Valley Brew Effinguud

Brewed by Valley Brewing Company
Style: Sour Ale
Stockton, California USA

This high concept brew sounds interesting on paper but simply doesn’t work out. Flat dull chestnut appearance is pretty unappetizing. Fruity, tart aroma...that bit is nice but it should be accenting something rather than being the whole show. Flat body. That it is on purpose is disappointing because it lends the mouthfeel a slick, oily character which is not enjoyable but also because carbonation helps bring the flavours across the palate. So in this case, not much gets across the palate. There’s still some late tartness and hints of both cherry and chocolate but I get very little base beer on which these accents should be built. I get the port barrel, but I don’t get the weizenbock.

Marked sweetness in the front. Dark caramel color. Fruity cherry nose and flavor, some wood and caramel softness. Moderate palate, not especially thick or carbonated. Interesting.

RBSG 2007: Poured a mahogany color with a loose tan head. Aroma, light sourness, with some dark fruits and oak. Flavor, caramel, dark fruits, and a sourness. Pretty good.

Sampled at the RBSG 07 Grand Tasting. dark brown body with no head. Faintly sour aroma with an oaky flavor in the body.

RBSG 2007 Grand Tasting. Hazy dark amber body with a small frothy off-white head. Slightly sour caramel aroma. Slightly sour molassas and light caramel flavor.

RBSG 2007. Murky copper color with no head. Slightly sour banana aroma with oak hints. The wheat taste is much more sour than I would expect. Almost some cherry. Odd that the banana/clove/yeast profile isn’t there.

Courtesy aspidites. Ugly multi brown. No carbonation, just a ring of bubbles from the pour. Nose of lightly charred oak, lightly smokey wine, roasty malt, spicy yeast, dark fruits, and a touch of alcohol warmth. Awesome nose. Same flavors with a stronger roasted malt presence. Smooth, medium body is a bit thin. Excellent.

22. Thanks, Aspidites! This one was pretty tricky for me. Odd and sharply pungent funk all over the nose. Pours deep grainy brown with ruby caramel hightlights. Still carb. Occasional spots of gray head. Super off-the-wall notes all over the nose and mid; it’s very earthy and has tons of wet leaves and other deep oxidation notes, but overall that sharply tangy funk on the nose is inescapable. It smelled kinda poopy to me for a long time. As it warmed and I warmed to it a bit, it got much better, but this is definitely one of the strangest beers I’ve had in a while.