BFM Cuvée du 7ème

Brewed by BFM (Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes)
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Saignelégier, Switzerland

Bottle courtesy of bstill. Pours ruby red and relatively flat. Smells of peppermint, cloves, citrus, cherries. Taste is fruity with nutty undertones. Very smooth and light mouthfeel. This is the second beer I’ve tasted from this brewer and they are definitely high on my radar now.

In short: A wild, dry and tart hoppy beer. Different and exquisite.
How: This rating is for a 750ml of the 2006 version drank late 2007. I also sampled the 2004 version (4.2/5) at a tasting session and it was quite different.
The look: Cloudy dark copper body topped by a little off-white ring of foam.
In long: Nose of apricots and those little dried oranges cubes. Right from the start you know you’re in for something different. Grainy and floury malts with a light caramel presence. Fruity notes are dried oranges, red grapefruits, pineapples, and other acidic/tart fruits. Strong pepper and coriander presence. But it is its unusual hops profile and kind-of-wild yeast signature really set this one apart. A distant reminder of my beloved Hitachino Classic Ale. An amazing different hop fix. Overall very tart and rather dry (sawdust) with a nice wilderness. Hard to describe. The problem is that it is quite expensive and if I drink that on a regular basis I’ll end-up as broke as broke as a hooker at a star-trek convention.

The aroma is powerful and pleasing: sour apple, caramel, grass. Pours with a very dense creamy tan head . Upon tasting I found this beer SO well balanced! One need not strain to detect individual flavors - they are spread out in vivid technicolor: tangy citrus peel, sweet and mellow cake-like malts, and grassy, day at the park hops. Also detected a little spice and a little yeast funk. It’s like an extra rich Saison! In fact this is kinda like Fantome’s Bris Bon-Bon, but a little more interesting, if not quite luxurious in terms of mouthfeel. Unlike many Biere de Gardes, this beer doesnt seem overstuffed with the toungue fireworks. Well done! Highly recommended..

Bottled, thanks Bov! Cloudy amber, lively head. Tart and lemony with some caramel. Vinous with red berries, prunes and freshening acidity. Russian River-like tartness and complexity. A fantastic beer!

13.12.06 750ml bottle, 2006 edition. Those who thought their bottle was #276 might like to know that mine is 276 as well, so, I’m just sayin, I don’t think that’s a bottle number. I had much lower expectations of this brew, and I certainly don’t recall enjoying it quite as much in the past as I am enjoying this bottle right here. First of all, it’s beautiful with a giant beige head, clouded amber brown, and sheeting lace. The aromas are the highlight, for sure, with the floral perfumes of both hops and yeast, fresh cut wood, mild citrus, oh my. The body is full, creamy, and coating. It’s especially round and juicy for a BdG, I think, and with bold flavors. There is a distinct, almost methodical progression of intoxicating flavors here -- beginning with soft wood notes, apple skins, and muscat, rounding over the middle with sweet fruits, peach, mild barnyard funk, and earthy hops, and finishing briskly bitter and floral with strong biting citrus and soothing, coating mineral notes. Late and lingering spice notes (clove) are welcome and unexpected. Gorgeous brew. If it was half the price, I’d drink it three times as often.

Strong caramel and doughy malts are tempered by herbal, spicy, piquante hops in the aroma. Opaque, burnished copper coloured body is topped by a decent and lasting, fine bubbled, tan head that leaves some sudsy lacing. Caramel malts and herbal, floral, earthy, perfumey hops each have a chance to shine in the incredibly balanced yet assertive flavour. Earthy and woody notes are strong. Mineralic quality like a rock drying in the hot sun after a quick rain shower with pine trees and bracken. Medium body with strong, lively yet soft bubbled carbonation that engages the tongue and opens up the tastebuds. More please? Sampled at Mondial 2006.

750. 2006. Beer is hazy medium brown with a huge, frothy, off-white, diminishing, mostly lasting head.<P> The aroma is really pleasing. Malty with moderate notes of toasted grain, creme brulee, shortbread cookie; Hoppy with moderate notes of herb, lemon zest; Yeasty with moderate note of basement; Moderate-to-heavy notes of brown sugar, warm alcohol. Light notes of tropical fruit, spicy pear. Less-than-trace note of rubber.<P> The flavor is heavily bitter, moderately sweet with a long, slightly warm, moderately bittersweet finish. Top-soil & anise in the retros.<P>The body is medium, the texture is watery and the carbonation is lively.

2006 Bottle. Head is initially large, frothy, rocky, off-white, fully lasting. Body is hazy dark amber, bottle conditioned. Aroma is moderately malty (cooked caramel, cookie, toasted bread), lightly to moderately yeasty (cobwebs), lightly hoppy (flowers), with notes of cave earth, peach/nectarine, light note of alcohol, pomegranate, candied tropical fruits. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, lively carbonation, lightly alcoholic. Really fruity and enticing aroma, very very sexy. The flavor isn’t as rich and satisfying as Bavaisienne, but this was really delicious.