Mikkeller / Prairie Artisan Ales American Style American IPA at 7.5% ABV (US$13.99 at Total Wines & More Henderson NV, 750 ml, best before 9-Apr-2017)
Pours cloudy medium gold with three fingers (and growing) of rocky light tan head, heavy lacing. (4/5) Nose is pithy citrus, brett funk, tropical fruit, pale grainy malt. (8/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderately strong bitter, strong tart. (8/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, dry funky finish. (4/5)
That’s a fairly unique A/IPA – definitely dominated by the brett, but still retaining a strong hop character. I’ve had Belgian IPA’s before, and this shares a lot of the characteristics of that style, but the brett is definitely the joker in the deck. In fact, the first thing I thought of when I cracked it, was that it smelled like a lambic or a gueuze. Bit of a beast, but lots of fun. The only other beer I can think of that took the “brett inoculated IPA” route is Stone Enjoy After – but that’s gonna be my Boxing Day present to myself this year, so I’ll have to get back to y’all with a comparison on that. (16/20)
8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
