Citra Sour
Almanac Beer Co.

Citra SourCitra Sour
Beer Geek Stats | Print Shelf Talker
From:
Almanac Beer Co.
 
California, United States
Style:
Wild Ale
Ranked #214
ABV:
7%
Score:
94
Ranked #2,304
Avg:
4.24 | pDev: 5.66%
Reviews:
56
Ratings:
254
Status:
Active
Rated:
Sep 01, 2023
Added:
Aug 22, 2015
Wants:
  25
Gots:
  36
Citra Sour is our very first single-hopped sour release. As the name suggests, Citra hops lend citrusy, fruity flavors and aromas, leaning toward grapefruit or even melon and passionfruit. It’s a popular hop in blends behind big West Coast IPAs, but bold enough to shine solo.

These fruity aromas blend harmoniously with our tart, earthy sour blonde ale, creating a beer that simultaneously contradicts and compliments itself. Pairs best with summery salads and sense of adventure.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by HighonHops42:
Photo of HighonHops42
Rated by HighonHops42 from Colorado

4.59/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 5

Sep 24, 2015
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.58 by mltobin from Connecticut

Sep 01, 2023
 
Rated: 4.5 by TallGuyCM from California

Jun 11, 2020
 
Rated: 4.25 by paulish from New York

Nov 27, 2018
Photo of RaulMondesi
Reviewed by RaulMondesi from California

4/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
I find this beer to be refreshing.

Like Corey Seager hitting clean up, Citra comes through with a 2 run double in the gap. Needed this one, BA’s, I needed this one. Clean, smooth, and it has that perfect tart pop like when my baby mama claps back.

Citra may not save eternity, but it saved this moment for the Raul man.
Nov 03, 2018
Photo of siskiyoucellar
Reviewed by siskiyoucellar from Oregon

3.99/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
A sour IPA in my hammock on a summer evening - it really doesn’t get a whole lot better than this. Almanac is creating a lot of fantastic sours recently; I’ve been very happy with every one I’ve had. This Citra Sour is just a beautiful beer, glowing pale gold with a nice frothy head. Smell is full of promise, sour notes first, then the fruity Citra hop tones, particularly grapefruit, which works beautifully with the sour. Taste puts these onto a gentle malt foundation and lets them expand into greater complexity. A pleasant touch of funk. Feel is nice but could use a bit more carbonation. Really a great beer for the end of a summer day!
Jun 20, 2018
 
Rated: 4.53 by ssgunbond from Belgium

Sep 25, 2017
Photo of elNopalero
Reviewed by elNopalero from Michigan

4.05/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Lots of citrus in this, as expected, with a more balanced juiciness. Still has that trademark Almanac sourness on the back end, and maybe if I had this fresher I’d get more of the nuances.
Aug 31, 2017
 
Rated: 4.24 by plaid75 from New York

Aug 10, 2017
Photo of Lone_Freighter
Reviewed by Lone_Freighter from Vermont

4/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured into a tulip, the appearance was a nice looking hazy blonde color with no head or lace.
The aroma had the citra hops up front - sweet, tart, bitter and sour flowing into some light grassy notes and ending up bringing about some lemon sweet pulp. Light grapefruit rind, pine and vinous qualities came out faintly too.
The flavor was a nice blend of sour to tart to bitter and ended up grasping a little sweetness in the back. Some trickle of pine, vinous and herbal qualities came in subtly. Aftertaste was mainly the citrus/grapefruit to piney and vinous sweet characters.
The mouthfeel was almost medium bodied, perhaps sat just a touch under with a wannabe sessionable quality about it. The sour harshness wants to create some pucker, but honestly, it's quite tame. Carbonation felt a bit under, but wasn't bothersome to me, I just accepted it. ABV did feel appropriate. Finish was almost sticky, slightly absorbing to the dry piney effects.
Overall, really nice citra hopped sour ale well worthy of coming back to.
Aug 03, 2017
 
Rated: 3.65 by HopSavant from Tennessee

Jul 13, 2017
Photo of moose1980
Rated by moose1980 from Germany

4.31/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Slightly vinous, moderately sour, and the Citra dry-hopping gives it some additional complexity. Impressive.
Jul 12, 2017
Photo of teromous
Reviewed by teromous from Virginia

4.17/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
There is a date code on the shoulder but the bottom half has been scratched off somehow. The top part says: "H3 CITRA"

Appearance: The body is an opaque gold and yellow. The head is short and white with a fluffy consistency. It has moderate retention but mostly just fades to a foamy white ring.

Aroma: There is a strong ureic catty scent with the aroma of pine needles what smells like old books.

Taste: The beer has a nice tartness up front. An herbal hop flavor similar to bay leaf is nice and strong in the flavor which does a great job of accompanying the tartness. It is similar to a marriage of citrus-like tartness and savory herb-like flavors. There is a bit of thyme flavor to the beer and what tastes like orange. It is a lively combination of flavors. The aftertaste has a bit of pine and grassy flavor that lingers around pleasantly.

Mouthfeel: It is light bodied and lightly tart with a nice dry finish.

Overall: It was a very enjoyable beer that I would both recommend and drink again. The highlight of the beer is how well the hop flavor integrated with the tartness of the beer. The hops didn't contribute a noticeable bitterness but they had a very good aroma and flavor. The bottle states that this is a "SOUR BLONDE ALE AGED IN OAK BARRELS & DRY-HOPPE3D WITH CITRA." The beer doesn't seem to pick up any of the oak flavor or character but it certainly has picked up a lot from the dry hop.
Jul 04, 2017
Photo of superspak
Reviewed by superspak from North Carolina

4.2/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
375 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 10/26/2016. Pours slightly hazy pale golden/straw color with a 2 finger fairly dense and fluffy white head with good retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big tart lemon, lime, tangerine, grapefruit, pineapple, peach, guava, passion fruit, papaya, mango, melon, pear, green apple, citrus peel, white wine, pepper, oak, wheat, cracker, hay, straw, grass, light leather/musty funk, and yeast earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, citrus/tropical hops, wine barrel, and moderate pale malt notes; with great strength. Taste of big tart lemon, lime, tangerine, grapefruit, pineapple, peach, guava, passion fruit, papaya, mango, melon, pear, green apple, citrus peel, white wine, pepper, oak, wheat, cracker, hay, straw, grass, light leather/musty funk, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate lactic tartness and yeast/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of tart lemon, lime, tangerine, grapefruit, pineapple, peach, guava, passion fruit, papaya, mango, melon, pear, green apple, citrus peel, white wine, pepper, oak, wheat, cracker, hay, straw, grass, light leather/musty funk, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, citrus/tropical hops, wine barrel, and moderate pale malt flavors; with an awesome malt/tart/spiciness balance; and zero puckering flavors after the finish. Light-moderate dryness from tart/spiciness, increasing through the glass. Medium carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth, moderately grainy/acidic, fairly crisp, and lightly tannic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 6.8%. Overall this is a fantastic dry hopped sour/wild ale! All around outstanding complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, citrus/tropical hops, wine barrel, and moderate pale malt flavors; very smooth, crisp, and easy to drink with the balanced acidic/tannic finish. A perfectly balanced showcase of Brett, Lacto, and Citra hops; with great wine barrel presence. A highly enjoyable offering.
May 20, 2017
Photo of kitch
Reviewed by kitch from Hong Kong

4.34/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
A 375ml bottle, bottled in July 2015. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku.

Appearance: A nice hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly while leaving some nice sticky lacing.

Aroma: Tropical fruit, mango and pineapple followed by citrusy mandarin, orange rind and grapefruit with hints of funkiness.

Taste: Similar to the aroma as its funky, tart, sour, tropical, mango, passionfruit and apricot, followed by citrusy mandarin and orange rind with light oak.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation.

Overall: Very nice and refreshing tropical and citrus aromas and flavours with matching funk. The barrel notes were a bit weak, but I’m perfectly fine with that in this case.
May 04, 2017
 
Rated: 3.94 by djrn2 from New Jersey

Apr 25, 2017
 
Rated: 4.21 by Zazzi82 from Tennessee

Apr 23, 2017
Photo of avalon07
Reviewed by avalon07 from South Carolina

4.42/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
L: Poured from a bottle to a tulip glass. Had a pale yellow color and a cloudy consistency. There was a thin, foamy head that quickly dissipated. Not much lacing to speak of.

S: A very big, engaging aroma of tropical fruit, citrus, a funky quality and hops.

T: Tasted of a lot of citrus fruit (grapefruit and orange, in particular), some light hops notes, malt, lots of tropical fruit (passion fruit, for example), the aforementioned funky quality, and a definite sour quality. A vibrant, sweet, complex flavor that's easy to like. Incredibly tasty.

F: A highly carbonated beer with a lively finish. Medium-bodied.

O: A big, bold beer with lots and lots of character. Very well done.
Apr 18, 2017
Photo of Harrison8
Reviewed by Harrison8 from Missouri

4.32/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Bright and light-orange hazy/opaque beer with two fingers of white foam on top. Head formation is reluctant, but retains a while. Good splatters of lacing left behind. Aroma is tropical fruits, orange, grapefruit, with a sour, funkiness to it. There is a little bread malt in there as well. Flavor profile starts tart with grapefruit and tropical fruit notes. The middle portion of the flavor profile is more neutral as far as tongue twisting qualities like tart or sour, and features orange hops and bready malts together. Finish is sour, and comes on rather suddenly. Nice sour note combined with more tropical fruits and citrus. Mouth feel is a little fizzy with a tiny bit of pulpy graininess to it. Thickness is medium. Overall, a resoundingly great hoppy sour beer. The hops are featured and tasty, with a sudden sour twist to the beer that blends in well with the flavor profile.

Served in a teku glass.
Apr 13, 2017
 
Rated: 4.34 by hermit990 from Illinois

Apr 11, 2017
Citra Sour from Almanac Beer Co.
Beer rating: 94 out of 100 with 254 ratings