Masumoto
Belching Beaver Pub 980

 

 

 

An excellent beer. However, for the cost I would have to say there is no way it is worth it. Good flavor throughout but overly sour like a lot of newer sours.

 

12.7oz bottle, poured into a standard pint glass (Prancing Pony, if anyone cares to know).

L - Hazy golden, a gentle pour yielding a fast-dissipating 1" head which leaves the glass nearly clean.

S - Fresh-baked, buttery peach cobbler, one of the best-smelling fruit beers I've had. I need to go for a drive to peach country and buy a whole box of the things just so I can make a cobbler to match this smell.

T - Tart. Reminds me of a Belgian sour. A touch of vinegar. Tartness lingers, giving way to orange juice, trailing into hints of the aforementioned peach cobbler -- as the tartness recedes, moving into peaches and the very tail end of the yeast. The peach cobbler flavors come through more as it warms, though the sharpness of the vinegar stays. Normally not a fan of tasting vinegar in my sours, but it's just restrained enough here.

F - Too heavily carbonated for my tastes, when considered alongside the tartness -- an inconsiderately large sip left me coughing for a moment. Body is light, but in line with what I expect from the style.

O - Belching Beaver excels at flavored beers. Normally, that comes in the form of their stouts -- peanut butter, Mexican chocolate, horchata, and so on -- but this is an excellent effort. Perhaps the best-smelling fruit sour I've had. The flavor lags behind, and the vinegar hit can be just a touch overwhelming, but this is worth a try, and I'd have another. Not right now, but I'd have one.

On tap at Murphys Pourhouse in Murphys, CA.