Mr. Blue (2019)
To Øl

Copenhagen 22/9 2019. 33 cl bottle from Mikkeller Web-shop. To Øl's usual Reservoir Dogs Design with the CMYK-code for blue as label.

Pours opaque, dark brown with a dark beige head with a purple hue. Settles as 0,2 cm thick layer of foam just covering the surface of the beer and crawling up the sides of the glass. Substantial lacing.

Aroma is rich, spicy and sweetish. Brown sugar, molasses, ripe dark berries, caramel. Light notes of vinegar peeking in giving a sour touch.

Light carbonation. Thick, viscous, smooth and soft texture.

Flavor is has a medium strong sweetness followed by a somewhat stronger sharp and sour bitterness. Aftertaste is bitter-sweet with a sour bitterness as the dominant. Lingering. Semi-dry boozy finish.

Unusual take on a Porter combining the tart sourness of berries with the malty sweetness of a porter. Seems a bit Schizophrenic to me but it have it's own distinct charm.

 

330 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet, Nettbutikken, at a slightly reduced price. ABV is 10.1%. Pitch black colour, large brown head. Strong aroma of blackcurrants, also roast malts. The moderately sour flavour has also loads of blackcurrants, on a background of roast malts. Too much blackcurrants for my taste.

Looks and pours like a stout. Drinks like a sour. I’ve never been a huge sour fan, so it was pretty far from what I was expecting and fairly disappointing. Especially for $9 a pint.

i had mr blue at one time when it was a saison as a base beer, now its a huge stout. i love how these guys constantly seem to be innovating, changing things up, and finding new flavors. i also love that i found this on tap in idaho, i didnt think this kind of thing made it out this way, hopefully this is a sign of much more to come! the beer is huge, sweet, and a small doses only thing for me, but its enormously flavor, relatively natural on the fruit side of things, and as compelling a base stout as any they have done to date (which is to say awesome, they are all fantastic!). the currants have a baked sweetness to them, especially with a vanilla and even lactose character in here and some grain sugar, but they also have a little tart and tang to them that really help cut through some of the body, sugar, and booze, not sure this would work as well with fruit that didnt contribute this element. notes of tobacco, burnt brown sugar, molasses, licorice, and bitter dark chocolate all exist in the stout, but the fruit still is bold enough to really carry the flavor here. its a bit desserty, and could benefit from being a little drier, but its also long and smooth and really complex, with a surprisingly well hidden alcohol strength, i thought this would burn, but its mellow and has some glide. the linger is long, i feel it on my teeth, and i taste it for ages, even into my next couple of beers after this, but the flavor overall is delicious and quite distinctive, even a subtle yeast element in the mix somehow, and i like the beer a lot. smart to go with currants here instead of blueberries, helps create a more dynamic brew i reckon! i pray more of these beers come out this way!