Cherry Picker
Almanac Beer Co.

Cherry PickerCherry Picker
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From:
Almanac Beer Co.
 
California, United States
Style:
Wild Ale
ABV:
6.9%
Score:
89
Avg:
3.99 | pDev: 4.26%
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
36
Status:
Active
Rated:
Apr 04, 2021
Added:
Mar 25, 2017
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  4
Cherry Picker is our newest fruit-forward Brettanomyces ale. After hand-selecting our best Brett beer barrels with the brightest fruit character, we added Balaton and Montmorency cherries picked from the very highest tree branches, closest to the sun, for maximum ripeness. We then blended the components back together, fusing Brett funk with cherry pie aromas to create a rich, crimson, cherry bomb of a beer.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by metter98:
Photo of metter98
Reviewed by metter98 from New York

3.98/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
A: The beer is very hazy crimson red in color and has some purplish hues. It poured with a quarter finger high off white head that died down, leaving a thin layer of bubbles covering the surface and a narrow collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Moderate aromas of sourness are present in the nose along with notes of funk and hints of cherries.
T: The taste follows the smell and is dominated by sour and funky flavors with notes of woody oak and hints of cherries, the latter of which becomes a bit stronger as the beer warms up.
M: It feels light- to medium-bodied and rather tart on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is nice and sour and funky, but I thought there could be a little more in the way of the cherries.

Serving type: bottle
May 27, 2017
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.25 by bigred89 from Maryland

Apr 04, 2021
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Reviewed by SHODriver from North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
A: Poured into a tulip glass to a slightly pink orange topped by a dense and slightly rocky finger of white head which fades slowly and leaves decent lacing on the glass.
S: Smells of funky brett with some horse blanket along with a nice cherry note with a little bit of oak. Slight mineralic note along with some grape skin
T: Taste is funky horseblanket and cherries with a pleasant amount of tartness and a touch of oak. Mostly just delicious cherries, slight sour cherry, and horseblanket. On the swallow there's more cherry, funky horseblanket, a little band aid, a touch of oak, and some lingering tartness.
M: This beer is fairly light in body but it is not watery. Carbonation is well done for the style and the beer is just slightly prickly while the beer has a drying finish from the acidity.
O: Overall this is pretty nice. Great brett notes and great cherry notes which really nail what they were going for with this beer. Not the greatest amount of complexity but definitely a pleasure to drink. Worth a try if you like fruited brett beers.
Sep 22, 2019
 
Rated: 4 by Karibourgeois from Texas

Jan 24, 2019
Photo of RaulMondesi
Reviewed by RaulMondesi from California

4/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Cherry picker - nah, not like that dude in your men’s pick up league that hangs around the half court line looking for a fast break; cherry picker as in some homeboy picked some cherries and put them in my beer. Hooray! And you know what? It’s not bad! Light like a Laura Flynn Boyle pull up, but do not judge, the beer may not be the most rich and robust, but it’s still tasty like Laura in a 2 piece.

Yep!
Oct 12, 2018
 
Rated: 3.96 by TheHopsman from Nebraska

May 26, 2018
 
Rated: 4.16 by Blazer22 from Colorado

Apr 10, 2018
 
Rated: 3.63 by CJNAPS from California

Mar 24, 2018
Photo of Lone_Freighter
Reviewed by Lone_Freighter from Vermont

4.23/5  rDev +6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Poured into a tulip, the appearance was a nice looking maroon/red color in the body with a subtle "pink" look as it poured. Some nice looking transparency with a slim cap of white foamy lace, it must have sustained for a good minute before gently dissipating. Concave lace wound around the glass nicely.
The aroma firmly keeps a fine blend of sweet to tart red cherries up front to follow through on a light vinous sweetness. Some grassy hops along with an even lighter lemon rind to pulp-like sweetness rounding out the edges.
The flavor slightly leans towards the sour side, but honestly, the sweet side of those red cherries really seem to pick up as it warmed. The 'Brett' was there but not burdensome. Slight aftertaste of the red cherry with some grassy hops.
The mouthfeel was about medium bodied with a fine in between glance of the "sessionable" to "sipping" quality. I wanted to 'slug' this a bit more, but it did have some "sour harshness", not distractible, but just 'there.' The 'pucker factor' was tame enough and on top of it, there's nothing cloying.
Overall, to me, I wanted to say this was pretty close to drinking a "cherry pie" beer without the pie crust. It's one I'd be more likely to seek out again for the Summer, but still an absolutely well done beer.
Feb 18, 2018
 
Rated: 4 by jcb7472 from Florida

Jan 09, 2018
 
Rated: 3.75 by jgunther71 from Illinois

Oct 27, 2017
Photo of StonedTrippin
Reviewed by StonedTrippin from Colorado

4.16/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
i have a hard time not liking all the almanac beers in isolation, but have others noticed a lot of them being pretty samey from a yeast standpoint? so many seem to have the exact same sour profile, or darn near it. this one might not be quite as acidic as some, and may have a little more mature funk to it from the brett, but its mighty similar to a good handful of their others, which isnt a bad thing, just an observation that i think makes their beers each a little less distinctive the more familiar i get with their portfolio. the cherries are nice in here though, very natural tasting, pungent in nose and taste, but not as over the top as i thought this might be, and it drinks a bit like a kriek on the sweeter side, with some nice oaky funk and sharp acid to it, but still in a very drinkable range. i get the tart from the fruit too though, and it lingers on the finish, a touch medicinal there, but neat and tasty. cherry pie and red wine aspects to this, good fruit saturation, and better carbonation than a lot of thei stuff has had. enjoyable and well made beer, and for better or worse, its an obvious one to pick out as an almanac beer because of the yeast and sour elements...
Oct 20, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by Vidblain from Minnesota

Oct 09, 2017
 
Rated: 3.86 by Ristaccia from Nebraska

Sep 16, 2017
Photo of superspak
Reviewed by superspak from North Carolina

4.22/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
375 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 2/23/2017. Pours slightly hazy/cloudy reddish/pinkish orange/amber color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and fluffy light pink head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of huge sweet/sour red/black cherries, raspberry, fruit skin, cherry pits, lemon, lime, green apple, red grape, white wine, almond, vanilla, pepper, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, light funk/vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness. Incredible aromas with fantastic complexity and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, cherries, wine barrels, and bready malt notes; with big strength. Taste of big sweet/sour red/black cherries, raspberry, fruit skin, cherry pits, lemon, lime, green apple, red grape, white wine, almond, vanilla, pepper, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, light funk/vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tartness, fruit tang, and yeast/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of sweet/sour cherries, raspberry, fruit skin, cherry pits, lemon, lime, green apple, red grape, white wine, almond, vanilla, pepper, oak, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, light funk/vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, cherries, wine barrels, and bready malt flavors; with an awesome malt/tartness and tangy fruit balance; with no puckering flavors after the finish. Light-moderate increasing dryness from tartness and fruit tang. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth and moderately bready/grainy/acidic/tangy/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol for 6.8%. Overall this is a fantastic fruited sour/wild ale! All around outstanding complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/funky/acidic yeast, cherries, wine barrels, and bready malt flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the modestly lactic/tangy/tannic/drying finish. Super jammy and tastes just like cherry pie as advertised. Awesome Brett complexity and solid Lacto presence, against a ton of fruit character. A highly enjoyable offering.
Sep 02, 2017
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Reviewed by HattedClassic from Virginia

4/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
The beer pours a nice, white and creamy head that dissipates quickly but leaves a nice looking ring around the inside of the glass. The beer itself is a clear red rose color that looks absolutely gorgeous.

The smell and taste are pretty good. The smell has some nice sweet cherry notes that mixes well with the funky brett that gives it a nice and earthy smell. There is also a bit of vanilla and some light wood. The taste, however, has more of a tart cherry with a bit of sweetness and a woody, earthy and light funk brett note with a light bit of wood.

The feel is pretty good. The beer has a medium body with a thinnish feel to it and some nice biting carbonation. It has a fairly dry finish.

Overall, a pretty good beery with some interesting and good notes for a mild wild ale.
Jul 27, 2017
 
Rated: 4.22 by loganburgh from Michigan

Jul 15, 2017
 
Rated: 4.17 by Knapp85 from Pennsylvania

Jul 07, 2017
 
Rated: 3.87 by IBUBrew from Vermont

Jun 27, 2017
 
Rated: 3.74 by REVZEB from Illinois

Jun 16, 2017
Cherry Picker from Almanac Beer Co.
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 36 ratings