Pizza Port Cuvee de Tomme

Brewed by Port Brewing/Lost Abbey
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
San Marcos, California USA

C-Bus 7 Bottle shared by moejuck: Pours amber with an off white head. Aroma, caramel, some spice, oaky. Flavor, slight smoke, caramel, fruity, tart, yeasty, a hint of tobacco. That the first batch. Also had an ’07 bottle that was more oaky, and boozy, with a bit more heat, not as soft as the older bottle.

COMPLETLY FLAT. I bought this at there 1st aniv. Not that it must have a head or anything like that, but just a tiny bit of bubbles to bring out that amazing aroma. I mean just a tiny head, wouldve made this beer a perfect 5!. Also i would catagorize it as a BSA. Its much more of a Kriek/Lambic a Flemish Sour or even a Barleywine. The flavors in this liquid are pure heaven... In order of apperance are: Sour Cherries, Peaches, Vanilla, Oak, Yeast, Raisins, Plums, tobacco, lactobacilus, earth and champagne... and that was just the first sip! It matures changes and gets even more complex as you keep trying to figure out whats in this. The palate, apart from the obvious lack of life, is actually pretty smooth and velvety, no alcohol noticeable but it does give more of a wine palate than an ales. The finish is sweet and tart with some brettanomyces and dryness at the end. Incredibly complex and creative, i really wish it was a fluke and the second bottle i bought is better.

375 ml bottle. Wow this beer has a lot going on. First aromas out were the sour cherries. Backed with some lighter fruits such as apricots or mango. On the flavor there was at first some dark earthy flavors and raisin. The sour flavors were quick to join in with their cherry. Alcohol is barely even noticeable. Wow what a beer!

375ml bottle purchased at the Anniversary part on cinco de mayo. I’ve been wanting to crack this bad boy, and after two long days it is about time. The pour is dark brown with a thin white ring and wee bit of spiral island in the center. Wow the aroma is huge, potent and full of cherry and oak. The taste is bold complex and and i’ll agree with my fellow san diegan padrefan who I finally met at the event, that the taste has cherries, plums and apricots. It is sour but also pleseantly sweet. It leaves a remarkable feeling on the inside of the mouth. There is also a bit of a vinous red wine/sangria quality at the end of the taste. The taste really lingers in the mouth. Damn Tomme, nice work, this beer is uber complex.

375mL Bottle. May 2007 Release. Rosy rich, brandied nose of caramelized fig and walnut puree, jamming with a balsamic and strawberry coulis, swiftly tart and citric with stunning clarity and piquant musk. Could use some more strength and softness, but a beautiful floral bouquet nonetheless. The color of this beer is the most handsome blood red liquor alive, with capitulating fringes of gold and sunset orange. Rimmed in a tinted crisp line of goatskin. Deeply cored in crystalline clear ruby. Ah, heavenly carbonation. Wow, rushing a multitude of cataclysmic flavors upon the palate in unhurried abyss. A puckering Lambic sourness brightens up the front end with a totality of cherry juice and wildness. Acidity rise and evaporates into the sinuses, leaving a sheen of caramelized rum raisin cake on the roof of the mouth. The best part of this beer is the duality of both sourness and heavy-handed Belgian malt sugar. Truly the best of both worlds. Drying out towards the backend, with only slight alcoholic burps of heat. A peep of oxidation sidles in with an aged out EKG-like touch, which somehow seems out of place with this beer. Maybe I would have appreciated fully aged hops instead of the tired base beer’s hops? There’s some peculiar indescribable funk laying heavy on the smack. Subtle, yet active carbonation keeps the flavors popping on the tongue. The acidity on top of the largeness of the beer helps pare down the heat and barrel character. I could see how this could get rampantly over-acidic with time or barrel mismanagement. Faint edges of acetone. Lots of tangible acid notes, from fresh blood orange reduction, to palpable freshly squeezed Ruby Red Grapefruit and some musty 10-year balsamic. Everything melds so fantastically. I think it has the best unified flavor, having been borne of some many individual components. Big fermented Belgian, Sour Cherries, Brett, Barrel and time. All these elements melt together into an alchemical magic that makes this beer what it is. I can compare it only to Rodenbach Alexander, with this beer I pine for a little more cherry complexity and some earthiness from pits. Bravo Tomme. I’m glad to be able to give this a full workout without having been totally inebriated.


2001 North Vineyard. 750mL. Originally reviewed 5/7/2007. 5/10/5/10/20=5.0 Tomme produces an unlabeled bottle with cryptic Sharpie markings on the cap. According to him, an unreleased early vintage. Pouring into the glass a cherubic Indian ruby sapphire, glowing with clear glassy edges and a blood rim. Aroma carries one away into an overwhelming presence of intense red fruits from across the board, cherries and raisins percolate in the core of my brain. So bright, alive and refined. Absolutely stunning. Finally passing my lips, this lubricious liquid takes form as a mindnumbing shapeshifter. What first presents itself as a unmarked, world class malt and fruit chimeric belgian strong ale, quickly cloaks itself in a world of sourness. The best of both worlds! Trying to parse out the intricate corners of the beer, I’m at a loss, it’s all too much. Rodenbach Alexander quickly comes to mind. The fruit character so deft, real and upfront. Palate couldn’t be more satisfying, yet exacting. I’ll rate again with a bottle of the current batch, but I needed to expunge my thoughts with this rarest of gems.

Purchased this at Port 1st Anniversary. Poured a cloudy brown orange with no head. Aroma of sour cherries, oak, and raisins. Very strong taste of cherries and finishes with sweetness, and of course, tartness. A must have.

From 375 ml. purchased at the 1st anniversary at the brewery. Immediate smells hit the room as soon as the cork came out. Cherries, fresh cut daisies, roses, plums, and apricots. Poured a brownish purple, and had no head. Tastes of sour cherries, raisins, plums, and spices. Might be a bit young. It should age nicely. I dont think anyone will be dissapointed if they enjoyed this as soon as they received it. Very Very good.

Sampled at the woodshop Tasting. White Label. Poured a clear brown color with almost no head. Aroma was sour with some funk, cherry, oak and yeast. Flavor was sour funk and oak with a slightly thin body. Not much of the alcohol is noticable in the taste, but does have a tart finish.