Drink'In Berliner Passion
Mikkeller ApS

A: Sharp, almost hard fermentation green-apple sourness with light vinegar.

A: Light straw color, amazing clarity, with modest lacing in the glass.

T: Sharp green-apple character, with a light passion fruit flavor on the finish.

M: Light bodied with moderately-high carbonation.

O: Terrible. The beer suffers from acetaldehyde, most likely from the beer being exposed to too much oxygen after fermentation. The beer has a solid base, but with the exhibited flaws it's hard to drink and overpowers even bold passion fruit aroma and flavors.

On tap at Max's in Baltimore, where I was grateful to find some low-ABV options early in the day.

Only this... this did not come together as it should have.

It starts fine, even if it's a little thin. Tart yeast and some run of the mill fruitiness. But then the middle is absolutely blank, like some kind of magic disappearing elixir. Then, if that wasn't offputting enough, the finish is soapy and rocky. "Rocky" as in it tasted like gravel.

Just a bizarre and unpleasant beer. I've never had so much difficulty finishing a beer that was so light.

 

The colour is very pale cool yellow. The very high head is airy with a pink hue; it sinks slowly leaving lots of lacing.

The smell is tart/sour and dry with minerals, lactose and anonymous exotic fruits.

The taste is quite sour with some lactose-like sweetness. Limes and lemon acid. Some unsweetened passion fruit juice. Light to medium body. The aftertaste is sweeter with some vanilla ice cream flavours, sour fruit candy and gueuze-like minerals (iodine). The short finish got passion fruits and tart unripe berries.

The carbonation is very strong; the small bubbles sharp and long-lived. The liquid light and a bit sticky.

A bit too much minerals/metals, I think.