Avery De Vogelbekdieren (The Platypus)
Avery Brewing Company

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From:
Avery Brewing Company
 
Colorado, United States
Style:
Wild Ale
ABV:
10.5%
Score:
94
Avg:
4.46 | pDev: 8.3%
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
14
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Mar 27, 2015
Added:
Dec 21, 2008
Wants:
  4
Gots:
  0
A blend of three Avery oak-aged experiments.

Oaked Oude Deux, an unreleased small-batch Avery beer. Oude Deux is a drak, roasty 8% ABV beer brewed with the Rochefort Belgian yeast strain. For the oaked version, brettanomyces were added to the casks for the subsequent 9 months of aging.

Opus One Reverend, our Belgian Quadrupel. This was aged for 8 months in Opus One Cabernet Sauvignon casks. One of the casks remained somewhat neutral, the other acquired a mild sour aspect.

Buffalo Trace Reverend, aged for six months in an Eagle Rare whiskey cask from Buffalo Trace. This cask was generously loaned to us by Chris Black at The Falling Rock.

The final blend started with three barrels of the Oude Deux, imparting some oak, tannins, dark fruit and phenols. Tasted alone, the Oude Deux has a somewhat medicinal aftertaste and can be astringent. Adding three barrels of the Opus One Reverend, with its huge malt backbone and heavier wine flavors, balanced the flavor dramatically. The mild acetic acid from one of the Opus One casks imparts a surprising amount of sourness considering that it only makes up one seventh of the blend. A single barrel of the Buffalo Trace Reverend rounds the flavor out by adding a distinct vanilla component to the finish without adding too much straight whiskey flavor.

Or to summarize: 3/7 Oaked Oude Deux, 3/7 Opus One Reverend, 1/7 Buffalo Trace Reverend.

The result is De Vogelbekdieren, an approximately 10.5% ABV blend with a final gravity of 1008.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Kirch:
Photo of Kirch
Rated by Kirch from California

4/5  rDev -10.3%

Dec 26, 2011
More User Ratings:
Photo of wethorseblanket
Rated by wethorseblanket from California

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Reviewed from notes taken at Stone Sour Fest #1 on 7/19/09.

Dark, complex, woody oak, vinous and tannic
Mar 27, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by Twal from Colorado

Oct 06, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by t0rin0 from California

Aug 19, 2012
 
Rated: 5 by rdespain from Washington

Dec 08, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by sideshowe from Pennsylvania

Nov 16, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by MYJELLOMISFIT from Colorado

Nov 14, 2011
Photo of BARFLYB
Reviewed by BARFLYB from Pennsylvania

4.38/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
On Tap at Monk's Cafe in a Tulip.

Platypus comes out looking light cherry red with a nice mound of white foam on top, okay retention, kinda sticky. A clean looking brew with no sediment or the like. A lot of red for a quad.

This Avery product has a crazy smell on it. The base is mostly a quad I believe so there is a nice malt component. I get alot of red wine and berry plus some underlining acidic bugs. A nice vanilla aspect from the Buffalo Trace yet no bourbon. Wood, tannins, dark fruit with warming.

This is a nicely done beer. With so much going on in production, the final product is complex, yet refined. This has been in the cellar since 2008 mind you. Oak and vanilla up front followed by some nicely subdued yet bold dark fruit and some cherry. I cant taste the bourbon, yet the bugs are doing just find, lacto, brett, Platypus has some acidity. Followed by a nice malty aftertaste with cherry.

Feel is medium bodied and smooth overall, the carb is no problem, nicely bubbled. Midway the smooth turns somewhat acidic and tart, lacto is doing it's thing. If your a seasoned beer drinker who does not mind some sour, gulping this should be no problem.

My 2nd sour from Avery, this is a nice one with alot going on. Great with some cheese and grapes, a nice interplay with the berries in the beer. A sour quad with class. A treat to drink.
Feb 12, 2011
Photo of corby112
Reviewed by corby112 from Pennsylvania

4.42/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
On draft tonight at Monk's Cafe.

Pours a dark ruby/cherry red color with mahogany edges when held to the light and a 1.5 finger creamy off-white head. Decent retention, slowly fading into a lasting ring that leaves sporadic spots of lacing behind.

Tart, funky aroma with lots of earthy oak, vinous dark fruit, dry bret and lacto. Although there is a lot of funk and barrel character, the base beer elements shine through with lots of vinous dark fruit. Hints of dark cherry, grape, raisin, fig and plum. There's also a lactic cream presence in the nose.

Medium bodied with lots of tart, puckering funk, earthy oak, lactic cream and vinous dark fruit. Very dry, tart and sour up front with dry bret effervescence, pedio and lacto funkiness that linger throughout nto a bone dry fnish. This is complimented mid-palate by a lactic cream character that adds complexity and fullness to the mouthfeel. The quad used as the base beer makes itself know with hints of vinous dark fruit, sweet malt and subtle alcohol flavor. I'm picking up hints of tart, dark cherry, plum, raisin and grape. There s faint alcohol flavor but the ABV s excellently masked wth no warmth n the finish. I would have never guessed that this beer is 10.5%. This s a complex and very quaffable beer that I really enjoyed.
Feb 11, 2011
Photo of Bubba83
Reviewed by Bubba83 from California

4.2/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Reviewing from notes. This was on tap at the Beachwood BBQ Sourfest in August, 2009.

Dark amber, cherry color body, with an off-white head. Tiny little bubbles compose the head, which makes it decidely creamy in nature.

Smells like those cola gummy candies, with some tartness, brown sugar, caramel, and chocolate. Weird that I'm getting some indescript tartness but no fruit characteristics.

Caramel, strawberries, raspberries, and a little bit of oxidation that doesn't detract from anything. Finishes pretty warm as it's pretty big. Quite a bit of lactic acid here. Even some vinous quality to it too? Complex, weird combo of flavors, but it works well!

Very creamy, big, chewy, but maybe a little too heavy for what I'm used to in a sour, but afterall it is a quad...

Actually drinks pretty well for being 10.5%, which was a big surprise for me considering my other experiences with big Avery beers. Easily the best beer I've ever had from Avery, and it far exceeded my rather low expectations.
May 31, 2010
Photo of Halcyondays
Reviewed by Halcyondays from California

4.05/5  rDev -9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
On-tap at Beachwood BBQ, otherwise known as the Platypus, or colloquially the Volkswagen beer,

A: Pours brown with a light off-white head, good retention and lace.

S: Lots of brown sugar, moderate funk.

T: Quite malty initally with candi/brown sugar, some dark chocolate there. The wine barrels come out midway through with a real nice note of red grape.

M: Smooth, full-bodied for a sour beer, apparently a sour quad and it felt like it.

D: A very solid beer from Avery and completely different than the Voltron I had a few days earlier. Perhaps a throw back to the older days of Belgian brewing vis-a-vis you're making a quad and some bugs got in.
Aug 26, 2009
Photo of rye726
Reviewed by rye726 from Colorado

4.77/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Pours a dark mahogany with a creamy tan head and nice lacing.

Nose has tart cherries, plums, oak, cabernet grapes, vanilla, whiskey and farmyard funk.

Taste has more tart cherries, ripe pitted fruits, red wine, figs, an acidic wood presence, vanilla, peppery alcohol, bourbon, candy malts and a delicate musty funk.

Medium to full body is delicately carbonated. Fantastic finish. Another great wild ale from Avery.
Aug 21, 2009
Photo of Floydster
Reviewed by Floydster from California

4.45/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
First, more descriptions about the beer: "The final blend started with three barrels of the Oude Deux, imparting some oak, tannins, dark fruit and phenols. Tasted alone, the Oude Deux has a somewhat medicinal aftertaste and can be astringent. Adding three barrels of the Opus One Reverend, with its huge malt backbone and heavier wine flavors, balanced the flavor dramatically. The mild acetic acid from one of the Opus One casks imparts a surprising amount of sourness considering that it only makes up one seventh of the blend. A single barrel of the Buffalo Trace Reverend rounds the flavor out by adding a distinct vanilla component to the finish without adding too much straight whiskey flavor."

I have now had this beer on two different occassions at Hamilton's in San Diego and Pizza Port in Carlsbad, reviewed from notes I took a few weeks ago, color was a dark amber with some weird purplish tint when held up to the light, head was thin and creamy, not much retention or lacing, aroma was Belgian yeast, bourbon, oak, vanilla, mild tart, cabarnet wine, dark grapes, raisins, and toasted bread, taste was all over the place but I loved it, even though it was very wine-like at times, it kept you guessing and really challenges your palate, the sour aspects are great, the whiskey finish puts a bizarre twist on things, also liked the mixture of fruits and Belgian feel, flavor was knock your socks off, mouthfeel can be thinner at times but this brew makes up for it in other places, sensations were sour, hot, roasty, sweet, chewy, pretty much everything, nice lingered after every sip too, could drink a few glasses of this, alcohol is hidden very well but the wide ranging flavor could do a number on your stomach after a few pints, I heard mixed reviews about this one and was anxious to see how it was for myself, glad I got to try it a few times, it is a very interesting blend, a small amount of the bourbon Reverend was used, I think 1/7 actually but it is very dominant in the flavor once it warms, this beer is wild and definitely recommended
Dec 23, 2008
Photo of Georgiabeer
Reviewed by Georgiabeer from Georgia

4.73/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Extremely interesting beer, and since its a blend of three different beers its a bit hard to classify, but since all of those beers are Quads (of a sort) then I thought Quad would be best for this beer. I had this at City Beer in San Francisco in August at a barrel aged event that they had, but I've seen it advertised at a couple of other special beer events around the country. I'm pretty sure this was made (blended) just once. Just found my notes so here goes.

This is a blend of 1) Avery's (unreleased) Oaked Oude Deux, an 8% dark beer brewed the Rochefort yeast strain. For the oaked version, Brett was added to the casks for 9 months of further aging.
2)Avery Opus One Reverend. The Reverend aged 8 months in Opus One Cab casks.
3)Avery Buffalo Trace Reverend, aged for six months in an Eagle Rare whiskey cask on loan from Falling Rock.

Poured chestnut with a rocky head and great lacing. The aromas are fairly light, but very complex with red fruit, wine, tar, light acetic qualities and some light Bourbon. The taste is wildly complex and amazing. One might think that this would be a muddled mess, but every flavor stands out distinctly. Red Wine (love that Opus One!), light sourness, Bourbon, vanilla, and red and black fruit, and a bit of tannic astringency. The mouthfeel is super creamy, sour, and a firmly tannic finish. Very, very interesting hybrid and a paen to experimentation.
Dec 21, 2008
Avery De Vogelbekdieren (The Platypus) from Avery Brewing Company
Beer rating: 94 out of 100 with 14 ratings