traditional way. Aged in Pinot Noir barrels for two years with Blackcurrants and a bunch of microbes, creating a complex melange of funk, fruit and tartness.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.11
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 500ml bottle, 2017 vintage, with a best before date of 19th February 2026. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A clear reddish orange colour with an almost three finger slightly off white head that dissipated fairly quickly and left only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Lightly tart, blackcurrant, Ribena, oak, vanilla and funk.
Taste: Pretty much exactly what you get in the aroma, sour and tart, blackcurrant, Ribena, mixed berries, oak, vanilla and funk.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with spritzy moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: Great fruit flavours with strong barrel character. Just really good to drink.