Estival Dichotomous (2021)
Jester King Brewery

25.4 oz. bomber poured into Jester King Snorkel tulip
Batch 4 — October 2021

L: 100% clear pure yellow, pushes up a thick 1/2-inch head of white foam, loads of activity in the glass keeps a thick foamy collar and most of a skin; it's a work of art, a true Belgian style brew

S: JK funk ... hay barn, musty grain sacks, hints of lemon peel citrus, grapefruit peel, lime peel, a bit of sweetness as it warms but the funk is always present

T: follows the nose closely with a pinch more sweetness, not much fruit flavor/sweetness but it's also not an overly earthy/yeasty JK brew, which they can get; very tart up front with the sweetness following in the aftertaste; at times the horse blanket/hay barn/grain sacks funk grows to the point of overpowering, but there's also always good lemon-lime flavor leaning toward lemon

F: wonderfully light up front then filling in the end with loads of carbonation; it gets fluffy and airy at times from all the carbonation ... I love this style of beer, a true delight

O: I've not had a JK brew in years, maybe over 5 years at this point, yet one sip of this sucker and I felt right back in the saddle ... so much farmyard funk with just enough sweetness to balance in a truly quaffable masterpiece of mouthfeel; as the beer warms a bit and opens up, teeny tiny hints of watermelon show up in the flavor, which at this point feels like a bonus; bonus points to JK for building this bottle of beer to last — it's likely sat who knows where over the years collecting dust, but it looks, smells, tastes and feels like it was brewed just a week or two ago; great beer that isn't necessarily one I'll seek out again but good enough to get me re-interested in keeping a JK beer or two in the fridge

brilliant little summer beer here, mixed grain base, familiar jester king funk, refermented with watermelons! i love everything about this. was expecting a little color from the fruit maybe, but no sign of that, this is bright backlit yellow with gentle cloudiness and a high white head from the bottle, cool to finally drink something fresh from jester king after a run through some seriously aged bottles. the nose is awesome, less tart than a lot of their stuff, more saison-esque, a little funk to it, but not all that sour nor bretty, despite being rustic and farmy, really nice for this beer, which is subtle in many ways. the grain base is rad, pils malt for sure, almost assuredly some raw wheat next to white wheat malt as well, could be oats too, its frothy and creamy, slightly crackery and european, and light in taste and dry without being too light in texture, love that. its perfect for the watermelon, which seems to have the vast majority of its sugar fermented away, but still has its essence at the core of this, juicy and drippy and ripe and summery, a little of the green lush rind character, but mostly the pink flesh, subtle in this but obvious at the same time. its right in the center, sandwiched between the malt on the front end and the ferment on the back end, funky, light lemon to it, herbal depth, and definite rustic character. i also dig this not being done in oak, it keeps it light, the fruit bright and fresh, and the whole thing a little cleaner and crisper, this is refreshing and crushable, no need for wood. fabulous bottle conditioning, super expressive texture, more floral and juicy as it warms, unmistakable watermelon, honest as it gets. this is delicious!

 

 

No watermelon taste or smell whatsoever. Still a solid sour