Pawpaw
Upland Brewing Company

750ml ml bottle at share. Pale golden pour with the light frothy head. Lright sour aroma, Brett. Taste brings more of the fruit flavors, Paw paw in particular and more of the funky yeast.

750ml bottle served in a tulip. Bottled June-20 / Batch H-20. Pours a lovely orange hue with a slight haze, and a fizzy, bright white head that quickly dissipates as it disperses towards one edge of the shoulders. Lovely nose - citrus, lactic acid and hints of buttery oak. Flavor profile is dominated by citric acid. Once the acidity dissipates, hints of buttery oak and pawpaw are revealed towards the finish. Mouthfeel is light and bright with a mouth puckering acidity and that stimulates the salivary glands. Overall, a nice wild ale; however, extremely acidic and overpowers the delicate complexity of the pawpaw fruit.

 

I'm guessing that I'm not the target demographic here, as I tend to like beer-tasting beer, not fruit juice-flavored sours, which is what this is. Strong notes of fruit flavor (I don't know what pawpaw tastes like, but I'm hoping not too much like this sour) that slaps you in the face with sourness and overwhelms whatever joy you were previously having. I won't be having another.

Whether you're trying to wake up the tastebuds or beat them into submission, there's very few breweries that can satisfy that "sour" need like Upland Brewing. Their pawpaw infused sour ale will have your face "stuck like that."

Hazy gold and slightly peach color, it's lighter hues are a suggestion to the orchard fruit inside. With a racy and foamy rise and an eventual scant recession, the ale projects a vibrant but hazy white wine appearance. That's until the nose draws near, and that tangy fruit nuance and high acidity overwhelms the nose with a jaw-tightening and saliva inducing response.

As apple cider, dry white wine, lime, a hint of white vinegar and unmistakable banana-like soothes the taste buds with its pin-point acidity, a scantly sweet and mustier tone gradually sets in. Its juicy and racy pawpaw taste is mild and not easily identifiable; seemingly scrubbed away by the vigorous nature of fermentation. Its sour and sweet interplay is aggressively acetic even as the character of weathered oak, corkish must, and elements of brine, sweat and general cellar-like conditions start to layer upon.

Its expressive carbonation prickles at the tongue and enlivens the sour taste and feel even more. Though the ale may be slightly more rounded than the driest lambics on the market, its carbonation and acidity counters nicely on its way toward a dry and tangy fruit finish.

Probably the best sipping sour ale I have ever had. Explosion of tart sour fruit up front, then suddenly a fantastic yeasty oat malt finish kicks in.

 

 

Poured from 750ml bottle. Purchased in October in brewery restaurant outside Indianapolis and carried to Boston. Nice light floral smell golden straw yellow pour. Very mildly sour taste. A delightful beer.

 

 

Had at World of Beers in Canton for World of Sour Event 7/31/19. Anyway, nice solid vinegary sour.

 

Cracked a old-school 2015 bottle from my cellar.

A - Pours a clear dark gold color, minimal white head and no lacing.

S - Pungent acidic overtones, a bit of funkiness as an undertow.

T - The acidic open is bright and forward, lemony lactic acidity, followed by a slow climb down, where the paw paw comes forward as a light banana hit.

M - For as acidic it is in the taste, this has a surprisingly moderate feel, only just a hint of puckering acidity over time.

O - I have moved away from wild ales focused on pungent sour flavors over the years, but this one has really aged quite well and emphasizes the best of this approach.

 

 

750 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled in 3/2019. Pours lightly hazy/cloudy medium golden yellow color with a 1 finger foamy and fluffy white head with poor retention, that reduces to nothing very quickly. Zero lacing on the glass, with a large amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big juicy/tart/tangy pawpaw, mango, melon, banana, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/zest, peach, pear, apricot, red/green apple, white grape/wine, peppercorn, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, and white bread; with lighter notes of leathery/musty/lacto funk, and yeast/oak earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of fruity/funky/spicy/acidic yeast, pawpaws, and moderate oak/pale/wheat malt notes; with big strength. Taste of big juicy/tart/tangy pawpaw, mango, melon, banana, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/zest, peach, pear, apricot, red/green apple, white grape/wine, peppercorn, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, and white bread; with lighter notes of leathery/musty/lacto funk, and yeast/oak earthiness. Slight oaken vanilla, and white wine vinegar in aromas/flavors. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tartness, fruit tang, and Brett/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of tart/tangy pawpaw, mango, melon, banana, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/zest, peach, pear, apricot, red/green apple, white grape/wine, peppercorn, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, leathery/musty/lacto funk, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/spicy/acidic yeast, pawpaws, and moderate oak/pale/wheat malt flavors; with a fantastic malt/tartness, tangy fruit, and yeast/oak spiciness balance; with great malt/tart/tangy/spiciness balance, and zero puckering/astringent flavors after the finish. Moderately crisp/clean finishing. Moderate increasing dryness from lingering tart/tangy/spiciness and carbonation. High carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth and moderately grainy/acidic/tangy/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is fantastic. Minimal warming alcohol for 7.3%. Overall this is a fantastic fruited sour/wild ale! All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/spicy/acidic yeast, pawpaws, and moderate oak/pale/wheat malt flavors; very smooth, crisp, clean, and pretty refreshing to drink with the modestly acidic/tangy/tannic/drying finish; not overly lactic. Fantastic balance of juicy pawpaw fruit, and Brett/Bacteria complexity; with great oak presence, and pale/wheat malts against acidity. Zero residual sweetness with crisp drying. A highly enjoyable offering, and amazing spot on style example as expected. One of their better sour offerings for sure.

 

On tap:
A somewhat ugly tannish-yellow, almost like an Arnold Palmer that has too much ice or lemonade. This is countered by a nice ring and lacing.

Nose foretells a pretty acidic sour beer, though there’s hints of sugar and barrel. Grapefruit, lime and sugarcane, lighter raspberry banana yogurt hints. General impression of a tart soda.

Feel has an odd mix of decent carbonation but with a cushioned feel. Light and tart, this came on too sour, but my palate adjusted to it quickly.

Barrel wasn’t noted initially, but a tangy aspect to the fruity sour notes comes out by mid-beer. Little more crab apple tartness with hints of lime, there’s a little glancing touch of sweetness early.

A nice sour from which I wanted a little more nuance and barrel-specific notes. That said, I did like it’s tartness and feel well enough.

2016 vintage.

This one pours a golden and slightly hazy yellow color, with chunks of fruit and yeast in suspension, and just a general feeling that the beer is alive - the carbonation was consistently roiling. There was a small head and that dissipated quickly.

This smells extremely sour and acidic, with citrus and tropical sour fruit, wood, and lots of white wine.

This tastes quite good, but drinking a lot of it is a bit of a chore. There's tons of citrusy and lemony fruit character, tons of white wine, and quite a lot of sour acidity here. There's a touch of oak, too.

This is crisp, and with an intense lingering acidity at the end of each sip. It's definitely a veeeery slow sipper due to this.

This is a very intriguing and extreme beer. It's best shared amongst a lot of people.