The Rochette
de Garde Brewing

 

an absolute stunner, worth every penny. something about the de garde wild fermentation profile just does it for me, so mature and so funky, never all that acidic really, frankly one of the most appealing and distinct in the game, up there with the likes of jester king, always so impressed when i drink their stuff. this is lovely, done with cabernet grapes and aged for three years, wow! lovely color, stained glass toned purple, radiant in the glass, not dense enough to stop light from pushing through, even in a dim bar, short but lasting low whiteish pink head, no sediment or anything, just gorgeous, grapey looking and sexy. its a little too cold when we pour it up, so we crush a pint of something else and wait for it, after ten minutes or so it comes alive in the aroma, rich and concentrated whole cluster grape character, tannic and tangy and with all the oak on this very vinous, this is incredibly woody, more brett to me than bacteria but both in the mix for sure, some lambic level complexity to it, the base beer is amazing too, seems to hide its strength well, and the whole thing is just so well refined, so interesting, so attractive. the flavor is killer too of course, the fermentation with the fruit makes this present like a high end natural wine, as much from the fruit as the yeast, the maturity also obvious without any fade or oxidation, and this is somehow really dry for being so fruit forward. the base wild ale isnt lost to the fruit, and the funk this has is just so awesome, better and better as it warms too, and only ever really developing middle of the road acidity, its plenty drinkable. among the best handful of beers i can recall drinking from de garde, which is saying a lot because they all slap so hard. really world class this one, even with my wine grape beer fetish set aside, this is next level, not to be missed for enthusiasts of this sort of thing, hope to drink this one again some day...

Bottle from Cascadia Taphouse.

A deep red with a pink head, this looks very wine-like. The nose has an intense Cabernet Sauvignon expression, fruity, earthy, leathery and jammy,intense, rich and tannic. Spicy, peppery, earthy, the grapes are just utterly dominant here. The base beer is mildly noticeable, mildly funky and earthy, pairing nicely with the fruit. The palate opens super vinous with big earth, leather, spice, pepper, cola and dark, jammy fruit, rich and burly. For all practical purposes, this is a wine. The mid-palate has a blend of earthy, wet straw like funk, pairing well with the tannins and the dark fruit. Mild tartness on the finish with a big tannic character which only amplifies the earth and spice notes. An hour in, brief notes of preserved lemon and lime appear, complementing the fruit beautifully. Compelling, unique and has the potential to be life changing.