Upland Blackberry Lambic

Brewed by Upland Brewing Company
Style: Lambic - Fruit
Bloomington, Indiana USA

Bottle at Chriso pre-GBBF tasting 09. Cloudy pink red and gold colour. Fruity, bit of hedgerow. Too acidic. Not much blackberry, but yes hedgerow fruit. OK fruit but just too much malt vinegar. 2.6 Re-rate Bottle at LCRBM 5 at Kulminator. Sour aroma. Its decent fruit. Bit of vinegar. OK.

[9/5/08] Bottle sample during LCRBM at Kulminator in Antwerp. Murky reddish-brown. Wonderful aroma of berries, barnyard and some citric notes. Sour flavor with blackberries, earth, oak and some other fruits. Medium-bodied. Great.

A Mes rate: bottle at the ever brilliant Chris O’s Pre GBBF Extravaganza.
An attractive hazy pink colour with a thin white head. This is bloody excellent stuff. Delicate acidity, stunning fruit of a whole assortment of types. Obviously the blackberry takes centre stage but there is a real selection in here. Superb tarty finish too. Somehow however, while all this cacophony is occurring, it still remains incredibly mellow and sessionable. Brilliant.

750ml bottle, courtesy hopscotch. Pours a really cloudy, ruddy looking, deep ruby red grapefruit color. A minimal, off-white head settles in to a thin film, leaving no lace. The aroma is ripe with tart, juicy blackberry, big, soured oak, and vanilla, with heaps of lactic acidity and wild, farmhouse yeast. There’s a touch of cheesy funk that works really well. The flavor strikes a nice balance between fleshy berry and barrel funk, with a good amount of dry, earthy must. The blackberries are featured prominently, though in a manner such that they don’t add any unwanted sweetness. The palate is a touch more stout than most lambics, though it manages to retain all the deliciously acidic and dry characteristics, with a nice, lively carbonation. More sour ale than lambic, this brew reminds me of the Cascade Brewing offerings, only better. Surprisingly great beer.

This beer poured cloudy orange. Taste was sour-sweet as one would expect from a fruitlambic. It’s awesome to see something lik e this was made in the States. Really, really awesome!

No head, pale terracotta-coloured beer, quite hazy. Superb Brett nose, saddlesoap and leatheraromas with lots of fruit added - but as to which...? Sweet-sour, convincing fruitnotes, nettles and raspberries, but I’m not sure what Americans understand under "blackberries". Brambleberries? Refreshing, sour to tart (hints at tannines) serious carbonation and medium bodied, all the same. Nice, coming pretty close to real fruitlambic (as in real lambic, fruit real enough).

Red amber with a slightly pinkish, lasting head. Lots of American oak, vanilla and tannin in the aroma, with a little berry in the background., Very sweet, with a tart edge. Oak and vinegar flavour notes.

Bottle… Murky, blood orange ale with a small, creamy, white head. The aroma is very tart and fruity - mainly berries - with some nice, funky notes. Medium-bodied and ultra-creamy with Champagne-like carbonation. The flavor is very tart with lots of berries – not necessarily blackberries, just berries. Very clean lambic – no crazy Belgian, barnyard notes, but certainly brewed well and within the style guidelines… except that it’s brewed in Indiana. Crisp, tart finish. Bottle courtesy of hellomynameis!