Brouwerij de Molen / Anchorage Brewing Company Mud & Funk American Double / Imperial Stout at 11.4% ABV (C$9.86 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 946 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 16-Jan-2016)
Appearance: opaque black with a short beige head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: massively tart berries, vinegar and red wine, light bourbon notes. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high tart, low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, soft carbonation, lingering tart finish. (3/5)
Woof. Start off with an imperial oatmeal stout, then age it in bourbon and wine barrels and inoculate it with brett? This is about as subtle as a brick upside the head. Tastier than a brick, though… mind you, at 11.4% the effect of a litre of this may be pretty much the same as the brick. It’s pretty apparent that this is artificially soured – the sourness isn’t integrated the way a true wild ale is – but it’s not unpleasant. I’m definitely getting the wine barrel ageing, and to a lesser extent the bourbon, but any brett character is limited to sourness only – there’s none of the typical brett funk at all. Fun, but not all that challenging. (13/20)
6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
