U-Pick: 2017
Fair State Brewing Cooperative

Maybe a tad passed its prime. Bottle pour. Clear golden color. Expected a little red or pink. The strawberry still showed but a bit on the tart/citrus side. A few ounces was enough.

 

this is exquisitely good, a strawberry wild ale that presents itself like lambic, just super funky and mature and well fruited, exceptional beer from these guys, and another one that puts distance between themselves and the rest of the local pack in my mind. the strawberries make it unique i think, like those tart and tangy and sugary summery sweet little wild ones, so natural and intense, not like the waxy plastic underripe whitish ones that often come from the grocery store, i think thats part of the appeal here, but just how good the base beer is on its own is also a key component. its super wild, bretty and mature and funky and the fruit referment seems to have awakened a whole new depth of wild character in it, more complex and lambic-esque than i have known from these guys before. it also has a lot of wood to it, mellowing and unifying and harboring the funk, extending it through the jammy finish. there is the exact right amount of acidity here too, and i can still taste the grain underneath it all. an amazingly complex and well balanced beer, driven by the fruit but highly compelling aside from it as well. some of the best beer i have ever had from fair state, and that is really saying something. these guys are on fire! this one is not to be missed!