Chardonnay Brut
WeldWerks Brewing Co.

 

 

 

Impression from a can nabbed as part of a 4 pack at a beer store in Lone Tree/Centennial, CO.

APPEARANCE: Head fills half my pint glass and lasts a good 8 minutes. Body is a clear yellow of poor vibrance.

It's a pretty standard appearance for an IPA.

AROMA: Juice. Pulp. Lemon. Citrusy twang. Guava. Odwalla juice. Mandarin orange.

Definitely fruity, but I wouldn't peg any of its aromatics as chardonnay.

Quite fresh and inviting.

TASTE & TEXTURE: Not as dry or effervescent as you might expect in a "brut" branded IPA. Fruity and fresh without being very hoppy or deep. Lemon, citrus, floral hop flavours. Balanced but not very intricate.

Soft, medium-bodied, well-carbonated, smooth, wet.

I guess I get chardonnay when I really look for it (and then only in the third act and finish of the beer).

OVERALL: An unsuccessful hybrid of IPA and sparkling wine, but a decent beer in its own right. Has the hop pungency of an assertive pale ale and it's drinkable. Too pricey to warrant buying again, but not awful.

C (2.88) / AVERAGE

 

thanks to claystation for sharing this can with me, i had really high hopes for it, especially given the audacious price, they must really think they have something here huh?! wow. its a cool idea for a beer, a brut style ipa with chardonnay grape and a whole lot of fruity vinous hops that should be perfectly complimentary. its hard to not judge this against its price, and in that context this is not that great, but overall, objectively speaking, its solid beer, a clean and dry ipa base, with wonderful brightness and the effervescent carbonation this combination of flavors begs for. the grape juice is really forward here, more like a kids sparkling new years drink than a fine wine, a bit sweet in the middle, full of minerals and tannins, a little tart even, but the hops are juicy too, real compatible, especially the nelson, which, with the wine grapes, stands above the other hops in this mix. el dorado is well behind it and then the others. a cool bit of bitterness too, more than i am used to in a brut style, which i have come to associate with being cleaner new england beers, all dry hopped and no bitter, but this one is a little fuller spectrum. good job letting the grape sugar ferment most of the way down, and also not over hopping it, there is great balance here. overall though, i wanted more from this, its supposed to blow my mind at this price, and it really doesnt. that said, i could drink a couple of cans of this, and think its one of the better fruited hoppy beers i have had in awhile, the grapes and the hop selection is right on. this is close to being awesome. some brett would be fun too...