Nectarine Dream
Cascade Brewing / Raccoon Lodge & Brewpub

NOVEMBER 2023.
50 cl bottle, VINTAGE 2019.
Lot still brewed by the legendary Brewmaster Chris Crabb, before the sale of the brewery.
It is a blend of Blonde Ales (Belgian-style beers) that have spent more than 18 months in oak barrels and foudres and which have had a further 5 month fermentation on top of fresh peaches, nectarines.
The label reads: "He followed a method used in making wine to maintain the purest expression of nectarines."
A recommended consumption date is not indicated on the bottle.

As soon as it is opened, it smells of peach jam and a soft, rounded woody note.
When poured, it does not foam and is a bright, shiny orange colour.
In the mouth, a medium-bodied beer which releases a full flavor of peach pulp followed by an evident acid note (almost of peach yoghurt), but whose astringency is rounded and dampened by a valuable woody note which smoothes out any angularity that fruit tends to give to beer.
The drink is tasty and valuable: the peach flavor is dominant, the inevitably acidic note is tempered by a rounded woodiness that dampens the tartaric flavor and leaves room for the taste of peach pulp on the palate.
Tongue not dehydrated.
Wonderful balance.

 

Appearance: Pours a clear golden color capped by a finger's worth of foam; the retention was average with dots of lacing left behind

Smell: The nectarine aromatics are pronounced bringing both the sweet essence of the fruit as well as the soured aspect; oaky, as well

Taste: As in the aroma, the nectarine is really prominent, starting with the fruit being clearly recognizable and then moving in a tart and oaky direction

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation; high pucker factor

Overall: Powerful fruit tones soured in oak barrels - this is a quintessential Cascade presentation

 

 

2019 vintage. the thing thats so wild about this is how honestly nectarine it is, like, no chance its apricot or peach or anything, the fuzzless tight skinned peak of ripeness nectarine is evident from first sniff, what a gorgeous expression of the fruit, and in such a clean yet mature blended wild beer, just so vintage cascade here, even though i didnt know too much about this one before i saw it on tap at prefunk on friday. these guys always do this sort of thing so well, like the beer always seems built for the fruit, not just like random fruit dropped into sour beer, everything with a purpose, i love that about cascade, and its on display here for sure. the base beer is solid, wheaty but simple and light for its strength, not too earthy or anything, very well refined. the sourness is just a shade higher than i need it to be, but not as aggressive as some of the cascade stuff can be, and the pucker balances a little bit of leftover sugar from the fruit, although this is in fact fermented quite dry. the nectarine is of course the star of the show here, but the whole thing is so cohesive and good, white winey, oaken and tannic, clean for being wild, and still with some funk most of the way through, a pretty classic cascade profile, mature but not overcooked on the bacterial side. great carbonation here, attention to detail on point as always, and just full on nectarine to the dome, perfect for late summer or early fall, and really a pretty incredible offering here. perhaps not their most dynamic or layered, but it doesnt need to be. this is smart and flawlessly executed. not to be missed for the stone fruit fan!

 

L: Generic golden blonde ale.
S: Strong nectarine flavor.
T: A light nectarine flavor with a sweet finish rather than a sour finish.
F: A good nectarine flavor juice.
O: A simple nectarine sour but unlike others leave a clean but sweet after taste. This makes it easier to keep drinking.

 

 

A lovely nectarine nose. Bright, juicy and tart. Taste is the same, funky, tart, juicy nectarine. Simple but really nice. Refreshing body, the strength is quite hidden. Great beer.

 

Served On-Tap

A — Pours a light yellowy orange hue with a slight off white head that leaves some spotty lace.

S — Smell is fuzzy and peachy with wonderful notes of Nectaries and stonefruit.

T — Fuzzy notes of white peach and nectarine, some tangerine as well as some light balancing white oak character.

M — Medium bodied, easy and mellow finish.

O — Very nice overall, restrained sourness lets the fruit shine through.