Vernal Equinox
Cascade Brewing / Raccoon Lodge & Brewpub

really neat wood aged sour here, super clever beer from these guys, done with plums and black tea. i have been loving tea beers recently, and this one really hits. its slightly murky medium pink with a decent head from the tap slowly fading, its not messy but its not super bright either. the nose and taste are striking then, the plum is tannic and juicy at the same time, almost a red wine grape character to me, sangiovese or something, really different and pretty robust, other fruit layers that hit are cranberry and red raspberry, nice and acidic most of the way but not as intense as a lot of the cascade ones can be, and i think the oak on this adds to the vinous character overall, rather complex right there even before the tea, the plum is real and bold in here, delicious, a bit more robust in taste than in nose, no surprise for plums, but its got a floral waft to me early, wheat malt way back too. the tea is less bitter than it often can be, earthy with some umami, almost a mushroom note which loves the oak, picks up the subtle grain character in this, and also brings more floral character, albeit dried and deeper than what i take from the plums. light grass, hay, minerality, and only late the bitterness, nice with the fruit and the acid, and this ends up super cohesive and complex, but also real drinkable. a faint vinegar thing to the souring, but again less abrasive than a lot of their beer, fresh with the fruit, mature with the wood and funk. quite a bit of body to this and not as lively as it could be in the feel, but its still awesome on the palate, and overall a really cool beer for this time of year, glad i got to have a pour! cascade continues to deliver after all these years...

2022-12-22
12oz can served in a tulip-y wineglass. Canned on 03JUN22. Bought it a couple months ago at Chuck's Hop Shop Seward.

Pours a moderately hazy purple-pink color with a small head and a small amount of active carbonation. Smell is tart, fruity/jammy, mild kettle-sour-ness, dominated by sweet-tart aroma.

Taste tart, jammy, but with an odd wan-ness. Additional sips give me more of the sweet-tartness, but it's still kind of muted...I hesitate to use the word dull, but it's not completely wrong.

Mouthfeel is light, dry, moderately still. Overall...it's not bad, but it's not very exciting.

Pours a slightly hazy orange/pink with a quickly dissipating head. No lacing to speak of.

The black tea is at once noticeable on the nose. Mixed stone fruit rather than the advertised plum follows. A little sweet note is there as well.

On the tongue, the plum really comes out. Sweetened tea follows. A hint of tartness. I’m not getting much wood, or any of the spiciness that is advertised on the label.

Very light bodied. Refreshing.

This was quite nice.