New Gold
Stillwater Artisanal Ales

Picked this up at the Total Wine in Totowa a few months back, as I love what I'd had from Stillwater. Like the reviewer before me, my can was dated 4/12/21 as I have no idea how this lasted on a shelf for that long. With that being said, this was flat - in more than one way - but alright to kick back with on a humid summer's night...

No surprise that this poured gold as it was murky and muted in appearance. Very little head topped this off as the big bubbles easily burst, and there wasn't any lacing to be seen as I took my sips. Bread, medicine, and citrus were in the underwhelming nose as the taste was full of old juice, yeast, and subtly tangy citrus. Sure, it went down easy but the taste left something to be desired as some lemon zest and juice emerged in the back. That was after this fully warmed up as the carbonation kept this from feeling dated and tired.

The overt booze held up, and the sediment at the bottom was surprisingly sparse, as I felt the warming kick in as some wheat outlasted everything else. No, this wasn't a Belgian White but it was more similar to that style than I envisioned. Obviously, a fresh can needed to be obtained to find how this brew's true nature, along with someone at the store to ensure that nothing this old ever sticks around for this long again...

Aroma: sweet, bready, citrus. Appearance: hazy, pale yellow, big white head, very retentive. Flavor: malty sweetness and bready with some hop bitterness. Mouthfeel: medium body, smooth and light, medium carbonation. Impression: Enjoyable beer, easy to drink, with enough going on to make it interesting. For what it's worth, I bought this beer as a closeout. The canning date stamped on the bottom says 04/2021. So what did it taste like back then?

who knows what this tasted like when it was new, its was canned over a year ago and im sure its changed quite a lot, the can says a lush and hoppy modern blonde ale, but that certainly isnt the case after quite some time on the warm shelf, real tight in the can this one, some real "conditioning" happening. its impossible to control the pour, a gentle splash produces four inches of airy white bretty looking head, the beer is cloudy and thicker looking than most blonde types, and it never settles, insane carbonation to this. the nose is old indeed, the malt smells tired and old, the hops faded and a little green although some juicy pineapple still exists in this, and it smells like a flattering brett infection getting started along with some other almost saison yeast esters, unexpected but kind of cool, even if totally unintentional at this point. the flavor is weird, at first its kind of medicinal, still fruity, but also oxidized and kind of stinky, like a sourdough bread thing, but it grows on both my wife and i pretty fast, becomes almost addicting, and it finishes bitter, but not really hoppy bitter, more herbal, almost tea-like, and the effervescence is through the roof, so expressive and dry. the grain is gone, but the beer is still neat, seems almost purposeless to write a review on it since its absolutely nothing like it probably was when it was first produced, but it actually drinks more like the kind of beer that put stillwater on the map for me all those years ago, the saisons with the stamped cardboard four packs, and its endearing them to me again, even though its also kind of thick and gross. a weird one at this point, still with some value for the curious, and kind of a trip down memory lane.

From a 16 oz. can dated 04/12/2021. Sampled June 20, 2021.

The appearance is a slightly cloudy looking blonde-amber with a big, lingering white head.

The aroma has a white bread crust sort of character with a bright citrus zest effervescing on the back side.

Light-medium mouthfeel.

The taste is sweet and bready with a nice citrus zing at the end. Refreshing.