Palenquera Lulo
Bogota Beer Company

 

I was surprised to see the BBC indulge into this as a new style but certainly pleasantly surprised to see how far we've come in the pioneering and experimentation here in colombia.

And this may well be the furthest out of the box it's been in a long time. Lulo or naranjilla is a very local fruit, rather unknown afar and this may well be the first beer dedicated to it. No less a very thought-out choice, since this fruit blends beautifully with a lighter beer.

The pour is unintriguing, except maybe for some dusty golden tones within but looking like a traditional pale ale for the most part, with a nice and tight white head.

Then comes the best of it, and certainly exceptional. the smell. is this lulo juice? or is this beer? or both? the lulo smell is a honey citrus blend not so unaccurately described on wiki as a blend between rhubarb and lime....i would say it has some more sweetness as the tangerine but certainly with the lemony zest. and then somewhere there you also preceive a spicy ale scent, very well blended and very intenseley smelling, extremely inviting.

Taste is good, but when compared to the force of the smell it tends to be a bit of a letdown. it is nice in the sense that the lulo is definetly there, although to a lesser strength than initially thought. the ale is definetly there, although to a lesser extent than the spicy, strong ale feeling initially perceived. so basically, taste is a comparable experience, but much more cautious and conservative than what the smell would have you believe.

Mouthfeel and drinkability are good but not fabulous. the beer is a bit thin, much unlike the juice made from this tropical fruit. it may well be refreshing, but could also have a bit more body and alcohol to enhance the whole experience.

In all, i am more than happy to see this kind of experimentation going on here. The BBC never ceases to amaze, and this is no exception. kudos, lads.