Upstream Grand Cru

Brewed by Upstream Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Omaha, Nebraska USA

750mL bottle. One of my favorites. Lots of both sweet ness and sourness. This beer was a shocker. I wasn’t expecting much. It was listed as a saison on tap, and then a belgian strong ale on ratebeer, but I think it should be a sour ale. Wonderful strong Brett B aroma. Aged 1 yr in barrel. Truly excellent.

Brewed July 2005 Bottled August 2006 Bought November 29th at the upstream brewery west omaha location. Bottle#534 out of 632. Opened January 9th 3:00pm. I cellared this beer and promised I would not open it until I found out I was going to have my Second Child!!!!!!!� So this was my celebratory brew in Honor of my Beautiful Wife Chef Tana being pregnant!!! I must say this was truly an amazing experience this is the longest I have ever cellared a beer. Aroma is bright with Orange and Grapefruit notes with lovely candy sugar. Pours a gorgeous Sunshine Orange color with some white head that lasted! I was expecting a fuller mouth feel but no worries it was still great. Flavor was intense with Citrus, Oak, Earth and Honey.

Bottle shared by notalush. Deep orange beer, white head. Wow... the aroma is incredible. Loads of rich bretty funk. Orange peel, leather, cherries, spicy cologne and a soft perfumey yeastiness. A soft earthiness, cedary woodiness. Rich and resiny with a soft cherry and orange back notes. Flavour is very soft and lightly oaky with a rich leathery funk. Soft palate, dry pale malt with a lemon/orange acidity and a touch of honey floral flavour. Man, this is awesome.

750 from valpoaj (thanks, man!), brewed Sept. ’06, bottled Aug. ’07 (I think) - hazy copper beer, with a frothy, lasting head - wonderful, full, complex aroma of leathery, bretty, funky/cheesy qualities, with mild fruit sweetness (cherries, citrus) and acidity hiding underneath (I could have smelled this beer all night) - very soft in the mouth - the flavor is not as sour as the aroma suggests - the leather, brett funk, and cheese character is there, but it takes a back seat to some candi sugar sweetness and some bright fruity character - quite earthy, with a mild lambic-like brininess far in the back - in another year or so this will be phenomenal, but even now it’s awesome - yea...I’m gonna need some more of this.

GABF 2006: This was one of my favorite beers at the event. Poured from unlabled 750ml bottles. Poured a hazy chunky pale yellow with a white head. I think i had the bottom of the bottle. Nice yeasty complex aroma with big funky leather notes and a nice tartness. The flavor started sweet but had some acidity and tartness in the middle. Great balance and very drinkable. Light to medium bodied. I want my own bottle.

Golden-bronze colour. Oaky, caramelly, complex...a knock out. Sweet, oaky, balanced. Nice alcoholic signature. Full value.

Medium yellow head; amber-foxy beer. Oak, vanilla, Bourbon, fruity esters. Mellow lactic & vinous taste, with brandy, coffee cream, terribly complex. Fruity flavour, as cherries lagered on oak. Very layered beer, well-bodied and viscuous. Excellent oak-aged beer (at least, that’s how it presents itself), complex as few other.

Sampled at Noog 5. Bottle 978/1126. Lightly hazy orange pour that was quenching in appearance with no head. Floral, fruity aroma that is very obviously going to give up the sour. Tart fruit flavor that manages to hang on to the floral side of things. A bit earthy but the prior flavors dominate. A very light sweetness that is on the “wild” side of things. A bit vinuous as well. Wet mouth feel with a crisp finish. One of the surprises of the evening for me. Very enjoyable.