Melbourn Brothers Apricot

Brewed by Melbourn Brothers (Samuel Smith)
Style: Lambic - Fruit
Stamford, England

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry, GregClow & tupalev -- courtesy of HogTownHarry. We had the Melbourn Brothers Cherry at a previous tasting and I loved it so I was looking forward to having this one followed by the Strawberry right afterwards. I was very dissapointed. Pours a clear pale gold with a spare diminishing white head. Aroma of -- wait is that what apricots smell like? I’m not crazy about that smell. There’s also some yeast in there. Flavour...wha’!?..no, I don’t like that much either, it’s an artificial and cloying fruity taste. There’s more fruit along with the apricot along with I think might be some hops. Medium bodied. Like I said at the beginning, this was quite the dissapointment, I hope the Strawberry fares better.

Bottle (500ml). Shared with blankboy, GregClow and tupalev - my bottle via DaveB. Poured clear pale gold with a decent foamy head. Incredibly sweet aroma, reeked of fruit (apricot and apple), maybe a light sourish cider in there, and an odd yeasty tang - not horrible, but really sweet. Taste is even sweeter - chemically preserved marmalde taste, nothing really making me think "beer" here - finishes a little harsh and sour. Mouthfeel sticky, thick, syrupy - not very good, really - the worst of the three (Cherry, Apricot, Strawberry).

Bottle, shared with Hogtown Harry, Blankboy, and GregClow. We had a bottle of the cheery last year and it pleasantly surprised, so we gave this one a shot. Not so much. Light yellow, no head. Artificial apricot aroma. Very strong artificial apricot taste. Not much else to say, it was cloying and not very good at all.

Golden and clear with a small head. Very sharp and sour aroma with just a faintest smell of apricot. Has some funky musty aromas also. Sweet and juicy in flavor with some finishing tartness. Beer for teenagers.

This lambic, unlike the strwberry is a little more yeasty, Aroma and taste is more subtle, apricot taste come from the back than the front. Average.

The aroma was unexpected. I detect butterscotch, yeast, apricot, and some sourness. The appearance is copper yellow with a small head. The flavor is an exact reflection of the aroma. The palate is average. Not bad but I was disappointed.

The bottle poured a beautiful, clear copper colored beverage with a small thick white head that lasted well and left good lacing on the glass. The moment I opened the bottle my nose was met with an aroma similar to that of apricot brandy. Upon closer examination, there were spice and grass notes in the background. The body was medium-full with soft carbonation and a smooth texture. The initial flavor was intensely sweet and tart at the same time to the point that it caused a shiver in me. The finish was long and the sweetness persisted throughout.

This beer is unbelievable! The smell, the taste, in fact it tastes so yummy you keep drinking more. The only downside is the price; you can just about buy a lambic kriek for the price of one bottle. It’s worth to me though.