The Bruery Black Orchard

Brewed by The Bruery
Style: Belgian Ale
Placentia, California USA

Black with a huge tan head. Aroma is a light roastiness, soy sauce, yeast, citrus is an odd compliment to the roastiness. Taste is citrus mixed with roasted malt, yeast, light caramel, yeast, faint alcohol showing.

Very dark with an almost creamy tan head. Aroma is yeast wrapped dried plums and raisins. Spicy flavor augmented by wheat and malt. A bit too thin and over carbonated for my tastes. Ok.

Pours a dark rusty copper that sits near black. Billowing and profuse moussey tan head that dissipates quickly. Nose is rusty, dark grainy, toasty, burnt popcorn, some earthy coffee. Flavor is crisp, light mouthfeel, starts with coffee roast and burnt popcorn and then follows with some subdued fruity esters. Similar to a light dubbel. Contrary to most Bruery products thisone is vigorously carbonated with a coating mouthfeel.

750mL bottle, no date from Bottle Barn. Deep brown with a 1 1/2 finger fizzy beige head that faded to a thick effervescent ring quickly. Aroma has some fruity bananas, flower petals, earthy caramel and wheat, faint coriander and some toasty malts in the backend. The flavor added some unnecessary alcohol and burnt malt notes behind some nice citrus notes that lightened the beer a bit. Dusty spicy alcoholic finish with bitterness peaking around a 2. High spritzy carbonation with a light to medium body. Different, and not too bad--kind of a mix between a dunkenweizen and a wit.

On tap at the brewpub. The aroma throws off a bizarre, spice heavy waft that feels like eucalyptus oil and sage blossoms. Heavy and weird. Pours a mid-brown, soapy, with a golden edge and whitish head. Flavor is a mess of spices and chewy brown, underattenuated sugars. God, I hate this spice profile. Coriander doesn’t belong in beer and is toxic and overly strong. Coarse, biting and just not a good example of anything. Rubbery and palate overwhelming.

Pours deep mahogany into a tumbler. Off-white head with excellent retention leaves spot lacing as it recedes to hug rim. Sour cherry and wheat aromas. Sweet dark caramel and crisp upfront, slightly cloying sour cherry and apricot finish.

750ml bottle, dark brown color, with a tan-colored head, roasted, chocolate, toasted malt nose, with a faint black coffee, mild chocolate cake, cookie dough accent,with a light fruity, winey, funky note, witihin a vinous aroma follows through on a medium-bodied palate with a yeasty, spritzy, wheaty, toasted, roasted malt, and an ashen hint in the character, with a faint black coffee, dark chocolate flavor, with some dusty, mushroom, earthy barnyard accents, with a doughy, spiced fruitcake note, leading towards a mild black chocolate, coffee, dry roastiness finish.

750ml from WeeHeavySD - thanks, Jon! Serious gusher, almost like some of those legendary bottles from Heavyweight. Vibrant dark pour, with a dingy tan head that rises and rises. Carbonation ultimately gets under control, thankfully. The nose is tart, like black currants and boisenberries, with some pleasant yeasts and spices in there for measure. Decent body, though the mouthfeel’s just a bit too active for the flavors to come through effectively. Slight smoke and roasts in the finish make this a quirky one. Maybe not the Bruery’s best, but I still take my hat off to them.