Oak And Orchard - Rosé
Epic Brewing Company

 

Batch #12. Poured from a pink wax topped bottle into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Slightly clouded light golden pink pour. A bit of sediment at the end... with a thin finger of fizzy white head that falls fast. Reasonable lacing.

S: Tart and acidic. Funk, vinegar, oak, and wine.

T.F: Sweet/tart... fruit and funk. White wine, oak, and apple cider vinegar. Modest acidity. Green apple, strawberry, floral notes, and lemon. Zesty carbonation. Medium to light bodied... more tart fruit and funk to finish.

O: A well done wild ale. Good flavor and drinkability.... and it picks up some interesting stuff from the oak/barrels.

375 ml bottle from the government store. Pours clear orange gold with almost no head. Aroma is floral, berries, oak, slight funk. Taste is tart, strawberries, oak, flowers, lemon. Very well done, complex with great balance.

 

375 ml bottle into tulip glass; release #12, no bottle date. Pours slightly hazy medium golden yellow, light pink/orange color with a 1 finger dense and fluffy off white head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a light amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big tart/tangy strawberry, cranberry, hibiscus, rose, fruit skin/seed, lemon, lime, orange, peach, plum, pear, apricot, melon, red/green apple, white grape/wine, toasted oak, hay, straw, floral, grass, wheat, cracker, and white bread; with lighter notes of peppercorn, oaken vanilla, leathery/musty/lacto funk, and yeast/oak earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of strawberry, rose, hibiscus, fruity/funky/acidic/spicy yeast, oak barrels, and moderate pale/wheat malt notes; with great strength. Taste of big sour/tart/tangy strawberry, cranberry, hibiscus, rose, fruit skin/seed, lemon, lime, orange, peach, plum, pear, apricot, melon, red/green apple, white grape/wine, toasted oak, hay, straw, floral, grass, wheat, cracker, and white bread; with lighter notes of peppercorn, oaken vanilla, leathery/musty/lacto funk, and yeast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tartness, fruit/hibiscus tang, and yeast/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of tart/tangy berries, hibiscus, rose, fruit skin/seed, lemon, lime, orange, peach, plum, pear, apricot, melon, red/green apple, white grape/wine, toasted oak, hay, straw, floral, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, peppercorn, oaken vanilla, leathery/musty/lacto funk, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of strawberry, rose, hibiscus, fruity/funky/acidic/spicy yeast, oak barrels, and moderate pale/wheat malt flavors; with a great malt/tart/tangy and yeast/oak spiciness balance; with no puckering/astringent flavors after the finish. Fairly crisp finishing. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering tartness, fruit/hibiscus tang, and yeast/oak spiciness after the finish. Medium carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/grainy, and acidic/tangy/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol for 7.1%. Overall this is an excellent fruited/spiced sour/wild ale. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of strawberry, rose, hibiscus, fruity/funky/acidic/spicy yeast, oak barrels, and moderate pale/wheat malt flavors; very smooth and fairly crisp/refreshing to drink with the modestly acidic/tangy/tannic/drying finish; not overly lactic. Great balance of juicy fruit/hibiscus, and Brett/Bacteria complexity; with great oak presence, and pale/wheat malts against acidity. Minimal residual sweetness with crisp acidic/tangy dryness. A very enjoyable offering, and impressively well made style example as expected. No complaints.

Highly carbonated golden orange pour with no head. Plenty of cool strawberry in the nose, with oak, hibiscus, grass, lemon, and rose. Taste was more floral, with the rose and hibiscus leading. Oak backs well, strawberry present but faint, has some bright vinous qualities. Feel is thin and over carbonated, though the oak backing is solid but just kind of flat. More interesting than good