Bretta Blanc #2
Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

 

 

 

375 mL bottle. Lightly hazy orange. Smells of sharp vinegar acidity with a general grape backdrop. Tastes of grape, a little citrus and stone fruit, and a lot of vinegar acidity. Hits the nose hard. Oaky back end. Medium body. Meh. Not worth drinking.

 

Golden yellow body; lively carbonation; fairly thick and lasting white head. Tart lemon and white grape smell with a faint touch of oak. The taste follows along the lines of the smell; lemon and white grape juice; there is a nearly hidden suggestion of wheat in the taste. Medium body; soft and effervescent; citrus tanginess; juicy with a mild dry edge.

The beer delivers a nice, balanced tart drinking experience. It is intense in one sense yet not out-of-hand in character. The barrel aging really adds a fine mellow touch to the whole beer.

 

 

375ml bottle. Bottling date on label looks to be '09/16/19'.
Partially occluded, deep gold colored body. Slight white head, fades back to a partial island and ring. Not much for lacing.
Aroma of acidic fruit, grape and oak.
Taste is full of acidic white grape, grounded by funky oak. There is a middle ground that expresses grassy and woody funk. Good balance between sweet and tart. After taste is quick to dissipate.
Medium mouth feel. Very good carbonation.
Tasty brew with hints of honey, melon and spice adding in.

 

 

Pours a semi translucent pale golden with a champagne like head . Brewed with brettanomyces and white grape juice. Smell pear,some funkiness,lemon rind. Tastes totally vinous, sour, mild back end slight sweetness. This wild ale is a hybrid resembling white wine more than ale. Feels super carbonated and finishes dry. This tastes refreshing, tart and brisk. Not sure what part of this is beer. Overall this is a unique, overly priced (I know it was aged for 3 years in oak barrels) strange hybrid. Taste is more wine than ale.

 

Had this on my trip down to Pasadena to see the Rolling Stones in August 2019. Stopped in Paso the night before. Crushed this on tap. 1st review here of substance beyond the mere word minimum to count as a review.

Pours a brass like dark yellow. Head jumps to 1/2" and recedes to 1/5" pretty quickly. Aroma was definitely a gripload of white grape up front. Green apple, green grape like notes. Strong what appears to be french oak profile.

Taste pushes just as much into wine territory as it does beer, if not moreso. Relatively average acidity and sourness. Thought it was more clean than bretty, but still presented that gritty teeth clinging brett presence. Ample carbonation that creates an airy levity and lighter feel to this hybrid. Hid the alcohol relatively well. Pretty similar to Bruery's bourgnone blanc if you ever get a chance to try that one (slightly cheaper too).

Was good, but at more than $1 per ounce in the bottle (12.9 = $15) without even factoring anything like transportation, distributor or retail factors into the cost, I couldn't pull the trigger on a bottle purchase.

Tasted on tap at Aces & Ales on Tenaya Way, Las Vegas. This was a delicious beer, with the white wine character blending wonderfully with the moderate Brett. and sourness.