Garnet Rouge
Konishi Brewing Co. (Shirayuki beer)

my first beer from these guys, extraordinarily interesting, hard to classify, brewed with black rice! the color is a light copper to pale amber shade, not all the way clear, but very active and fizzy on top. aroma is odd, curiously fruity, red berries and a little grain sweetness, also with something peculiar going on with the yeast, its balanced and refined, but unlike any beer i have ever smelled before, the fruitiness doesnt seem to be hop derived, and nobody would describe this as hoppy, but i cant figure out where its coming from. notes of port wine, cherry, and hay or straw here too. the flavor is really cool, totally unique, starting really fruity, strawberries, wine grapes, ripe raspberries, but then it gets a little starchy, minerals and wet earthy properties come out, and there is an almost floral sake element to this, maybe something with the yeast in the finish, really complete and super different. its effervescent but has a lot of body, its sweet up front but dry at the end, hearty but refreshing, and while im not sure i can taste black rice in here, but its contribution is clearly special. i adored this, as did the folks i shared the bottle with. never had one quite like it, and hope to get a chance to drink more of their stuff. curious and awesome!