Struiselensis

11.2oz bottle from Bruisin Ales, Asheville, delivered to me by my pal Turdferguson. Thanks Sam! Really handsome pour, golden with bits of orange. That could almost describe the fruity aromas that blend in nicely with the barnyard funk, horseblanket, and pleasing rich yeasts. Smells like a funky biere de garde, but when you get to tasting it, it’s definitely got the sours happening. Nothing over the top, just a nice compliment to the aforementioned qualities, and it’s topped off with a long, dry, champagne-like finish. Very nice.

2007 bottle. Pours with a rocky white head covering a ever so slightly hazy golden body. Decent lacing. Aroma of apple, currant, pineapple, citrus sourness, and a bit of damp hay. Decently sour taste, but pretty fruity with pineapples and lychee. Dry mouthfeel (as per style) with slightly lively bubbles. A pretty good sour ale (to be real honest the label had me worried).

Bottle (75cl?) @ De Kulminator: Lightly hazy gold blond with a good creamy white head that diminishes to a thin film. For lack of a better term, "Spicy funk" aroma. Apples and cider but without any apple skin. Slight tin under some spice. A bit of tree bark and some citrus. Nice low apple cider vinegar on top of what seems a nice blond base beer. Mixed citrus fruits and a touch of malt. Some metallic notes and a definite apple pie spice. Sourness builds up towards the end before it rolls back and rockets down your throat. Quite dry. Very nice work guys!

THOUGHTS: I was like a Berliner Weisse, a belgian ale and a Flemish Sour had a baby. It’s always nice to find something this different and this good. It was sorta like Rodenbach Light. This was my first Struise and now I need to find another. TECHNICAL: Bottle. Poured a cloudy, dark yellow or very light yellow with great carbonation and an almost non existent, white head that just kept a ring around the glass, but somehow still left fair lacing. The aroma was sour fruit like apple or peach, some spices and just a hint of funk. The initial flavor was lightly sweet, moderately acidic, and sour; while the finish was moderate to heavily acidic and very sour, or better yet tart with an average duration in flavor although the dryness hangs on for a while. There was mostly sour fruitiness, light fruits and slight, if any, funk. The light to medium body was very dry with sorta soft carbonation and a light astringent and dry finish. The finish is so dry it made me wanna just keep sippin’.

11.2 oz bottle. I have recently tried a few really good sours, and I am starting to acquire a taste for them, but I did not care for this one as much. Maybe I was a bit unnerved by the brown smudge on the inside of the cap. Regardless, this poured like apple juice, and smelled similar, but with a big sour nose, and all the brett brings to the bottle. Mildly carbonated, the mouthful was very thin, almost watery. The funk and sour are for sure there, but too watery for me.