Panzer Grenadier
To Øl

 

 

 

 

375ml bottle poured into a To Øl teku glass.

The beer pours a cloudy apricot color, hues of copper and orange, very opaque with a nice 2 fingers of soapy, cloudy, white head that has very nice retention and leaves nice tracks of sticky lace behind. The aroma is lovely, lightly funky, pale grain comes up front with soft and delicate pomegranate fruit, fresh and juicy with light tartness, the white wine character is really well done, lightly acidic and mineral forward, dry, with light white grape and faint citrus. It's a very interesting and inviting nose, funky, fruity and tart, but without going overboard into the sour territory, very restrained and balanced. The flavors mirror very well and even improve upon the nose, pale grain and funky yeast hits the tongue first but is quickly replaced by juicy and tart pomegranate and light berry flavors, white grape and lightly tart apple come out from the wine barrels, lightly acidic but not sour, tangy citrus pokes its nose out before chewy oak with some nice dry mineral flavors wash over the finish. The mouthfeel is great, lively carbonation that coats the tongue really well, very smooth texture, no prickliness at all with a nice substantial body that is just right that finishes easily with a lightly dry sensation.

Verdict: A masterful take on a wine barrel aged beer from To Øl, they definitely struck lighting in a bottle with this offering. It's complex, balanced, delicate and intricately built. The wine barrels are the perfect compliment to the base beer and the pomegranate is layered extremely well and doesn't overwhelm or singlehandedly define the beer. An excellent showcase of all things involved in the beer and a great reward for all the experimentation that To Øl stakes their reputation on.