Emerald Vision
Cellarmaker Brewing Co. - The Rare Barrel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Growler into tulip. Batch 1 (no mint). 5.7%

A: Pours a fairly clear light golden with a short lived very fizzy, active, and bright white head that quickly disappeared into nothing.
S: Light and refreshing nose with crisp notes of cucumber water and slight green melon.
T: Golden sour flavors of grainy malt backbone hit up front followed by fresh and clean notes of cucumber. Honeydew or green melon really dominates in the finish. The lactic bite of clean acidity isn't harsh but it is very tart. I get hints of melon alongside a lingering sweetness in the aftertaste. Clean but not bone dry.
M: Medium-light body, drying mouth but not bone dry or gritty, fuzzy and bubbly carbonation, bright and tart lactic bite.
O: Great light cucumber flavor. Cucumber has a very interesting melon quality at times. Not overly harsh or acidic. This is already light and refreshing, but I think it could be even more refreshing if it was even dryer.

Batch 2 (with mint). 5.6%. Tulip at the brewery.

Appearance, and surprisingly, the smell of this is the same as batch 1. I get tons of melon and hints of cucumber, but I wouldn't know mint was in this beer.
T: Like batch 1, the flavor is a mix of fresh cantaloupe, melon, and green, cool, refreshing cucumber. There is, however, a mild yet pleasant fresh mint flavor in the finish. It is very light, but it lingers nicely in the aftertaste along with the kiss of acidity.
M: Crisp and light, perhaps dryer than the first batch. The acidity is clean and not too biting.
O: Exceptionally refreshing, but very similar to the non-minted kind. The mint adds a nice subtleness in the aftertaste, but I wonder how the beer would be with even more mint. Based on this batch I've upped my scores slightly.