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Winter Woods
Cisco Brewers Inc.
- From:
- Cisco Brewers Inc.
- Massachusetts, United States
- Style:
- Wild Ale
- ABV:
- 9%
- Score:
- 85
- Avg:
- 3.78 | pDev: 16.14%
- Reviews:
- 39
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Nov 10, 2023
- Added:
- Jan 12, 2011
- Wants:
- 12
- Gots:
- 27
Flemish Braggot Smoke Spice Oak: Lambic critters, French oak barrels. Pinot Noir grapes. Mulling spices. 1000 lbs raw local honey. Cherrywood smoked malt.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by rudzud:
Reviewed by rudzud from Massachusetts
3.67/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
3.67/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Picked up a couple months back at Julio's.
A - Holy cow, this is what I want in my wild ales! A simply wonderful two finger light tan/cream head that just doesnt quit. After nearly a half hour of sipping it never slumped past a quarter inch, leaving nice clumps of side lacing. All of this sits atop a crystal clear mahogany/ruby pour.
S - Unfortunately I'm just getting predominantly typical wild ale aromas. A light funk/sour aroma atop a winter warmer aromas.
T - Very similar to the nose, in that it is a pretty standard, average wild ale. Sour cherry and oak notes with a mixture of well, winter spices. A sour winter warmer.
M - Nicely carbonated for a Cisco with a very crisp and dry finish. My only knock would be how noticeable the ABV is.
O - Easily the best looking wild ale I've had in a while, but unfortunately it was all downhill from there. Good wild ales are just tough to come by.
May 17, 2011A - Holy cow, this is what I want in my wild ales! A simply wonderful two finger light tan/cream head that just doesnt quit. After nearly a half hour of sipping it never slumped past a quarter inch, leaving nice clumps of side lacing. All of this sits atop a crystal clear mahogany/ruby pour.
S - Unfortunately I'm just getting predominantly typical wild ale aromas. A light funk/sour aroma atop a winter warmer aromas.
T - Very similar to the nose, in that it is a pretty standard, average wild ale. Sour cherry and oak notes with a mixture of well, winter spices. A sour winter warmer.
M - Nicely carbonated for a Cisco with a very crisp and dry finish. My only knock would be how noticeable the ABV is.
O - Easily the best looking wild ale I've had in a while, but unfortunately it was all downhill from there. Good wild ales are just tough to come by.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by jlindros from Massachusetts
4.05/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
4.05/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Big thanks to Bikram for this. Found collecting dust in the corner, must be quite old but no date on the bottle. Seems like there was a lot of angel share too as the beer level is well below the neck.
Pours with no head, clear molasses to dark auburn color
Nose is a lot like an oude bruin, sour funk with bacteria souring acidity, a bit of a darker sweet malt, dark fruits like sour date fig thing, a bit of candied sour cherry, a touch of wine and buttery oak, some plum notes as well
Taste is quite sour but not overly, again oude bruin like, souring bacteria acidity with fair tartness, into some sweet candy like malt characters, a little toasted brownish malt, more of the dark reddish fruits, a bit of candied plum, sour cherry, fig date, a bit of the buttery oak again as well as some wine an almost pinot like soft red wine, getting some honey mead like character as well coming through more as it warms and my palate gets used to the tartness, touch of spice in the background, a bit of tart cranberry, flemmy very tart finish
Mouth is med bod, big souring flemmy acidity, no carb
Overall interesting, I'm sure fairly different than it was when it was much fresher, but an interesting sipper, not sure I'll be able to drink the entire 750ml, having some carbonation would have made it a bit more drinkable
Nov 10, 2023Pours with no head, clear molasses to dark auburn color
Nose is a lot like an oude bruin, sour funk with bacteria souring acidity, a bit of a darker sweet malt, dark fruits like sour date fig thing, a bit of candied sour cherry, a touch of wine and buttery oak, some plum notes as well
Taste is quite sour but not overly, again oude bruin like, souring bacteria acidity with fair tartness, into some sweet candy like malt characters, a little toasted brownish malt, more of the dark reddish fruits, a bit of candied plum, sour cherry, fig date, a bit of the buttery oak again as well as some wine an almost pinot like soft red wine, getting some honey mead like character as well coming through more as it warms and my palate gets used to the tartness, touch of spice in the background, a bit of tart cranberry, flemmy very tart finish
Mouth is med bod, big souring flemmy acidity, no carb
Overall interesting, I'm sure fairly different than it was when it was much fresher, but an interesting sipper, not sure I'll be able to drink the entire 750ml, having some carbonation would have made it a bit more drinkable
Reviewed by Sheppard from Massachusetts
3.82/5 rDev +1.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.82/5 rDev +1.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Pours a hue of magenta somewhere between a red wine and an amber ale. The aroma is like many lambics I've had, that cheesy funk. There's also some vinous aromatics. There's a lot of cheesy funk in flavor. Not as much barrel as I was hoping to get. I'm not getting much from the pinot grapes either. It's not bad by any means, but it's lacking depth and complexity that I was hoping for.
Oct 20, 2016Reviewed by dwarvenstout from Idaho
4.06/5 rDev +7.4%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.06/5 rDev +7.4%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Picked up a bottle at Bauer Wine & Spirits in Boston last time I was out there. Beer guy was great- pulled this beer from a personal box.
A: Cloudy red-brown. Hissed when opening the bottle, but very little head.
S: Oak, tart cherry, slight acetic sour notes along with tart fruit. Fair amount of brett funk after a year or more of aging. Some peppery smoke in the background.
T: Big sour up front takes a couple sips to get past. Smoky malt comes through without overwhelming. Tart stone fruit midpalate- cherries and plums. Some strawlike Brettish character. Slight brown sugar sweetness before a lingering oaky finish.
M: Puckering sourness fades into oaky tannins. Very light carbonation gives the beer just enough life to be palatable- would prefer a little more.
O: Not the best in the Woods series (I preferred Pechish, but haven't had the newest ones), but I liked this beer quite a bit. Expected more funk for a beer this long in the bottle, but what I got was more appropriate to the beer than my expectations. Sour and smoke is a hard combo to pull off, but this beer did a good job of it.
Feb 20, 2013A: Cloudy red-brown. Hissed when opening the bottle, but very little head.
S: Oak, tart cherry, slight acetic sour notes along with tart fruit. Fair amount of brett funk after a year or more of aging. Some peppery smoke in the background.
T: Big sour up front takes a couple sips to get past. Smoky malt comes through without overwhelming. Tart stone fruit midpalate- cherries and plums. Some strawlike Brettish character. Slight brown sugar sweetness before a lingering oaky finish.
M: Puckering sourness fades into oaky tannins. Very light carbonation gives the beer just enough life to be palatable- would prefer a little more.
O: Not the best in the Woods series (I preferred Pechish, but haven't had the newest ones), but I liked this beer quite a bit. Expected more funk for a beer this long in the bottle, but what I got was more appropriate to the beer than my expectations. Sour and smoke is a hard combo to pull off, but this beer did a good job of it.
Winter Woods from Cisco Brewers Inc.
Beer rating:
85 out of
100 with
81 ratings
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