white pepper | Brewerianimelogs (Anime and Beer Lore)

Rating: 5.5/6

2016 Hoarders Cuvee by The Bruery Terreux is a 12% Sour Blonde ale aged in oak barrels with Honey, and Wheatwine ale aged in Bourbon Barrels with Coconut, Hibiscus, Rose Hips and White Pepper

Label:
An invitation to join our Hoarders Society is the ultimate nod in how far you’ve come in your craft beer journey. Each year as a member, you get access to some of the most elusive and exclusive beers (such as this) and one-of-a-kind experiences, like going toe-to-toe with your peers in blending sessions exclusive to Hoarders.

This Cuvee is as dynamic as the members it competed against to gain top bragging rights in the Hoarders Cuvee blending tournament and be produced by Bruery Terreux in 2016. Designed by Hoarders Society members Kyle Landig, Paul Moore, Cory Townsend and Andy Williams, this Cuvee begins with one of the cornerstones of Bruery Terreux – our oak-aged sour blonde ale. We then premier a new ingredient in a packaged product for the first time in our company’s history: honey. Together with coconut, these two catapult the rich, barrel character found in our bourbon barrel-aged wheatwine ale, which is the second beer in the blend. Hibiscus, rose hips and white pepper balance the oaky, sweet and sour profile, adding a degree of spice and herbal characteristics to the dynamic blend.

==Introduction==

I obtained this beer from the Bruery Reserve as they were having a sale and happened to allow a Hoarders beer to be purchased. While I did try the Bruery’s version of the Cuvee, now I bring forth the Terreux version of the 2016 Cuvee. Amazingly, the Cuvee from the Bruery was far up there as being a one of the best I have ever had. I hope I can say the same for this one. Let’s take a look and see if it is worth seeking out, cheers!

Aromas:
Floral notes of hibiscus, rose notes, lavender, honey, tropical fruit, stone fruit, mild toasted coconut, wine grapes, biscuit bread, vanilla, toasted coconut, chocolate hints and bourbon oak.

Flavors:
Rich oak, Lemon peel, hibiscus, roses, floral hops, lavender, honey, Bourbon, toasted coconut, stone fruit peach apricot, lychee, biscuit bread, vanilla, cocada Mexican coconut candy notes, sweetened condensed milk, strawberries, kiwi, cherries, dragon fruit, passion fruit, lychee fruit, cane sugar, sour apples, wine grapes, Chardonnay, raspberries, white chocolate notes, oranges, tangerine hints, super lactic funk and white wine.

Aftertaste:
Finishes dry with floral notes, coconut, lemon peel, vanilla, oak, honey, oranges, hibiscus, strawberries and biscuit bread. No Alcohol in the taste, clear rose and golden body, crisp, refreshing and effervecent mouthfeel with a sipping drinkability.

Overall:
While it is exceptional and very delicious, I think the balance is the only thing that keeps it from being at the highest it could be. It is mainly tart and the sweetness is here and there but you can still tell there is a lot of complexity in this one. While I feel many who love sours will definitely enjoy this one, if you mainly love sours for its extreme sourness, then this one is an awesome one for you.

Anime Corner:
Aeris Gainsborough from Final Fantasy VII was chosen in this beer since I have yet to review a beer with Aeris but mainly since her colors fit well with the colors and ingredients of the beer. This beer is full of flowers and Aeris is a flower girl so I figure it was the most perfect pairing especially a beer such as this one, the golden cuvee.

Sources:
http://i.imgur.com/Z7iVoXe.jpg
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/76/d5/a1/76d5a1334bf885972c8dec13d4511e32.jpg
http://img2.yiihuu.com/860X860/upimg/courses/2016/04/19/1-1461034043-529785.jpg?auto=h
http://images.forwallpaper.com/files/images/6/6c04/6c049fbc/100568/aerith-gainsborough.jpg
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/93/b9/b7/93b9b7af4b08eab0082ac228b2d2a8b2.jpg

Rating: 4.25/5

Saison Blanc by The Lost Abbey is a 5.5% ABV American Farmhouse Ale/ Saison brewed with Golden raisins and white pepper

Label:
It’s honest brutal work out there in the fields. There’s no shade between you and the land needing to be farmed. Harvest time brings longer days spent toiling under the fiery sun as sweat and dust bake mud cakes on your face. All day every day, it’s always the same. Been that way for years and it’s not changing anytime soon.

Your family has been turning this soil since your daddy was knee high to the grasshoppers and your son will soon learn the important of this earthen existence as well. Someday, he’ll pass your work ethic on to his son. And the pulse of this land will continue beating. Without families and farms there would be no crops. Without barley, there would be no beer. Neither is a world we want to live in. So as you CAREFULLY pop this cork, please pause to reflect on those who reap what they sow enabling us to have amazing bottles of beer at the end of each day…
___

Picked this one up at Ramirez Liquors. A Lost Abbey beer doesn’t go by that I don’t review. Unless it is a super exclusive box set that offsets you a grand just to get. While that idea was awesome I would have loved to review the box set, I will leave that story for another day. Anyways, they are known for awesome raisins they use to make their beers, like judgment day ale for example. This offering is made with Golden Raisins and white pepper, so it should be good I hope.

Aromas start with the nice floral, spice and fruity notes. Definitely sweet golden raisins, white grapes, peach, pear, apples, biscuit bread, pepper corns, champagne, white wine, flowers, hibiscus, citrus, lime, grassy and piney hop notes.

The flavors are or golden grapes, banana, phenol, cloves, bread, grassy, floral and piney hop presence, white peppercorns, coriander spice, brettanomyces, green apples, apricot, white wine, flowers, hibiscus, waffle cone, Belgian sweet bread yeast and hay.

The aftertaste leaves like bready, buttery, hoppy with flowers and fruity sweetness. It is a full bodied beer even at 5.5%ABV. It is pretty refreshing but with moderate drinkability

Overvall, it was a very good beer with very good flavors. However, in terms of distinguishing itself from others I have tried in the past, well it doesn’t do it for me. Worth a try but even for the $5 price tag, you can definitely get yourself a different saison that may be just as awesome or even better. I am looking at Stillwater Artisanal. A great job none the less, it delivers a pretty awesome and solid offering of a saison but nothing too overwhelming or unexpected.