Upstream Gueuze Lambic

Brewed by Upstream Brewing Company
Style: Lambic - Gueuze
Omaha, Nebraska USA

750ml bottle acquired in trade with valpoaj (thanks!). Brewed in Aug 2005 & bottled in July 2006. Bottle # 305 / 308. Poured a medium and lightly hazy yellow color with a small sized white head. Aromas of some green appples, yeast, oak, and funky. Nice aroma. Tastes of some sweet apples, caramel, vanilla, and a very light funkiness. This one was very sweet. Where is my tart Gueuze finish! After that awesome aroma, the taste was a major let down.

Poured a hazy golden color with a small, white head that left light lacing on the glass. Aroma was funky, bretty, horseblanket, white grape skins, and a bit of vanillin oak. Taste of toffee, oaky, vanilla sweetness, toast, and dried fruits, with a low sourness in the finish.

Thanks to hopdog for sharing. Pours a hazy golden with a lively bubbly white head. Aroma of barnyard, lemon, floral notes, funky tartness...I liked the nose on this one. Flavor of horseblanket, bready, floral, nail polish remover, sweet maltiness and some citrus notes. Kind of crazy how much the aroma differs from the flavor. Flavor is not horrible. But the nose is just great!

tasted at the 3rd Woodshop gathering. some funky, some mild sourness, not quite as funky as the belgians.

Cloudy funky gold.tiny bubbles... aroma is huge and funky... crazy big bready, grainy, lemon totally sour funky fruit bomb... woh.. holy caca mole this is different ... ..strange fruit... tasty but strange :)

Bottled July 2006, # 143 of 308; Sampled February 2008
The cork was a real pain to get out, though I did not have to resort to a tool, but hopefully Upstream has realized that they have the wrong sized bottles, corks or cages (pick one to change and the other two should work). Pours with a one-finger thick, frothy, pale, just barely off-white colored head. The beer is pretty clear and has a light honey color to it, but shows a bright, straw gold color when held up to the light. The beer appears to be pretty well carbonated, but the bubbles seem to move fairly slowly through it. The aroma is a mix of sour notes, noticeable, though not overwhelming oak and austere fruit notes. The oak notes contributes lightly spicy wood notes, some vanillin aromatics and a definite, buttery oak component; this last seems to be the most noticed part of the aroma. The light, aromatic tartness couples with some fruit notes of green apples and pears. Some light, barnyard funk is noticeable underneath the oak if you look for it, slightly musty, definitely phenolic, with a bit of wild mushroom character.

An up front, fizzy carbonation yields to a somewhat light bodied brew, somehow this seems a bit thin for a Gueuze, though it is not watery. The oak plays a huge role here in the flavor profile, at least in comparison to a traditional Lambic, where the oak is pretty subtle. The oak flavors are not too much though, but do significantly influence the flavor profile. As in the aroma the buttery flavors derived from the oak are most noticed, but there is a definite spicy oak component in the finish and you can feel the tannins that have been added to the structure of the brew. I almost think that not enough tannins have been incorporated into the body of this brew, but I wouldn’t want much more oak character than was already here. Though I haven’t mentioned it yet, the beer is sour tasting, it is just not a defining characteristic of this beer, which is certainly a departure from a traditional Gueuze. It is lightly lactic, which seems to meld in with the buttery oak component. A hint of sweetness, along with the tartness, accentuates a touch of fruit notes reminiscent of chardonnay (especially with the heavy oak component), tart melons, green star-fruit and even a touch of not-quite ripe, tart, citrus.

An interesting interpretation, I do like the extra, expressive, oak dimension here; I think that it makes up for the lack of a traditional, aggressive sourness, though it probably hides some of the softer funk notes that are in this brew. The appearance (especially the fluffy head) and texture miss the lively, expressive carbonation that is typically found in a Gueuze, but this is certainly not uncorroborated. Quite a tasty brew, I can’t wait to taste other Upstream Lambics.

750ml bottle shared by iowaherkeye. Thanks Joey. Bottle 40 of 308. Bottled 7/07, brewed 8/05. Poured a slightly hazy golden color. Attractive aroma of sour fruit and buttery oak. Mild to moderate acidity on the tongue throughout with flavors of buttery oak, white wine, and a hint of apple. Great beer.

July 2006 bottling. Pickle juice aromas. Oak and honey. Creamy and smooth. Surprisingly good. Thanks iowaherkeye.