Imperial Boysen Bu | de Garde Brewing

4.1/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

4.73/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

4.5/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

4.35/5  rDev -5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

4.74/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

4.25/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.5/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

4.02/5  rDev -12.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

4.75/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

No date on the bottle so I have no idea when it's from, poured gently into two tulips. Pour is dark purple jammy looking with a purple/pink fizzy head that eventually fades. The smell is incredible!! Berries, funk, and a strong barrel presence mainly. The taste follows the smell. Super jammy berries up front with oak midway followed by the tart funkiness. Feel is medium and fizzy. Overall this beer to me definitely deserves 4.75 if not higher! Cheers.

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4.5/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

4.63/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

5/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Boysen berries for days. Nice tartness. Deep deep purple color. Smells like when I was a kid going to my grandmas to pick Boysen berries. Awesome beer.

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4.25/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.34/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.34/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Appearance: As others have noted, this is a massive gusher though I was able to save most of the beer; pours a very cloudy cranberry color, with a lot of sediment, as well as floaties and seeds; initially almost all foam, the head eventually fades without leaving much lace

Smell: Fruity and lactic, with strong boysenberry aromatics with a touch of lemon adding a citric edge

Taste: Assertive lactic sourness from the outset, with the boysenberry fruit building across the taste buds; citric lemon tones, through the middle, and a dry, oaky finish

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body and prickly, with low to moderate carbonation

Overall: Get the wild yeast under control here and this would be extraordinary all around; still, top notch

Thanks, JavaNoire, for the opportunity

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4.41/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.35/5  rDev -5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.49/5  rDev -2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

4.25/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.5/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

4.02/5  rDev -12.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

4.62/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

4.82/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75

So delicious. Has somewhat of a red wine appearance, like a very dark ruby color. Good amount of sediment, full bodied like other imperial bu's I have had. Nice lemon, yogurt, and funk presence with the boysenberries being the dominant flavor. Say what you will about de garde bu's not being overly complex, but their Berliners cannot be matched and I would take their Berliners over most american wild ales. No other brewery is able to incorporate fruit into their beer as well as de garde.

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4.5/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

4.42/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5