Raspberry Sour Aged in Oak Barrels by Avery Brewing Company
The new brew that I am trying is from a brewery that I have tried brews from before. The brewery that I am trying this beer from is Avery Brewing Company, which is located in Boulder, Colorado. I am stepping outside my normal beers to try a different style of brew. The particular style I am trying is Sour Ale or a Wild Ale as some might call it. I am trying a Raspberry Sour Ale from Avery Brewing Company. This particular beer is part of their Botanicals and Barrels. This beer is brewed with Raspberries and then aged in Oak barrels. Raspberry Sour has an alcohol by volume or ABV of 7.2% and is a very limited beer being brewed only once.
Appearance of the Raspberry Sour
This is my second time ever having this particular style of brew, so bare with me when I describe this beer. The color of the sour is a deep brownish red, almost like a rich auburn color. The head or foam of this beer quickly dissipated after being pour because of the carbonation in the sour. Looking at this Raspberry Sou, reminds me of looking at a cider but with a darker color to it. The aroma of this beer is very fruity and tart. The aroma's that I picked up on when smelling this beer were almost like a wine aroma, tart and can smell the alcohol. I think the most pungent aroma I pick up is the sour aroma, which is blended into the raspberry aroma. I think the wine aroma I might be picking up is coming from being aged in Oak barrels. This sour aroma is very complex in terms of the raspberries. When picking up the aroma of the raspberries, you get to different notes: one being tart/unripe and sweet raspberries. The fruit esters are playing with my olfactory sense, while trying to pick up on the fruit aroma's. Taste is where some might get lost with this particular style of brew. I am nervous to try this beer, just because it looks so good and I do not want to be disappointed. Tasting a beer for the first time can be nerve wrecking if you are really interested in trying a beer and hoping that you like it.
First taste note that I picked up on was the sour profile, which is to be expected for this particular style of beer. After a little while on my tongue I picked up the raspberry note as well. The raspberry note in the sour beer is a tart raspberry. In addition to the sour note and the raspberry note there is a third major note that I am picking up while tasting the beer. The notes is from the Oak barrels. In my mind it makes this beer almost taste more like a wine because of the tannins in the oak. Tannins helped make this sour beer drier and almost like a wine vibe from drinking this beer. The aftertaste that is lingering is one of raspberries and strawberries. The mouthfeel is medium and finishes dry.
Avery Raspberry Sour Ale
Overall, I think that this is a good beer and worth trying. I think that a reader named Brice would really enjoy this brew and should try it before it runs out. The thing that stands out the most to me is the sour profile both in the aroma and the tasting of the beer. Avery did not mess around when brewing this beer and did right by the style of Sour Beers. The raspberries and aging the sour in an oak barrel played to the character of this sour ale. Some when trying this beer might think of it as a funky wine that might have gone bad, but it is a Sour Ale that sort of has a wine profile to it. If you get the chance to get this sour ale, make sure you do because this ale is a limited ale that is only brewed once.
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