Selins Grove The Phoenix Kriek

Brewed by Selins Grove Brewing Co.
Style: Fruit Beer
Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania USA

Crimson orange in color. Off-white head with pinkish hues settles into a tight, sticky fringe. Ripe black- and sour-pie cherry aromas with hints of raisins, straw, cinnamon and caramelized (Munich?) malt. Soft prickles of fuzzy carbonation. Tartness initially teases the palate but is largely neutralized by the fairly weighty residuals which outweigh much of the potential brightness. Explosively ripe surge of luscious cherries establishes itself alongside a peach-fuzz bitterness. Very little depth, however. Vague rubbery astringency develops late in the swallow. Phenols are entirely nonexistent, as is the malt which scarcely lends a slightly crunchy quality which resembles straw and crackers. Finishes with notes of black cherries and raisins, but overly brief as well as wet, unpleasantly rubbery and astringent. Those who rave about New Glarus Belgian Red will undoubtedly enjoy the authentic/fresh, albeit one-dimensional, cherry profile of this. Not really my bag, though, as it is rather flabby and lacking in dryness, depth, yeast character and assertive sourness. Malt also lacks definition. Should they inoculate some barrels with wild yeast, they will likely have great success as they are definitely on the right track.

Chocolate cherry aorm, cloudy red-brown body. Some tart cherry aroma. Big sweet cherry flavor (real cherry flavor rather than extract), some mellow chocolate malt. Light cherry tartness in back. Not really a kriek but a tasty fruit beer. Rich mouthfeel.

Growler thanks to Jason K! Poured a clear, deep sparkling garnet with a nice initial pink head. Aroma was sharp and vibrant with cherry pits, freshly-sliced apples, and chocolate.. soft and supple malt backing. Flavor was of tart cherry skins and pits along with sliced apples... semi-sweet chocolate provided a more-than-adequate backing.. very, very tasty! Great feel on the palate.. well-balanced and thicker.. almost syrupy at the long finish. Great one!

Out of a growler at C-Bus 7. This is a reddish beer with a small pinkish head. Very fresh cherry nose that reminds of cherry pie filling. Very natural, fresh cherry flavors, unlike the artificial cough syrup flavors in a lot of fruit beers. Tastes like a Hostess Fruit Pie. Some tartness that comes from the fruit. This is a very nice use of fruit in beer. It is one dimensional, but it is a good dimension.

Growler sampled approximately 1 week after being filled, May 2007
Pours with an opaque, quite hazy, dark purple, yet still cherry red color. The pour from the growler easily summons forth a three-finger thick, pinkish, light tan colored head. The aroma is quite cherry driven; chewy-cherry skin notes lend a fullness to the dominant sweet cherry candy-like nose. The aroma really reminds me of the cherry character in a well made batch of cherry ice-cream. My guess is that these are not sour cherries, but they still smell fairly enticing in this beer.

The beer is lightly sweet up front, but thankfully not sticky or syrup-like in texture or sweetness. There is a nice level of tartness here, though not to the level of a Lambic. The chewy cherry skin character from the aroma is in the flavor, though not quite as prominent as in the nose. There seems to be a hint of plastic phenolics character that is lying just underneath the surface here; it is just barely noticeable though. This beer is very cherry focused, somewhat similar (perhaps even inspired by) to New Glarus Belgian Red, though I don’t think it is quite as sweet, nor as tannic & chewy as that beer. The beer is fairly well carbonated, which adds a touch of zesty prickly character. This helps to lighten the thick chewy character a bit. I do like that this beer is fairly thick & rich; it makes it sort of like a dessert, but not necessarily a sweet one.

This is quite a nice beer, I would love to see this fermented more towards the Lambic side of the spectrum, but that would ruin the hearty desert quality of this beer.

Courtesy dsnowden. Multi amber/ruby, 2cm dense off white/cream/pink head. Cherry skins, lightly sour cherry juice, fresh grains, pie crust, subtle spice oatmeal- lightly sour cherry pie. Full body, rich, balanced carbonation. Excellent.

Slow recession of a creamy, light pink and light beige head reveals delicate and sparse lacing. The body is hazy and cherry-skin colored. Along with requisite cherry, the aroma has pleasant notes of orange peels, salted melons and heapings of mushy pie crust. Cinnamon, white chocolate and slight toasted grains and caramel malts are noted as well. Alcohol is unnoticed. The flavor is all cherry pie, with light to medium tartness and plenty of accompanying sweetness. All cherry notes are real and fresh, never medicinal. Acidity is mild, lemony. The mouthfeel is medium-full, sticky and lightly to moderately carbonated. Finishes sticky sweet, lengthy and full. A very rewarding taste.

Growler courtesy of kramer17801. Pours a rich red color, hints of pink within the tan head. Holy crap, the aroma is intoxicating.Cherry pie, cherry everything, amazing aroma, I cannot get my nose out of my glass. Cherries abound on the palate, but hold on, the sourness hits you in the end, yet is totally balanced and without any garishness. Dangerously drinkable beer. Got this as an extra in my first trade, thanks again Jason, you are indeed the man.