Tag Archives: sour grapes

2011 Project Bourbonic Plague by Cascade Brewing

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1888652_10101647503521700_1062009294_n 1601349_10101647504195350_1981199463_n 999398_10101649156324470_562184422_nRating: 6/5

2011 Project Bourbonic Plague by Cascade Brewing is a 12% ABV North West Style Sour ale aged in oak barrels and spices.

Label:
This NW style sour ale is a blend of spiced Double Porters that were aged in Bourbon and Wine Barrels for 18months before aging on dates and spices for up to an additional 12 months. This hand-packed and bottle conditioned sour ale should be served at 40 degrees Fahrenheit. 
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Obtained from bringonthebeer.com and a rare specimen at that, this ale is a conundrum and a hybrid all of its own. I have not had a sour aged in wine oak and bourbon and let alone one aged in wine as well. Lots of work and preparation time spent in this little complex gem.

Aromas:
Red Wine, dark chocolate, dark fruits of raisins, cherries, plums, blue berries, currants, dates, caramel, vanilla, oak, bourbon, coconut, funky sour grapes, port wine, cinnamon, fruit cake, flan, almond joy, fudge brownie, brettanomyces, stone fruits like apricot, peaches and lychess, molasses, fancy wine aromas, flowers and other stuff, damn.

Flavors:
Rich flow of crazy complexity! Red wine, sour grape notes, Chocolate covered currants, tart dark Cherries, raisins, plums, prunes, blue berries, black berries, dates, apples, apricots, pears, oak, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, fudge brownies, peaches, flan, cinnamon, brown sugar, fruit cake, rye bread, dulce de leche caramel, coffee and mocha notes as it warms up, key lime pie, hints of peppercorn, mild brandy and more sweet stuff.

Aftertaste:
Lingering wine and bourbon, caramel, mild sour notes, raisin bread, tart cherries and sugar. NO alcohol in the taste, surprisingly and also moderate to sipping drinkability. Yes this is pretty smooth surprisingly.

Overall:
The best sour ale I have ever had aside from my favorite sour like Jolly Pumpkin’s Madrugada Obscura. Most sours don’t exceed my expectations but damn, this is just above and beyond! The flavors are really complex where at some point you feel like sour tart cherries, then wine, then sweet chocolate, then bourbon then caramel, then flan, then… damn! This should not even be categorized as a major sour beer as it really is more than that to the point where people that do not love sours will find some kind of crazy appreciation for this poison in a bottle, that’s, this is just the poison you need. At some points I thought this felt like Chocolate Rain if it went sour…lmao!!

Anime Corner:
Midna from Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess and Dead Master from Black Star Rock Shooter were the perfect poisons I mean pairings for this beer. The colors as well as the magic Midna uses like casting a spell is what is used to make this liquid death very tasty. Same for the Dead Master in her dark green castle background. Midna is another favorite character of mine as well so the pairing did the beer justice in show casing several aspects of witchery, the plague and medieval times too. Dead Master represents the aspect of death which the bubonic plague brings.

Sans Pagaie (2013 version) by The Bruery

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1173614_10101623065490710_1627293482_nRating: 4.45/5

Sans Pagaie (2013 version) by The Bruery is a 5.4% ABV Sour Blond Ale aged in Oak with Cherries. 

Label:
UP A KRIEK
We added loads of cherries to this sour blonde ale, giving it a color as bright as its flavors. 
Sans Pagaie is best enjoyed fresh, until then, please store in a cool dark place.

COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION (ratebeer.com)
French for “without a paddle”, Sans Pagaie is our take on a Belgian Kriek. We added an incredible amount of cherries (whole and pureed) to this sour blonde ale and then we decided to add more. The result is a well balanced fruited sour ale, perfect on it’s own, even better with a slice of chocolate cake. 5.8% ABV, Cellerable for up to 3 years. 
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Up the Kriek without a paddle is what this beer is about. The river of cherries is long flow of sweet and sourness. This beer was released last year and one could buy it from the Bruery. It is an yearly seasonal release. I tried this one last time and I thought it was pretty good as the cherries were more forward than the sour oak. Now this is the bottle one, let’s see how it fairs.

Aromas:
Strawberry,Cherry and vanilla Mexican Flour Atole, caramel biscuit bread, then the funky sour wine grapes and lactic acid notes kick in, sour apples, pears, oak, cherry cobbler, Hibiscus, roses and brown sugar.

Flavors:
Dark Cherry yogurt but then the funky sourness takes over. Cherry pie, Mexican coconut alfafor sugar block, vanilla, lemons, apples, sour grapes, oak, hibiscus wine notes, barnyard hay, spices and coriander.

Aftertaste:
Cherry and coconut flavor seems to linger along with the sour wine grapes and barnyard hay. It is a sipping beer as it is a sour but there is no alcohol in the taste.

Overall:
A very good beer if you enjoy digging through sours. I was surprised by this one because it smelled sweet and it was sweet until the sourness kicked in. Lucky, there is enough sweet to balance it out from being just pure sour. Like I said, if you don’t like sours, you won’t like this one.

Anime Corner:
Milla Maxwell from Tales of Xillia 2 was chosen in this pairing to showcase her colors in this artwork to pair with the colors of the label but also the flavors of the beer. Which are the sweet and tart cherries, coconut alfafor, and all the flavors which then proceed into purple or the funky wine grape and oak flavors of the beer. She is normally a blonde girl as well so with the addition of cherries which makes her hair red, pink, purple and some yellow definitely compliments Sans Pagaie.

Rueze by the Bruery

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1505000_10101588086643600_1672602365_nRating: 4/5

Rueze by the Bruery is a 5.6% ABV Gueuze Style ale or sour Blond aged in oak barrels 

Label:
Oud Gueuzie

Our take on a gueuze-style ale, this intensely tart and funky beer combines three different vintages of our barrel aged sour blonde ale.

Rueuze is suitable for aging up to five years when cellared properly
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Received this one as part of the preservation society series but is also made widely available to many markets. I have seen it in many places during the season and for many, this beer is an awesome sour.

Aromas:
Lemon, citrus, sour white grapes, grapefruit, biscuit bread, sour apples, floral notes, hints of berries, oak, apricot, hay, barnyard funk, must, and vanilla sweetness 

Flavors:
Lots Lemon peel, citrus, apricot, sour grapes, pears, oak, flowers, hints of berries, tart pears, funky brettanomyces, wet hay, vanilla, cheese and crackers.

Aftertaste:
Tart grapes, cheese and cracker notes, citrus and oak. It is a moderate to sipping beer. No alcohol in the taste.

Overall:
If you do not like sour, you may find this beer to be difficult one. If you love to explore deep into the sour flavors, then this may be one for you. For the most part it is very good only if you enjoy sours.

Anime Corner:
Irma and Elina from Queen’s Blade were used in this pairing with the beer to show case several things. First, the colors from Irma and Elina cover some of the colors of the beer label. Second, When I think of the word Rueze, I think of 2 things. First Rueze almost sounds like rust which makes me think metal and this is representative of their armor and second, Rueze almost sounds like truce in which case they will eventually need to call it that way if they are to end the battle. The harshness of the sour blond flavors is the harshness of Elina’s Strike of the spear in Irma which causes here to make a last minute parry with her swords but it manages to pierce or tear up her so called armor.