Pinata Protest
Freetail Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to osnapson (Reddit) for this one. 03/19/15, my fault for getting stuck in the back of the fridge, should have been drunk in the summer, but oh well.

Pours a huge fizzy airy 2+ finger head that fades semi quickly but leaves pillowy head and lacing all over, hazy slight sediment laden copper tan brown color.

NOse brings sweet malt aromas, well sweet wheat, candy toasty biscuity notes, caramelized wheat, creamy sweet with mild wit spices like coriander, some vegetal green pepper like, maybe touch of pepper heat.

Taste brings more creamy wheat, toasty biscuity, a little caramel toffee like, transitions into some pepper, a little vegetal green pepper with ancho chili heat kicking in later, mild wit like spices, coriander notes, creamy like wheat and toasty, with a touch of lime in the background. Finish is a bit sticky sweet, candy wheat biscuity notes, light spices, a little ancho chili heat lingering.

Mouth is med bod, creamy, little pepper heat, nice carb.

Overall not bad, nothing special, pepper came through a bit but wish it was more, lime was very little, basic wit was decent, def wish i had it earlier.

Pours pillowy initial head, which subsides nicely into an eight-inch egg-shell ring; nice lacing as well, swirling after the first few sips, with solid middle-road carbonic buoyancy. Fragrant red-malt and dry citrus-juice nose—though the aromatics are more Meyer lemon or lemon-lime than pure lime. There is also a soft hint of the smokey capsaicin around the edges; and, in general, Piñata boasts a pretty multifaceted, minglingly pungent nose. Excellent color, as well, with a nice burnished red-caramel-cum-sunsent-orange hue, punctuated by slow but steady bubbles from the base of the tulip.

Taste is quite good, but maybe doesn't entirely live up to the promises of the look and smell (and the whimsically-colored label art). Piñata Protest presents a nice juiciness and tart wit-funk, transitioning from lemon-lime (think upscale margarita juice blend) to more Key lime zest as the ale moves across the palate. The Ancho is certainly there: a nice slow-burn heat, which lingers steadily, and predominates over the smokiness that was more forward in the aromatics. The red-malt likewise takes a backseat to the adjuncts, simply providing a nice candy-malt backbone and working well with the yeast to showcase the really nice, aforementioned wit-tart semi-funk—notes that really complementing the citric and capsaicin centerpieces. There's also a very minor grassy inflection from whatever hops Freetail dropped into this cauldron, which provides one final zesty touch to what is both a tasty and atypical wit. Big bonus points in the "overall" category for novelty and knowing how to eek the most out of adjuncts.