Prunus
Birra Del Borgo

Oh man, this is a sour-man's sour...

I am admittedly NOT a sours guy, it's just not my style. I will say that I have had a few, here-and-there, that I have enjoyed. However, that is most certainly not the case here. This is truly a sour that truly believers I that faith will love, sadly, it wasn't for me. And the kicker? When I picked this up during the summer I thought it was anything but a sour. What a surprise when I took the first sip. If your a sour-lover, this is definitely for you...

Shared bottle at local tasting. Deep golden to orange colour, white head. The aroma has notes of acetone, alcohol, hops and cherry pits. Fruity flavour, notes of sour plums and cherries. The aroma ruins too much.

 

Birra Del Borgo "Prunus"
33 cl brown glass bottle, "Best before: 09 2018 LS 215R 168 14.2"
8€ @ Johnny's Off License, Via Dei Balestrari 9, Roma, IT

Notes via stream of consciousness: It pours an interesting ruby color, and it's mainly clear - it's bottle conditioned, but there's no head whatsoever. It's fruity and vinous. It's a little candyish, and there's something else a little bit unusual about it, perhaps some pheonls from the fermentation that I just can't seem to figure out. It's just a slight touch funky. Is it ethyl acetate? Hmmm. Ahh, the flavor is magnificent. There's some light acidity, and some of the phenols or esters that I was picking up in the aroma, and soft fruit and sugar and alcohol, and wet straw and oak - I had no idea it was barrel aged, or is it done with oak in the tank? How strong is this? Only 5.8%? That's interesting. I'm guessing that because of the fruit this is a quick and somewhat hot ferment and then the yeast drops and doesn't have a lot left in it to clean things up. Or maybe it's just fermented quick and hot and the brewery feels that's OK. Regardless, that's OK as it doesn't really interfere with the overall picture. It's medium-light in body, and as noted earlier, pretty flat. It must be intended to be that way as it's only 3 months from its "best before" date. Overall it's quite enjoyable with a pleasant, soft cherry note and some mild funkiness that leaves it somewhat vinous in nature. Well worth trying in my opinion.
Review# 6,110

 

 

Good tart cherry sour. Good spirits 4-2017

This was an unexpected delicious surprise. Drank this in Thessaloniki in The Hoppy Pub.
It looks and smells as good as it tastes. An impressive sour with a wonderful fruity tartness.

Reviewed from notes. Poured from 11.1 oz. bottle into an unmarked snifter glass.

A: Hazy pinkish amber with a thin pink head and a good amount of visible carbonation. Head fades fairly quickly.

S: Tart and lactic cherries, yeasty, oak tannins. A touch of cheesy funk as well, with a fruity acidity that seems to dry out the mouth, even just smelling.

T: Tart cherry, dry lactic acidity, dry tannins, bready yeast and biscuit malts. Just maybe a smidge of funk (less than the nose suggested). Finishes clean with residual lactic tartness and a fading sour fruitiness.

M: Light body, very low alcohol presence. Carbonation sensation on the low side, but not flat.

O: A very good beer, although I found it lacking a bit of depth in sourness and funk profile. But very tasty regardless.

 

 

11.2 oz. bottle poured into tulip

L: copper (gold with plenty of amber); clear; very flat ... almost no head and just a whisp of a collar of white foam; nothing to stick or lace

S: nail polish remover as you pour, the pungent sharp medicinal aroma hits you; as it warms, a sweet fruit aroma (prunes, cranberry sauce) mixes in with the sharper vinous aroma

T: tart cherries ... lemon-cherry candy; only a slight earthy hay flavor in the background; a medicinal bland note hangs around in the aftertaste, but it could be very earthy-tart cherries; as the palate adjusts, the hay flavor is turning into full-on musty barn, like a dusty piece of oak wood sweetened by the lemon-cherry flavor that persists throughout all other notes

F: light but filled out a bit by a nice hidden carbonation -- it didn’t show in the pour and there’s negligible activity in the glass, but some carbonation is giving it a crisp feel that works well

O: follows suit with other brews from Del Borgo: good but not great; it touches the major notes of the American wild ale/farmhouse “sour” with the sharp tart nose and the bits of earth/hay/barn must flavor, but at times it tastes a bit too medicinal, the nail polish remover thing taking over and giving it a dull aftertaste; the cherry flavor is decent without being too sweet

 

5.80%. On-draught @ Open Baladin Torino in Spring 2016.

A: Soft off white cap of good (~7-8 minute) retention, but only maybe 1cm width. Body colour is a vibrant copper. No yeast/lees are visible within.

Sm: Lactic acid, Lactobacillus sourness (maybe a 4/10 in terms of intensity), neutral malts, clean twang.

T&Mf: Acidic and lactic, with moderate (~5/10 intensity) sourness. It's all Lactobacillus, but the neutral malt sweetness keeps it balanced. There's some clean funkiness in there too - I'd go as far to suspect Brettanomyces Lambicus yeast - but maybe I'm way off.

Drinks clean and refreshing, with a medium body and a smooth, wet, soft texture. Overcarbonated but quite approachable. I quite like it.

Good depth of flavour.

O: A lovely little Italian sour from a brewery I really owe more attention to. Highly drinkable, with enough smacky sourness to satisfy discerning sour drinkers. Absolutely worth the 4.50 euro per 33cl pour, at least once.

Low B (3.55) / GOOD

 

 

A 330ml bottle with a best before date of September 2017 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.

Appearance: It poured a hazy orange golden colour with a thin white head that doesn’t stick around and only leaves some light lacing.

Aroma: Tart, sour, cherry, apple vinegar and light funkiness.

Taste: Like the aroma, taste is tart, sour cherry, sour apple and lemon.

Mouthfeel: Dry, crisp, light bodied with moderate carbonation.

Overall: Nice and easy to drink, but I preferred Rubus slightly more.

Poured from a 330 mL bottle into a snifter. Thank you Zinzi for this extra!

Pours a lightly hazy cherry / honey colored body with a small white head that reduces quickly to leave little lacing or retention.

Cherries are very apparent on the aroma, definitely going to be tart, lactic aromas are a light funkyness / a little bandaid.

Taste is tart cherries, sour apple, lemon juice, funk, berries, a little bandaid in there, finishes dry and crisp. Medium light easy drinking body with medium heavy carbonation.

A solid beer- i'd characterize this as a wild or kriek than a vegetable beer. The berries are very apparent.