Agronomy
Urban Family Brewing Co.

 

 

 

My first from Urban Family. This was an enjoyable wit (even in winter). I look forward to trying more... albeit the next one I'd prefer to not use Brett... for purposes of comparison.

Looks are standard wit. For Smells, I pickup the citrus fruit, some apple/pear and an appropriate bit of Brett. Tastes are the same, but the Brett does not get too tart for me. (And that just may be my bottle as the reviews discussed Brett a lot.) As for sitting in the mouth, it was both wonderfully soft and, regrettably, a little too tart to let the food have its say.

Treated as an American pale wheat ale, this was poured into a becher pint glass. The appearance was a hazy burnt glossy yellow color with a finger’s worth of white foamy head that dissipated at a fair pace. Messy lacing. The aroma takes some hay, sweet grass, lemongrass, coriander, lemon pulp, some white pepper, slight tartness. The flavor brings the wheat a bit more forward to blend with the previously mentioned aromas. Crisp sweet wheaty subtle spicy aftertaste sly finish. On the palate, this one sat about a light to medium on the body with a nice sessionability about it. Mild carbonation. Overall, I think it’s more of an American Pale Wheat ale, I didn’t smell it taste any witbier yeast strain in this beer. Still, I liked it for what it is and would have again.

 

 

Aroma is coriander, wheat and fruit/citrus zest. The flavor is wheat, fruit/citrus zest and a long and spicy/very slightly tart/mostly smooth finish.

As the microflora that the Urban Family team meanders through the vast array of classic beer styles, its next stop in on the crisp, refreshing and citrusy zest of Belgian witbier. The yeast and barrel treatment that reworks the barley, spice, wheat, oats and hops does so with a ton of imagination and transformative power. One thing's for sure, this ain't your father's Celis White Ale.

Agronomy pours the dusty, canary yellow pour that's common among the Belgian white style. A soapy tower of foam builds while a pass of the nose is of musty fruit, curing leather, weathered woods and the pungency of parmesan cheese. With an undercurrent of bread and citrus stewing about, the nose leads into a remarkably clean taste considering its earthen perfume. Fresh baking breads, dough, a hint of sugar cookie and lemondrop offer a tepid sweetness with the middle palate looming.

As the slight decay of brettanomyces lifts, its taste is actaully tropical in nature. While a soft wheaten pillow of malt supports the array of spice and scent, it provides a drying but finesse element of sweetness and body. Lemon, orange and pineapple all carry a dried mustiness, but a condensed fruit flavor with a zesty tartness and a brisk brininess. Woodsy with hints of shaven pine, a balance of white pepper, cork, ginger and parsely come from the characterful fermentation and gentle hopping rates.

Medium-light in body, the beer's softness seems from oats and saves the body from a full dryness or over souring balance that the yeast would want to provide. A return of those rife and earthen components roll gently across the retro-olfactory senses for a funky-fresh finish that's just as refreshing as it is rife.

i have really come around on these guys lately. sure their house yeast profile is young and weird in a lot of contexts, but in a beer like this, i have grown to appreciate it more. this is a cool take on a wit, with the black pepper and the brett complexion, its unique in the style, and real drinkable and refreshing. the grain is fresh and light, wheaty obviously, but also some more interesting barley malt in here too, pils type. aroma of citrus peel and new bretty funk, a little of that dusty cheesy thing, but its not there in the flavor so much. the pepper is an awesome touch, its subtle, but its so cool with the yeast, and its a nice contrast to the orange, which would otherwise possibly have a tendency to run a little sweet. it ends up being bone dry and as much a saison as a witbier, thanks to the wild yeast and the cerealy base, very cool. carbonation is on point, the beer drinks light, and is bone dry, which all makes this real refreshing and sessionable, yet full of flavor and kind of autumnal as well, harvesty and earthy. great beer, despite the newness of the brett, it works in this context. one of the first i have had on draft from these guys.

 

 

 

 

500 ml bottle into pint glass; no bottle dating, but is a recent release. Pours moderately hazy/cloudy golden straw color with a 2 finger fairly dense and fluffy white head with great retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Nice foamy lacing clings down the glass, with a large amount of streaming carbonation retaining the head. Aromas of big lemon, orange peel, pear, apple, coriander, peppercorn, clove, wheat, cracker, hay, straw, grass, light funk, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of fruity/earthy yeast, spices, and moderate pale malt notes; with great strength. Flavors of big lemon, orange peel, pear, apple, coriander, peppercorn, clove, wheat, cracker, hay, straw, grass, light funk, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Good amount of peppery yeast spiciness and light herbal bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of lemon, orange peel, pear, apple, coriander, peppercorn, clove, wheat, cracker, and herbal/yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Damn nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/earthy yeast, spices, and moderate pale malt flavors; with great malt/spiciness balance. Moderate dryness from carbonation/spiciness as well. High carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth, crisp, and moderately creamy/grainy/sticky balanced mouthfeel that is awesome. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 5.4%. Overall this is an awesome Witbier! All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/earthy yeast, spices, and moderate pale malt flavors; very smooth, crisp, and refreshing to drink. Some subtle Brett character is present, but it is mostly dominated by saison yeast. A highly enjoyable offering.