Another group gathered for our monthly Top Shelf Thursday
tasting this past week, sampling ten beers that are a little off the beaten
path. We had enough response to The Sour
& The Funky tasting during Pittsburgh Craft Beer Week a month ago that we decided
to reprise the theme of sour & wild ales this time around, for those whose
schedules or budgets prohibited them from attending the main event, or those who
might have just wanted more. Though the
brews featured ran the spectrum from very sour to surprisingly sweet, the
criterion for inclusion was that the beer be fermented with some agent instead
of or in addition to saccharomyces, the yeast used to ferment most ales &
lagers. This could be some combination
of the “wild” yeast brettanomyces (brett), or souring bacteria. Brewers achieve this by intentionally
pitching these “bugs”, through spontaneous fermentation (such as lambic brewers
use), or aging in barrels with known micro-inhabitants.
Things got going with a trio of wheat-based beers, each very
different from the next. The first was
Whiteout from Anchorage Brewing, a Belgian-style witbier made with lemon peel,
black peppercorn, & coriander & aged in French chardonnay barrels with
brett. It was light & spicy, with
just a touch of tartness & hints of vanilla & oak that gave this
familiar style an interesting twist. The
Reserve Wheat from Telegraph Brewing delivered a more assertive sourness. Based on the sour German wheat style Berliner
weisse, the Reserve Wheat was rounded out by the addition of lemon verbena, a
shrub with a strong lemon scent. One of
the more challenging offerings was the Gueuze Fond Tradition from Brouwerij Van
Honsebrouck, a blend of multiple vintages of lambic. Gueuze typically carries a complex profile of
acidic sour & organically funky flavors, & while some in attendance thrilled
to the wild character, others found it to be too much & made their way to
the dump bucket.
We headed further into Belgian territory next, tasting
several Flanders-style sours – reds & oud bruins, characterized by a sweet/tart
balance & acetic flavors, reminiscent of vinaigrette. Many agreed that the Bellegems Bruin from
Brouwerij Bockor was a good introduction to this genus, as its delivery was
mellow & balanced while still hitting all the right notes. The Red Poppy, from The Lost Abbey in
California was a bit more intense, sour, & dry, emphasized by their use of sour
cherries & aging in oak barrels for a tannic quality. The Duchesse de Bourgogne, from Brouwerij
Verhaege, offered up a very round, full-bodied flavor, again with notes of
cherry, dark fruit, & balanced by a moderate vinegar pucker that was not
too harsh. It’s safe to say this was the
unofficial flight favorite – those new to the Duchesse really enjoyed it, &
those who’d had it before were looking forward to a revisit. This Flemish excursion ended with Goudenband
(“gold label” in Dutch) by Brouwerij Liefmans, a classic oud bruin that skewed
to the malty side, with some grape notes & an overall “darker” flavor.
The final three were very distinct, each showing some sour
or funk in their own way, beginning with Sour in the Rye from The Bruery. Made with 40% rye malt, this American wild
showed a little spiciness from the rye which was almost overwhelmed by the
intensely puckering & tannic profile imparted by aging in oak barrels for
over a year. Moving onto sweeter ground,
many found Cisco Brewers’ Pedaler Bike Path Blueblerry Bleer interesting. A blueberry ale aged in oak with brett &
other bugs, it had a lighter & airy character that some described as soapy,
floral, or perfumy – flavors not usually found in this style. Rounding off the evening was the eccentric
Goedenacht (“good night”, appropriately), made by Draai Laag Brewing right down
the road in Millvale. This strong Belgian-style
golden ale is made with apples, orange blossom honey, & coriander,
providing components of a mead & cider.
To add to the fun, it’s fermented with a farmhouse strain & brett,
though any brett character is fairly subdued by the other strong flavors
frolicking throughout the beer.
Goedenacht also has one of the more bizarre labels folks had seen, a
conversation piece in & of itself.
So there’s another fun evening of gathering & tasting in
the books! As always, not everyone liked
everything, but I don’t think anyone left feeling disappointed or cheated. There were some challenging brews, but
everyone found something to their liking, even those who admitted they were not
sour fans going in. It was interesting
to see, even in such a niche & esoteric family of beers, there’s enough
diversity & complexity that just about everyone can find something that
speaks to them.
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