Big Sky Kriek Ale

Brewed By: Big Sky Brewing Company in Missoula, Montana

Purchased: 750ml bottle from Binny's in IL; 2013 purchase, 2010 Vintage (0864 of 3600)

Style/ABV: "Kriek" / Fruit Beer, 10.0%

Reported IBUs: 15

Every now and then you take one for the team....tonight's beer was in the clearance section of Biiieennie's. 2010 Vintage, green bottle and all. So I rolled the dice without reading any reviews. Let me back up for two seconds before I dive into this beer. About Big Sky:

Big Sky Brewing is the largest brewery in Montana, and distributes beer to 23 states. They produce 33,000 barrels annually, and have been around since 1995. The brewery was founded by Neal Leathers, Bjorn Nabozney, and  Brad Robinson. As with most of these origin stories, Brad and Neal were homebrewers. In the early 90s they worked at a Sportsmen's Surplus and High Country Sports, and they met Bjorn. Unimpressed by the local beer, Brad and Neal began to explore beer more widely, and became interested in opening their own brewery. With Bjorn's business chops, the trio brewed their first batch of beer in mid-June of 1995. The company was a draft-only brewery for its first five and a half years, until January 2003 when they moved to a larger brewing location. To read more about the brewery, check out their history page HERE.

Now...I do like Big Sky. Their Moose Drool is a very nice beer, and is probably due for an updated review. But tonight's beer is a hot, confused mess from the get-go. Billed as a Kriek, the bottle states that this beer starts as a Belgian Style Golden Ale, is then aged with organic cherries from the Orchard at Flathead Lake, and is then aged with more cherries for 3-months-plus in French oak wine barrels. It's unclear if this is even has wild yeast, and the 10% ABV is crazy stacked. The base beer is a Belgian Strong Ale...but this does use Pale and Malted Wheat malts, and Hallertau Tradition hops. The reviews haven't been so great, but I'm approaching this like a fruit beer. Here's to hoping this is just a bad Kriek and not a bad beer.

The cork came off with a satisfying, "POP!" It was followed by a chimney of smoke, and all I could think was, "I'm glad I opened this over a sink." Yeah...this one gushed, so I rushed to pour it into my glass. The rushed pour probably exaggerated the head, as I kicked up 2 to 3 fingers at first, but it RAPIDLY dissolved with audible, violent fizzing. The whole beer is fizzling away, in the bottle and in the glass. In lower light, the body is a swampy brown/red/purple, with a red/brown-tinted head. When held to a bright light, the body is a murky/swampy orange, with lots of carbonation streaming upwards. There is a ring of head hanging around the top, and of course there are legs on this. The amount of carbonation still streaming upwards is crazy....I'm surprised this beer didn't go rogue and blow up like a grenade. Dem champagne bottles.

All you need to know about this beer is revealed by the aroma. This smells much more like Dogfish Head's Fort than it does a Kriek. I'm sorry, but advertising IS part of presentation and that does matter. Sprite-like carbonation is dancing off the surface of this, tingling my nose. It's like touching your nose to an old CRT-TV, or feeling a light mist. I'm getting nice fruit: cherries, raspberry, cherry skins, light honey, malt sweetness, and a touch of pleasant/mild wood. There's even a hint of oak on the nose. The nose smells fine...

Big Sky Kriek Ale

...the taste is definitely sub-par. My initial thought is, "oh hey, this is slightly oxidized." Why? How? What? I guess it has been 2 or 3 years, and this beer wasn't stored in ideal conditions by any means. You get astringent Windex up front, with some cough syrup cherry on the back. Between those two horrors is a beer that has potential. I'm getting nice raspberry, cherry, raspberry puree, some tea/herbal character, and hints of faded wood. It's wine-like at times, in fact. But those nice features fade into failure and broken dreams. You're reminded of those nights when your Russian babysitter would drink bottles of cough syrup, pace around the house cursing in Russian, and then spray you with Windex. 

For a hand grenade, the carbonation doesn't really follow through. Yes, this is tingly and spritzy like a Belgian Ale, but it's kind of dull. The mouthfeel is medium-full, with unfortunate stickiness, unpleasant astringency, and yeah. The 10.0% ABV isn't the roadblock, it's the beer. Ergo, complexity and palate depth are both between "meh" and "who cares." You get sweet malts, Windex, and cherry astringency up front; this follows with reasonable cherry/raspberry puree...and then fades to cough syrup dreams (without the fun dreams you get if you drink lots of cough syrup). 

Rating: Below-Average (2.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Below-Average here. I'm not a big fan of drain pours, but fuck me. Life is short, man. This is 10.0%!!!! And it's not that shitty of a night. If I wanted to get wasted, sure, this would be okay...but so would malt liquor. I'm not even going to recommend food pairings. Don't buy this beer! Even if you see it discounted for $Free-ninety-five. Don't do it! Go buy up a sixer of Moose Drool instead, because that beer is...the tits. 

Random Thought: This is a Fruit Beer. A Fruit Beer. A beer made with fruit, aged in barrels. #LEAVEBELGIANALONE

New Belgium Transatlantique Kriek (Lips of Faith - 2013)

Brewed By: New Belgium Brewing Company (with Brewerij Boon) in Fort Collins, Colorado

Purchased: 22oz bomber from Binny's in Illinois; 2013

Style/ABV: Fruit Lambic/Kriek, 8.0%

Reported IBUs: 8

For tonight's beer, New Belgium teamed up with the folks at Brewerij Boon (makers of Boon Kriek and Boon Framboise) to make a spontaneously fermented lambic ale with cherries. About New Belgium:

New Belgium is based out of Fort Collins, and opened in 1991 when founder Jeff Lebesch took his home-brewing into the commercial world. For reference, New Belgium is the thrid-largest craft brewery in the United States. You can read more about New Belgium if you check out their website.

This is a big beer, clocking in at 8.0% ABV. If you roll over to New Belgium's Transatlantique Kriek page, you can get the breakdown of this beer. This beer is a blend of two beers, a 45% ale with cherries added to "55% ale." The ale with cherries is a spontaneously fermented lambic ale made with Polish cherries, aged in oak vessels at the Boon brewery (in the Lembeek region of Belgium). The "55% ale" is a "full-bodied golden lager to round out the light-bodied kriek." All-in-all, this uses Willamette hops; pale, red wheat, carapils, and roasted barley malts; lager yeast[?]; and Wise cherries. The flavor profile is described as sour with green apple, lactic, acetic/vinegar, and biley. Let's see how this one works out...

New Belgium Transatlantique Kriek 2013

This beer pours a comical soda-red color, like Big Red, with one to two fingers of fizzly, pink head. There's a lot of effervescence, as you can see carbonation streaming upwards. The head peaces out pretty quickly, leaving a filtered, bright red beer in bright light. Depending on the lighting, the head is more red/pink/white. Apples...how about them.

The aroma is a bit more nuanced than I was expecting. I'm definitely getting some woody oak, barnyard, Brett funk, hay blanket, bile, and mild vinegar sourness. There's some apple skin, cherry skin, tart fruit skins...and then a layer of sweeter cherries. There's maybe a hint of leather...I already prefer this to the Boon Kriek. 

This tastes like a muted sour, with earthy Brett funk, light oak/wood, bready malts, toffee/caramel, and some light nuttiness coming forward. You get lightly sour/acidic cherries, apples, and vinegar up front, with more malt in the middle. There's some cherry pie sweetness in the mix, with pie filling, and sweeter cherries. I'm also getting some light solvent-booze on this. 

This has light carbonation, with a light-full to medium-light mouthfeel. Palate depth is kind of meh, complexity is good. It's very drinkable for 8.0%...with just a hint of alcohol heat. This one seems to get bogged down a bit, and veers into watery territory...then it snaps back. You get tart cherries up front, immediately followed by bread/toffee/caramel and sugary cherries; that rolls into some light bile, Brett, earthy funk, cherries, oak/wood/leather; the back end is sweeter cherries, lingering toffee/bread. 

Rating: Average (3.0/5 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Average on this beer. This is kind of okay...enjoyable at times, but not blowing me away. It's a bit strange to pull out some solvent/fusel alcohol on this, and the fruit could stand out more. The funk is nice, and the amount of sourness seems appropriate. I guess, at around 14-17 dollars a bomber, I couldn't recommend this over the various Belgian offerings you would likely be able to find. However, the amount of work required to make this beer does seem to warrant the price. I'm not even mad. This beer is kind of wine-like, so I'd pair it with a steak, strong cheeses, tartar, maybe a burger with mushrooms, and maybe even some mussels. The La Folie brought the sour...this one needs to bring the cherries. 

Random Thought: Though, I should give this beer credit for not veering into artificial sweetness/fake cherry land. The cherries in this taste legit, and are never cough syrupy or medicinal (in my opinion). Maybe I'll try this again sometime down the road... 

Goose Island Madame Rose

Brewed By: Goose Island Beer Company (owned by AB InBev) in Chicago, Illinois

Purchased: 22oz bomber bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2012 (bottled 7/31/12)

Style/ABV: Flanders Oud Bruin/American Sour Ale, 7.1% 

Reported IBUs: 25

Tonight I'm looking at Goose Island's Madame Rose. This beer is a "Brown Ale aged in French oak Cabernet Sauvignon barrels with the addition of Michigan cherries and heavily inoculated with Brettanomyces." Goose Island suggests giving this beer to Bordeaux enthusiasts, and beer drinkers fond of Belgian Kriek and Flanders Brown Ales. This beer is sort of like a Flanders Brown, but not really. Anyway, about Goose Island:

Goose Island is a Chicago-based brewery that began as a brewpub on Clybourn, which opened on May 1988. The actual brewery opened on 1995, and is located on the Southwest side of Chicago. The second brewpub, located in Wrigleyville by the Chicago Cubs, was opened in 1999. On March 28, 2011, Goose Island sold 58% of the brewery to Anheuser-Busch. The remaining 42% of the brewery is supposed to be acquired by A-B InBev in the future, and there has been much discussion about the brewery's takeover. On November 16th, founder and CEO, John Hall, announced he would be leaving Goose Island. On January 1st, 2012, Anheuser-Busch "veteran" Andy Goeler will take over Goose Island. Additionally, around the same time as John Hall's departure, resident barrel-program leader John Laffler also announced his departure from Goose Island. There have been many changes regarding Goose Island...so we will see what the future has in store for Goose Island. 

Since this beer is sort of Flanders Brown/Oud Bruin-inspired (with that Kriek thing), I'll go ahead and jot down what I've found on Oud Bruins. Flanders Brown Ales/Flemish Brown Ales/Oud Bruin/Old Brown Ales is a Flemish style of beer indigenous to East Flanders, which dates back to the 1600s. The Dutch name, "Oud Bruin/Old Brown," refers to the long brewing/aging process, which can take up to a year, plus additional time spent in secondary fermentation. The beer can also be bottle aged for extended periods of time. The extended brewing/aging allows the beer to pick up natural/wild yeast, which develop the sour characteristics typical to this style. This beer is typically not aged in oak (unlike the Flanders Red Ale); this beer is usually aged in stainless steel vessels. Traditionally/typically, the wild yeasts Saccharomyces, Lactobacillus, and Acetobacter all contribute to this style's flavor. This beer can also be brewed with a sour mash to help develop the sour character.

According to The Beer Connoisseur, because the Oud Bruin is often aged in stainless steel rather than oak, the brewing process is more controlled (since stainless steel doesn't harbor live bacteria, and the souring yeasts often come from controlled sources). As such, Oud Bruins may be used as base beers for fruit Lambics (like Krieks). You can consult the style guidelines, but overall, the Flanders Brown Ale is less acetic, and maltier than a Flanders Red, and the fruit flavors are balanced with the malt.

All things considered, I don't think the Madame Rose is quite a straight up Flanders Brown. Goose Island mentions Belgian Kriek when they describe this beer. Belgian Kriek is a style of beer where Lambic is fermented with cherries. The Madame Rose is a "Belgian style brown ale," fermented with wild yeast, and aged on cherries in wine barrels. It seems a lot like an Oud Bruin, aged on cherries (like a Kriek), with a bit of an American twist. Clocking in at 7.1% ABV, and packing 25 IBUs, this beer is brewed with Fuggle hops; and 2-row, caramel, wheat, dark chocolate, and victory malts. This beer is bottle conditioned, and will develop in the bottle for up to 5 years (and maybe longer?). Suggested food pairings for this beer include red meats, rich chocolate desserts, and aged cheddar. 

Goose Island Madame Rose

This one pours out a brown/purple color that is very cola-esque. I barely kicked up a pinky's worth of struggling, bubbly, brown head. The head has settled into a funky, murky, cauldron effect...it's like the beer version of the designs on a cappuccino. Bright light highlights the swampy/murky and brown/unfiltered body of this beer. The head is ivory/tan, and you can see a lot of carbonation in the form of tiny bubbles.

The aroma here is really nice, and I'm glad I've been on a bit of a sour/wild/Brett kick lately. This beer has some nice underlying Brett notes, with some band-aid and worn leather. I'm also getting sour cherries, sour, a dash of apple cider vinegar, and a ton of wood/Cabernet, and maybe a dash of woody oak. Other aromas include apples, berries, must, a hint of acetone. The dominant aromas are sour cherries, Brett, and huge Cabernet/wine/wood. This one definitely leans towards sour on the aroma (at this point in time).

Even in the eight months since I've last had this, this has changed towards more sour, with just a hint of sour candy ala Warhead/Sour Patch Kids. Overall though, it's more tart, with some apple cider vinegar, acetic Cabernet, and nice malt and sweet cherries to smooth things out. This is finishing uber dry. I'm getting wood, wine, and cherry skin/tart up front. There's some must, and worn leather in here, along with a ton of cherries. Cherry skin, meaty cherries, and a flash of cherry pie filling. You get some caramel/toffee/bread malt sugars in here balancing everything out, but after the hint of sweet cherries, this veers towards tart again and finishes dry.

This is very drinkable, even refreshing, and the 7.1% is absolutely non-existent in this. The mouthfeel is medium to medium-full, and this has lots of tartness, with flashes of sour, and big acetic Cabernet/oak/wood. There is some sweetness abound as well, but it all finishes super dry. Palate depth is good, and complexity is good. This has some nice potential to age. Up front is fruity cherries, cherry skin, hints of sour candy; this rolls into malts and leather; the back end is trailing malt and sweetness with a fade to dry finish.

Rating: Above-Average

I gotta go with a Strong Above-Average on this. This would be a great Cabernet substitute, and the oak/wood/cherry thing would go great with red meats. I would love to pair this with some flank steak, filet mignon, or even a medium-rare burger with some aggressive cheese. The only caveat to this beer is the availability. I won't even complain about the price, which ranges from 18 to 25 bucks a bottle, depending on if you hit up Binny's vs. the mom and pop shops. I stumbled upon this at Jewel...and paid around 20 dollars a bottle. For something aged in wine barrels on cherries, the price seems about right. I'd trade for this or seek it out. I reserve the right to revisit this and re-rate this. 8 months ago, this was a light Above-Average. In a year or two? Who knows.

Random Thought: Another week, another snow storm. We are supposed to get pounded with 4 to 8+ inches of snow tomorrow! Woo! During rush hour too. That's good and bad...it's good in that I will likely open a wintery beer. I do want to move forward to Spring, however.