Karnevel
Plan Bee Farm Brewery

 

 

 

 

i cannot get enough from these guys right now, their beers are just amazing, sexy packaging, cool wild fermentation profiles that arent all the same, and wonderful use of curious ingredients. this i guess is close to kriek, a cherry based wild ale with a ton of mature funk to it, less sour than a lot of theirs have been, mostly tart from the fruit not so much the yeast, instead its a crazy almost lambic funk, a truly wild captured character to this, funky as can be and super advanced in its evolution, i could smell this for hours and almost taste it. the cherry isnt over the top, reddish pink as this is from the fruit, and i get some orange and lemon notes highlighting it, nice piquancy but not overly acidic. i really dig the way the funkiness comes through in the taste and works with the clean fresh cherry, all very natural and cohesive, like they were born to come together. there has to be some oak to this, i get almost wine tannins in the finish, especially as this warms up, super rustic overall. i wish for a bit more carbonation, this one is a touch still. especially next to some much more expressive bottles of their beer, its really all thats missing, but it makes this seem just a touch heavy to finish. overall insanely good cherry beer, unique and mature wild character, and something that really stands out from the crowd. these guys have my full attention, and are positively killing it with all they do!

 

 

Appearance - Pours bright cloudy pinkish red with a decent white head that quickly settles to a thick ring. Spotty lacing.

Aroma - The nose is hoppy slightly funky, grassy not getting much cherry but very complex nose.

Taste - Cherry much more pronounced in the flavor along with yeast, grassy hops, much less funk in the taste than I got in the nose.

Feel - Light bodied slightly slick nice dry finish.

Overall - Very well done beer, nose and taste are both really well balanced the flavors and aromas really compliment each other.

 

 

L: Poured from a bottle to a snifter glass. Had a reddish / pink color and a super-cloudy consistency. There was a quarter inch of foamy, off white, fairly long-lasting head. Excellent lacing.

S: An interesting aroma of berries, stone fruit, funky yeast, malt, honey, and citrus fruit.

T: Tasted of a bit of funky, Belgian-style yeast (not as much as expected), a lot of raspberries (tart; a big component), some light malt notes, a little citrus fruit (orange, lemon), a decent amount of honey, and some cherry notes as well. An interesting flavor for a wild ale. The honey gives it a dynamic dimension. Quite tasty.

F: A below average amount of carbonation with a lively finish. Medium-bodied.

O: This beer won't appeal to everyone, but if you like offbeat stuff, give it a try. Drinkable.