Clavis Purpora
OEC Brewing (Ordinem Ecentrici Coctores)

 

 

Blend #2 - blended on 9/6/2018

L: Pours a pink color with medium haze. A gentle pour yields 2 fingers of off-white head with a bit of retention.

S: Blueberries, green grape, herbal tea notes, a bit of earthy funk, oak, and acetic acid.

T: The front end is very fruity with blueberry and green grape mixing. Mid palate I get funky notes of oak and brett character. On the backend the wild ascpects are complemented by notes of tea and earth and sour acetic acid.

F: The mouthfeel is nice and soft on the front end, but on the backend it has a light tannic qauality complemented by a light dryness.

O: This is an amazing wild ale. OEC is one of the best in CT and it shows here. The fruity aspects are well balanced by the herbal an earthy notes all supported by the brett and barrel qualities. Highly recommended!

 

 

 

 

 

 

an absolutely amazing beer, my favorite i think of the recent oec brews i got to drink on down at goed zuur. this one is unique, as its 25% kombucha in the blend from what i understand, brewed with white, green, and black tea. its also aged on a whole boatload of blueberries, and is electric pink in color as a result, it looks gorgeous in the wine glass from the tap, really color saturated and pretty, lively too. the aroma is dripping wet with the juicy blueberries, natural but intense, packed to the max, sweet and tart and concentrated, while the sourness brings enormous complexity. the kombucha element adds a nice clean tang vinegar component which goes nicely with the white wine and oak tannins that come from the wood ageing, and the astringency of the blueberry skins. there is also a cool wild aspect to it, bacterial and funky at the same time, bretty and mature, just really interesting, supported well by the kombucha, its not too much. i love the bitterness and floral earthiness of the tea, it cuts the sweetness of the blueberries and gives the beer a lot of balance. it almost has a blueberry juice intensity, the fruit is so forward and fresh in here, but with the mature wild yeast and the wood it turns into lambic, with red wine and vinegar components enhancing it at various times. i thought this beer was incredible, and oec clearly is doing some pretty special stuff. i have seen kombucha in beers before, but this is easily the best of them that i have tasted. i hope they do this same thing with some other fruits, peaches and apricots come to mind...