Pina Colada Sour
Collective Arts Brewing

 

A: slight haze; medium gold in color; 1 finger white head that receded quickly to a thin collar; no lacing;

S: a little funk followed by a little coconut:

T: with my first sip, a little funk first, then tart non-descript tropical fruit, then tart coconut on the finish; on subsequent sips, the coconut was noticeable throughout;

M: light to medium bodied; moderate carbonation; moderately dry finish;

O: interesting, and the flavor comes close;

Tasted in a snifter from draft at Consume on January 28, 2020. A sour ale with a huge amount of toasted coconut added in the Whirlpool and pineapple during fermentation. Lactose was also used during brewing to add to the creamy sweetness to complete this summer delight.

 

 

 

I hate to gloat, but in searching for this beer on the Collective Arts page, I was heartened to see the return of alphabetically-based listings vice Review/Ratings-based listings. The latter may have made sense to some, but not to me. I also want to mention just how much I like getting CANadian-based Collective Arts CANs for The CANQuest (tm). I have pretty much curtailed my beer-buying to try & get out from under my backlog, but they are too much of a proven winner to ignore.

From the CAN: "Sour Ale brewed w/Coconut, Pineapple Puree, Demerara Sugar & Lactose"; "Unfiltered[,] Keep Cold[,] Roll the CAN Before Opening".

I did everything as bidden, including the latter, but in Crack!ing open the vent, it seemed to be pretty still. Hmm. I then went with a heavy-handed C-Line Glug to try & stir things up. This resulted in the quick, but brief, formation of just under two fingers of foamy, soapy, rocky, eggshell-white head with very limited retention. Color was a deeply-hazy/lightly-cloudy Golden-Amber (SRM = > 5, < 7). Nose was predominantly pineapple although I also got a whiff of coconut. This was the way that I would prefer it since, while some have an aversion to coconut I enjoy it, but too much & it smells like suntan oil. This was just right, IMHO. Mouthfeel was thin-to-medium, about on par for the style. The taste was more puckeringly tart than jaw-jacking sour, which was okay by me & it definitely tasted as the sum of its parts. It remained prevalently pineapple, but the coconut shone through as a nice CANterbalance. Yum. Finish was tart/sour & dry & actually quite pleasant. The Notes tout it as a Summertime beer, but I was enjoying it just fine on this late-Fall morning. YMMV.

 

 

16 ounce can into tulip glass, canned on 8/9/2019. Pours very hazy deep golden amber color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and fluffy off white head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big juicy/tart/tangy pineapples, coconut, lemon, lime, orange, peach, pear, melon, red/green apple, white grape/wine, hay, straw, grass, vanilla, cream, wheat, brown sugar, white bread dough, light peppercorn/lacto funk, and yeast earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of pineapple, coconut, fruity/acidic yeast, lactose, sugar, and pale/wheat malt notes; with big strength. Taste of big juicy/tart/tangy pineapples, coconut, lemon, lime, orange, peach, pear, melon, red/green apple, white grape/wine, hay, straw, grass, vanilla, cream, wheat, brown sugar, white bread dough, light peppercorn/lacto funk, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tartness, fruit tang, and light spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of tart/tangy pineapples, coconut, lemon, lime, orange, peach, pear, melon, red/green apple, white grape/wine, hay, straw, grass, vanilla, cream, wheat, brown sugar, white bread dough, light peppercorn/lacto funk, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of pineapple, coconut, fruity/acidic yeast, lactose, sugar, and pale/wheat malt flavors; with an awesome malt/tart/tangy balance, and no puckering/astringent flavors after the finish. Fairly crisp finishing. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering tartness and tangy fruit. Medium-plus carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/grainy, and acidic/tangy/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 5.2%. Overall this is a fantastic milkshake sour. All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of pineapple, coconut, fruity/acidic yeast, lactose, sugar, and pale/wheat malt flavors; very smooth, refreshing, and fairly crisp to drink with the mellowly acidic/tangy/tannic/drying finish; great soft feel and mellowly lactic. Fantastic balance of super juicy fruit and Lacto complexity; with a nice sized lactose and pale/wheat malt backbone against acidity for the ABV. Light residual sweetness with crisp dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and outstanding spot on style example.

 

16oz. can into Night Shift stemware. Shared with schen9303.

Nose is strongly pina colada. Hints of pineapple, coconut, vanilla and lactose. Robust and well integrated. Beer opens pineapple and coconut juice. Citrus tartness in the middle with a creamy vanilla and lactose presence that smooths out the flavors. Finishes soft with a spritzy pineapple finish. Really unique. Solid. Body is light with ample carbonation. Prickly on the palate and goes down aggressive, sparkling. Puckering finish with a clean aftertaste.

The pina colada flavor combination is very unique with this beer. Worth trying for sure.

 

 

Body like a golden pineapple, thick haze, covered with snowy white head, dense and solid retention.
Wow no kidding, pronounced aroma of rich coconut cream mixing with light notes of pineapple juice. They nailed it.
Colour me impressed, the taste profile is living up to it's name beautifully as well. Pure and fresh coconut cream, accompanied by juicy citrus flavours of pineapple and orange. But it's still very much a sour beer first, not a sugary cocktail smashed together with a beer. The moderately sour backbone is in perfect balance with the pina colada elements, leading to a medium-dry finish that lingers with exotic flavours. Medium body and carbonation. There's a buttery/oily feel to it as well, again accentuating the coconut.

Remarkably well crafted, not just a novelty, something you could drink frequently and not tire of. Truly lives up to it's name, it's feels more pure and authentic than most actual pina colada's out there.

16 oz. can.
Canned 31 JUL 2019.
Moderate to vigorous pour yields a one inch off-white head over a hazy, golden body with no lacing. Nose of coconut and pineapple. Taste mirrors nose at first, then mostly pineapple, and finishing with tart pineapple. Good feel and overall, got pineapple? Why, yes indeed!

Fantasic sour. Strong coconut at first, Extremely heavy fruit on the back end. If you like sours, you will like this beer.

Poured from a 473ml can, Canned on July 16/2019 Toasted Coconut added in the Whirlpool and Pineapple during fermentation.Lactose was also added.
A pretty good take on the Pina Colada theme. Somewhat on the sweet side for me but worth a try.

Appearance - Pours a hazy straw gold with two fingers of bubbly white head.

Smell - coconut, pineapple, brett yeast, earthy and floral hops, and bready malts.

Taste - coconut and pineapple upfront. The brett yeast follows suit. The earthy and floral hops and bready malts round out the brew.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Finishes tart with the coconut and pineapple lingering.

Overall - A bold attempt at recreating the pina colada in a beer form. The coconut and pineapple are at the forefront so if your not a fan of these two ingredients than this brew may not be for you. But nonetheless, worth a try for those adventurous drinkers.

I drink sours almost exclusively and this one has to be one of my favourites. Not a good go to if you don't love Coconut, but I do! I'll be disappointed when I can't get my hands on it anymore (as it is seasonal).