Cassis Dore
pFriem Family Brewers

an absolutely brilliant speciment, my first, or one of my first, from the barrel aged union, if ive had one before, i dont think i knew it at the time. this is a wild golden ale, oak aged, spiked with black currants, and its wonderful, absolutely presents like lambic, the best side of the bottle pfriem stuff for my money, so mature, so wild, and the yeast profile is just amazing, all kinds of tart from the fruit but more funky from the brett, lightly medicinal, maybe raw wheat in here, this is quite lambic-esque, a high compliment. its pinkish in color, pretty saturated, a little hazy, and frothy headed with fine carbonation from the bottle, looks bottle conditioned to me, sexy and lively. the nose and taste are similar, wild beer first, tangy fruit second, a ton of complexity, oak, and funk, and super mature to me, how long was this in the barrel for? it also seems to suggest some pretty informed blending, there might be younger beer in here as well, not sure how it was constructed, but i love it. the fruit has hints of red wine grape, ripe strawberry, and bright red raspberry too. rose wine notes, definitely vinous with all the wood, but its the almost aged hop funk on the back end with the astringency of the fruit that makes this so memorable, totally dry but then instantly mouthwatering, some new oak vanilla character too, my tastebuds are happy! spritzy feeling brew, lighter in body despite being apparently wheat based, and with a sort of regal fanciness about it, like it was right to have this on a celebratory occasion. need to track down more from this series, this is world class good, could have come from one of the belgian legends, i swear to god...