Más Agave Clásica - Grapefruit
Founders Brewing Company

Pours a slightly cloudy burnt amber with a half finger of tawny off white head.
Nose is unique - some lime and grapefruit but ? is that agave - hints of tequila and caramel.
Sweet red grapefruit - like the grapefruit of my childhood with sugar on top - lime, almost a syrupy note with a honey caramel flavour - there is a hint of salinity and sour but not enough to overcome the sweetness yet there is a soft tartness at the end.
Sweet and slightly syrupy full mouthfeel with a bit of booziness, low end of moderate carbonation and despite the sweetness managed to leave a tart residual coating to linger. Not my usual go to but really liked!

 

A - Pours a deep copper with a creamy off white head. Heavy amount of soapy lacing.

S - Aroma is grapefruit, lime and salt.

T - The taste is candied grapefruit, lime, lemon, salt, sweet malts, smokey agave and some light barrel heat in the finish.

M - Medium body with medium carbonation. Creamy mouthfeel with a soft dry finish.

O - Solid. Would make a great warm weather beer.

 

 

Mas Agave Clasica Grapefruit from Founders. 12 oz bottle. Purchased from Franklin Beer, Franklin, PA, on 30/01/23 for $ 14.50 (Including tax) a four-pack ($ 0.302/oz). Stored on room temperature shelf at store and 34 degrees at home. Reviewed 02/02/23 (Review 3128). Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Printed on back label “BOTTLED ON 04.06.21 1209 6” and “2021 Release”. Served at 34.1 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature was 42.6 degrees.
Appearance – 3.5
First pour – Medium Amber (SRM 12), hazy.
Body – Amber Brown (SRM 18), opaque. Under direct light, Pale Amber (SRM 9), hazy. When rear lite, Pale Amber and translucent.
Head – Average (Maximum 1.3 cm, aggressive center pour), off white, high density, short retention, quickly receding to a 0.1 – 0.15 cm crown, and a wispy partial cap.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 3.5 – Faint whiff of citrus and salt. Maybe a hint of tequila or mezcal, ephemeral at best. No hops, no yeast.
Flavor – 3.5 – Acidic, slightly smoky, bitter but otherwise no grapefruit. No ethanol (9.7 % ABV as marked on label) aroma or taste. Painful gastric burning occurs. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl.
Palate – 3.5 – Medium, slightly syrupy, soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 3.5 Not the prettiest Gose – looks like apple cider. This batch is 22 months old and has been abused during storage – I knew that going in. Despite the age and abuse, it still comes up better than any lite beer. The tequila/mezcal barrels come through, more so as it warms, and the grapefruit acidity hangs in, after the citrus flavor has fled. The aroma is that of smoky mezcal with stains of citrus. Mouthfeel isn’t bad, even though it leaves my lips slightly sticky.

 

 

 

Interesting, yes some tequila.

Pours the color of nectar, a golden red yellow with a soft, one finger head of foam and moderate carbonation. Aroma is fruit, like ripe nectarines in tequilla barrels which is the best I could come up with. Taste is light, sweet and tart, with a grapefruit profile prominent. There is a tiny taste of key lime, if you will. I feel this is best enjoyed in a hammock on a Caribbean beach with a glorious sunset.

I'm just going to sip this beer now cause I've got more important things to not do.

Cloudy, dull copper body, forming an off-white, pinkish head that lasts about a minute, and forms again with a swirl.
Aromas of dried mango, dried apricot, pina colada, buttered toast.
Tastes like being transported to a tropical resort, bringing to mind fruity, sugary cocktails served poolside; grapefruit flavour if it was a jolly rancher, yet mellowed with age, again reminiscent of dried fruit; the tequila & agave character is there more subtly, a backbone to it all, a flavour that would be hard to put a name to if you weren't told; there's a nice bite to it, citric acidity to cut the hefty sugar bill, but also a bit of fire owing to the alcohol level; it manages to finish off dry; feel is thick and syrupy, even a bit oily, with a light carbonation.

A must try, a totally unique experience with surprising complexity. Refreshing yes, but it's no crisp quencher, this is a summer sipper.

 

 

355 mL bottle from the LCBO; dated May 4 2021 and served slightly chilled. Happy summer solstice, BA!

Pours a lightly fogged orange-amber colour, topped with half a finger of loose, soapy, off white head that seeps off within two or three minutes' time. A frothy collar lives on, with stringy lace deposition as the level drops - looks good to me, but nothing like any gose I've ever seen. It smells of agave, oak, caramel and boozy tequila, supported by hints of brine, grapefruit juice, lime, doughy malt and honey sweetness. Very enticing, in spite of the fact that I am no tequila lover.

So weird, yet endlessly compelling: very sweet at first, sour in the middle, then boozy and salty at the end. The agave, barrel and red grapefruit juice flavours are noticeable right off the bat, with notes of honey, caramel, doughy malt and crackery wheat not far behind. The barrel gains strength on the back end, giving off lots of tequila as well as hints of vanilla; more grapefruit, lemon and lime at the finish, with oak, caramel and tequila carrying into a salty, persistent, rather warming aftertaste. Full-bodied, with moderately low carbonation that gently prickles the palate, resulting in a smooth, fluffy, juicy texture that feels pleasing on the tongue. Limited drinkability, so the serving size is about right.

Final Grade: 4.34, an A grade. Más Agave Clásica Grapefruit is easily the least-traditional gose I've ever had the pleasure of stumbling upon, but it was a delightful brew to experience nonetheless. Is this a brew I'd crave on a regular basis? Certainly not, as I don't much care for tequila... but on those rare occasions when I'm in the mood for something this strange and wonderful, I can think of no comparable substitute. A fantastic, creative brew that will inevitably rub some folks the wrong way, but is well worth experiencing at least once.

355 ml bottle served cold into a tulip. LCBO purchase for $5.65 CDN.

Appearance - Dark honey brown brew with a half finger of off-white head on top. Good staying power for the small head the actually formed. Rather turbid.

Smell - Initially a little tequila, and hints of grapefruit. There's a strong malty backbone that lies just underneath the surface.

Taste - Initially malty transitioning to plenty of tequila and agave flavors, a nice kiss of citrus (it could be grapefruit but also mimics orange), a swish of salt and then a nice lasting aftertaste with some toffee. Complex and seems like it shouldn't work but does.

Mouthfeel - Thick and full bodied, with modest carbonation. Booze is impeccable well hidden. Syrupy and semi-sweet but not cloying or too heavy.

Overall - It's not a gose, but it's not a fruit beer, barleywine, sour or anything else. Maybe just a generic Strong Ale. Closest thing I can think of is a super malty doppelbock, grossed with a barrel aged wild ale and a touch of citrus. Either way the flavor profiles are unusual and don't seem like they should work together but very much do. Pretty great stuff, and hoping to see even more Founders up in these parts in the near future.

 

Looks like a weak Manhattan cocktail in color
Lime and tequila on the nose
Puckering first sip, lime, grapefruit, salt is really nice,sweet nectar
And just a twist of tequila in the taste. The sour is very nice.
Medium feel, real puckering,
Great beer to buy a single of and enjoy.

 

De Labirratorium. En copa Mahou Barrica. Marcado sabor a pomelo bastante natural que se integra muy bien con la birra base, compensando y haciendo que no resulte ni muy ácida ni muy salada.