Barrel Aged Small Animal Big Machine
Half Acre Beer Company

Barrel Aged Small Animal Big MachineBarrel Aged Small Animal Big Machine
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From:
Half Acre Beer Company
 
Illinois, United States
Style:
Wild Ale
ABV:
8.5%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.99 | pDev: 9.27%
Reviews:
3
Ratings:
14
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 11, 2014
Added:
Nov 16, 2011
Wants:
  6
Gots:
  1
Belgian-style Abbey Beer with red currants and Brettanomyces aged 5 months in a French oak Pinot Noir barrel. A collaboration with Pipeworks & De Struise.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.75 by FlandersNed from Indiana

Nov 11, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by ravot from Illinois

Apr 12, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by otrejo from Illinois

Apr 11, 2013
Photo of Etan
Reviewed by Etan from Wisconsin

4.24/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
500ml bottle into a snifter. Shared by Oscar and Caitlin, who won this in a charity auction at the Fountainhead a while back. Bottle 85/144.

A. Pours a woody ruby with a small off-white head.

S. Big brett in the nose. Egg cream, vanilla tannins, lightly horsey, currants, mildly vinous, toffee.

T. Tart currants, dry oak, caramelized grain, earthy and gamey brett, lightly acetic, more red wine notes.

M. Medium bodied, moderate carbonation.

O. This beer was quite surprising. I wasn't expecting much, but it looks like the barrel-aging lightened the body a bit, and the fruit works well with the barrel. Quite nice.
Apr 11, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by hooliganlife from Missouri

Dec 08, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by AleWatcher from Illinois

Jun 04, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by stxSS07 from Illinois

Jun 03, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by DSlim71 from New Jersey

May 08, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by imperialking from Illinois

Jan 17, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by spycow from Illinois

Dec 01, 2011
Photo of GbVDave
Reviewed by GbVDave from Illinois

4.05/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Poured from a 16.9oz bottle into a Loterbol tulip. Thanks to the crew at HA for the hook up!

Name BBL Small Animal
Process Pinot BBL, Lacto, Cherries, Currents
Time 5 Months
Bottle 32

A: Pours a dirty, muddy deep russett color with a thin and creamy layer of light khaki foam on top. Retention was decent but only a few specks of lace were left stuck to the glass.

S: Right out of the bottle I noticed a sharp vinegar-like tang that eventually subsided and let the dark musty fruitiness of the base beer emerge. Hints of funk, lemon, and red grape skins.

T: Tart and tangy dark fruit with a rich deepness to it that I found quite enjoyable. Towards the end of the bottle the wild yeast and damp oak flavor really began to shine.

M: A bold blast of sharp tangy fruit that leads to some spiced dark fruit, pepper, dry oakiness, and finally some funk.

O: I like what they did here to the regular Small Animal. The "wild"ness of this was pretty tame and I'm totally ok with that.
Nov 20, 2011
 
Rated: 3 by thewimperoo from Illinois

Nov 17, 2011
 
Rated: 4 by davidbowers13 from Illinois

Nov 17, 2011
Photo of MasterSki
Reviewed by MasterSki from Canada (ON)

3.83/5  rDev -4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On-tap at FoBAB 2011. Served in a taster pint. I had the base beer earlier in the day to re-familiarize myself with it.

A - Big tan foam settles to a thick cap, leaving behind stray lacework. Filtered transparent chestnut body.

S - Lactic sourness, with some musky, sweaty brett notes, cherries and currants, and mild vinous oak in the periphery. Much better than the base beer, and a solid and unique American Wild.

T - The taste is a little less successful. There's cherry skin and currant tartness, plenty of lactic character, and hints of oak. Unfortunately there's a medicinal and somewhat off-putting brett finish that distracts from the good flavors.

M - Medium body, creamy texture, lower carbonation, and a fairly dry and tannic finish. Alcohol is significantly better hidden than the base beer.

D - It's a shame they pulled this from the barrel already, as I think some additional age might have improved this even more. Still, it was a huge step forward from a problematic base beer. Hopefully some of the kegs still have bugs at work in them.
Nov 16, 2011
Barrel Aged Small Animal Big Machine from Half Acre Beer Company
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 14 ratings