Nelson Sauvignon (Nelson Sauvin Brut)
Mikkeller ApS

Nelson Sauvignon (Nelson Sauvin Brut)Nelson Sauvignon (Nelson Sauvin Brut)
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From:
Mikkeller ApS
 
Denmark
Style:
Bière de Champagne / Bière Brut
Ranked #2
ABV:
9%
Score:
95
Ranked #1,615
Avg:
4.28 | pDev: 9.81%
Reviews:
115
Ratings:
376
Status:
Active
Rated:
Sep 18, 2022
Added:
May 16, 2010
Wants:
  122
Gots:
  72
Aged in white wine barrels.
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Ratings by BEERchitect:
Photo of BEERchitect
Reviewed by BEERchitect from Kentucky

4.11/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Incredible fruit presence backed by powdery Brett character and a high phenol presence- this wine barrel aged ale is one in which to be reckoned.

Pouring deep amber, the look of winter honey comes to mind. Copper and tawny- the beer is lightly hazed as it releases an ivory white head that caps the beer confidently and recedes with broken lacing patterns- It has a very charming look!

Strong phenol and earth presence exudes from the beer's aroma: horse blanket, pepper, spice, peat, and medicinal notes all come alive in a strong melange of soil, caramel, and honey. Surprisingly, the challenged scents come together in a very rich tobacco-like sweet herbal-ness.

To taste, the beer's sweetish upstart gives way to a breath of earthen tobacco, tea, bruised peach, pear, and apple matrix at its apex of rich taste. Following, the taste of spicy peppercorn, peat, weathered wood, leather, tobacco and light band-aid all ensue to capture the supreme balance to the sweet and fruity upstart. But as the beer concludes, it leaves the palate rewarded with deep earthen wood tones with wine-like influences.

Medium throughout, the beer's tendency is to be dry as a bone. But its caramel and fruit beginnings provide the unresolved sweetness that prevents the ale from dryness that it sorely needs. Its close of powdery wood and earth accompanies the expected medium warmth to give a lasing memory of spice, cedar and wine astringency- its a miraculously sculpted mouthfeel even if it favors early earthen sweetness.

I love the wine influence, the Brettanomyces, and the tobacco notes that the ale generates. Surprisingly, the medicinal notes that ensue don't detract from the taste as much as I would have expected- the ale is quite masterful even in its flaws.
Jun 10, 2013
More User Ratings:
Photo of AzfromOz
Reviewed by AzfromOz from Australia

3.56/5  rDev -16.8%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Purchased in November 2021 and drunk in August 2022. This was actually bought the week after Melbourne ended the world's longest lockdown following the COVID pandemic of 2020/21. I dashed up the road to Melbourne once the restrictions eased and bought several hundred dollars worth of beer. This was the last bottle drunk from that run.

The bottle was shared while watching the footy so my notes are extremely perfunctory. I did give an Untappd review at the time, and here's a verbatim copy of what I wrote:

"Pours a muddy, washing-water-brown colour, but that uninspiring start hides a tart, funky, grape-skin-laden, wet hay, complex, tasty beer. Nose has tart peach notes. Mouthfeel is mild. Nice beer marked down b/c it looks like shit."

The slightly longer notes I subtly took on my phone say: tart, funk, grape skins, passionfruit, orange, wet hay. Mild hop bite. Looks like dirty brown washing water. No carbonation. Medium mouthfeel. Nose is peach funky and lemon.

Sometimes you want to beer nerd but the universe won't let you!

Cheers!
Sep 18, 2022
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

4/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Rerate: 750 ml "champagne" bottle, Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 9.0%. Cloudy orange to amber colour, huge head, slightly off-white. Intense aroma of brettanomyces ("farmhouse kitchen") and N.S- hops (I’m upping it 1 point). Flavour like first rating.

Original rating: Bottle, kindly shared by my beer pal Christian. Deep golden colour, moderate white head. Spicy aroma of brettanomyces and Nelson Sauvin hops. Effervescent spicy flavour, notes of gooseberries, white grapes and brettanomyces.
May 09, 2022
 
Rated: 4.12 by Wer34truh from Minnesota

Jan 22, 2022
Photo of aleigator
Reviewed by aleigator from Germany

3.02/5  rDev -29.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours a slightly clouded amber color with a bigger, stable head.

Smells of intense blue cheese, leather and flowery herbs among caramel and lighter oak. Got a juicy white wine grape hoppiness to it, blending into old apples and lime zest.

Its mouthfeel is light and refreshing with a well developed, sparkly effervescense.

Tastes of dry, bitter hops whichs apperance get enhanced by an equally dry wood quality, entangled into tart funk and floral white wine grapes. The acidity in this gets more pronounced, pretty much filtering everything out from the palate with the exeption of dry hops and sweet caramel malts. Finishes even sweeter, heavier on the malts, with some balancing dry hops, light leather and an ongoing tartness.

Solid, with a peaking, unpleasantly unbalanced sweetness, numbing down pretty much anything else, apart from the prominent dry- and tartness in this.
Aug 29, 2020
 
Rated: 4.06 by samEBC from Belgium

Aug 19, 2020
Photo of Gajo74
Reviewed by Gajo74 from New York

4.4/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
From the can it pours a clear amber and caramel color. A thumbnail length frothy head retains well and leaves rings of lacing.

The aroma is vinous as it takes on the the characteristics of the Chardonnay barrel. Notes of grape, white raisin, date and oak. The malt aroma evokes cracker and honey. Throughout, there is a lightly funky tartness that smells like fermenting fruit and includes orange and passion fruit.

Fruity, dry and vinous with lots of oaky flavors, green and white grape, white raisin; very Chardonnay like. However, there is also a bit of a rustic and funky quality that evokes tartness, including flavors of lemon and lime. Flavors of peppery yeast, cracker and honey malt, orange, passion fruit and a developing earthy bitterness. Somewhat lost in the mix at first, the hops flavors eventually come through with flavors of mango and gooseberry. Medium bodied, moderately carbonated and with a tart and dry finish.

I honestly don’t know much about this style as it’s only my 2nd time trying it. I can say with certainty, however, that it’s damn tasty. Great character from the Chardonnay barrels, also very Saison like. I will be on the lookout for this.
Aug 17, 2020
Photo of DoctorZombies
Reviewed by DoctorZombies from Florida

4.13/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Opaque dark copper/light brown pour with off white head; good cap retention; solid ring; medium lacing. Orange and lite funk/barnyard nose. Tart fruit up front; semi sweet; grape must; oak; orange candy; passion fruit. High minus carbonation; medium minus body; dry oak finish; no hint of 9% abv. Overall, there is plenty of fruit and carbonation; horsey funk linger. I like!
Jul 09, 2020
Photo of TheBigBoy
Rated by TheBigBoy from Pennsylvania

2.84/5  rDev -33.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Too much for me, beer-champagne mix is what this tastes to me.
May 05, 2020
 
Rated: 4 by JLK7299 from North Carolina

Oct 06, 2019
Photo of Bitterbill
Reviewed by Bitterbill from Wyoming

4.24/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
11.2 ounce can, best before October 1st, 2019.

It pours a somewhat hazy orange gold with an initial massive head of foam. That settled down quickly leaving good lacing behind.

Grape forward, hop forward, actually spicy, no fruity hop forward smell. Passion fruit for sure. Lots of sweet notes.

Passionfruit and grapes totally up front and delicious. I'm not getting much of the oranges but that's okay. Passionfruit lingers in the finish and aftertaste.

Medium bodied with mild carbonation.

Not sure if it's worth $9 a can but I am enjoying the one can I bought.
Sep 07, 2018
Photo of WOLFGANG
Rated by WOLFGANG from South Carolina

3.88/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
COD 2018 White wine-grape and pear notes. Thanks Stephen
Jul 20, 2018
 
Rated: 4.52 by festizio from California

May 06, 2018
Photo of DrainBamage
Reviewed by DrainBamage from Michigan

3.89/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Pours a copper color, is slightly carbonated, and a thick head that dwindles down to a half an inch. Smell is sweet and fruity. The grapes from the wine are definitely noticeable. Goes down slightly dry with a little bitterness in the back of the throat. Not as fruity as I expected. An interesting beer and my only tasting of this style. I’m not sure it was worth the $9.99 for a 12 ounce can though.
Apr 12, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by SaisonRichBiere from Michigan

Mar 05, 2018
Photo of Beersnake
Reviewed by Beersnake from California

3.96/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Poured from fridge temp at a bottle share. Pours orange with white head. Nose is fruity, orange creamsicle, vanilla, and a bit of spice. Taste is sour and a bit hoppy. Definitely getting the fruit coming through. Mouthfeel is medium and quite dry.
Dec 02, 2017
Photo of rodbeermunch
Reviewed by rodbeermunch from Nevada

4.06/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Bottle wrapped inside a black and yellow paper bag. Pours an orangish golden color with a barely off white head in the 1/4" range. Aroma drops substantial amounts of white wine oak and funk throughout the beer. Definitely enjoyable and impressive in that regard. The Nelson hop joins in and provides that additional funky tropical ripe layer. Complex when all that comes together just for the aroma.

The taste is a mix of the Nelson hop, the oak tannin like impressions with the white grapes, the musty feeling, the brett bready stickiness. The mouthfeel has an aggressive carbonation playing lively with a modest malt body.

Overall it is one of the best Mikkeller beers I've had. Couldn't say it would be a repeat purchase, it is pretty pricey, but I still do have one bottle of it, and that one is probably 5 years old already. Should be an interesting future cellar tick. I've had 2 of these thus far.
Nov 24, 2017
Photo of donspublic
Reviewed by donspublic from Texas

4.18/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Poured from bottle into tulip, 1 finger off white head so so retention and good lacing. Hazy amberish in the glass. Has that acidic smell that let's you know it is going to be tart. Starts off with a wine like character, tartness in the middle and a little funk at the end. Nice beer paired with Thanksgiving meal.
Nov 23, 2017
Photo of patre_tim
Reviewed by patre_tim from Thailand

4/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Chinese gold and filtered with a little champagne like carbonation. Topped with 3 fingers of off white head.

Smells of a tart, lemon like quality, Brett, really floral and fruity. The floral qualities are fresh and aromatic, like a flowering field in spring. Lemon zest, and a very strong air freshener like quality, and dill.

Sweet, Bretty, pears, yellow jello, and finishes with a big, dull bitterness. Barnyard funk and horse blanket. Hints of woodiness as well.

Thick and syrupy body, and very little carbonation, even flat.

Got and drank in Chiang Mai, November 1st, 2017. So glad to have found the style again after so many years. I feel like its under carbonated for the style, and a little syrupy. The taste is great, just a little strange in the bitterness. Smells great.
Nov 01, 2017
 
Rated: 3.5 by fosters9 from New York

Oct 17, 2017
Nelson Sauvignon (Nelson Sauvin Brut) from Mikkeller ApS
Beer rating: 95 out of 100 with 376 ratings