North Country Brünette
August Schell Brewing Company

Still plenty of this around a year after it came out. Probably a price issue, I'd think. I'll purchase one just because, but for a multiple purchase it is not quite meeting it for me. Having said that, here goes.
Aroma is a little bit of funk and little dust, light on the fruit with a touch of sour. In time can catch a bit of the grain that would go into a Marzen.
Head is an inch but settles out quickly. Slightly cloudy and little light for a marzen with a brown amber with highlights of red and orange.
Well the berliner appears in the taste. Definitely a sour beer with more fruit here than in the aroma, but still not big or prominent - more light with a sweetness to the citrus sour. A little funk but the certainty the malt is a little hard to find. It's clearly not a wheat, but I'd have a hard time distinguishing it from an Oud Bruin. Mild drying with more tartness on the finish. Notable acid but not excessive.
A bit of slickness to the feel and a more moderate in size. The increase in heaviness is noted and this seems where the malt is most apparent, and the slight size increase.
I like sours, so this fits the bill. Not as interesting as the others of this series, but still enjoyable.

750ml bottle at share. cloudy amber pour, small bubbly head. Aroma is citrus, fruity, tartness, funk. taste is mildly sour, lemon and some light lacto notes.

 

 

 

750 mL bottle. Pours deep clear brown. A few bubbles but no real head. Smells of toasted malts and bread. Dark fruit acidity. Tastes pleasantly tart. Cherry. Bready malts. A little vanilla. I feel like I get some of the wood tank, but maybe I'm making that up. Light body with low carbonation. So I found this in my fridge and it definitely should have been consumed... 3 years ago? But this is simple, well made, and has no signs of degradation.

 

 

 

 

 

A great Berliner Weiss. Sour on the nose and the tongue. Great carbonation and a quick finish. Darker then it should be for style.

 

 

 

 

this series has almost single handedly forced me to reconsider what a berliner can be. this one is a berliner style marzen lager, which i think is a brilliant move, combining a couple of disparate but classic german styles. nice amber color to it, but surprisingly clear for what it is, especially compared to the other murky bathwater looking beers in the series. lots of carbonation too. the nose is malty first, unlike the others, which have been a major lacto punch right off the get go. nutty and sweet malts make it smell like an octoberfest from the top, and the lacto doesnt come in until the end, with a lemony aroma and decent acidity. the flavor is just like the nose, but the malt never gets cut off, it carries all the way through, with a red apple flavor for a second, toffee sweetness, and an overall autumnal vibe. the lacto is pretty aggressive too, sharp and hot, cutting the sweetness way down, and leaving a citrus bitterness on the palate as it swallows. ive always thought the marzen lager was the final evolution, like it couldnt be taken any further, but here schell has done exactly that, and the result is a wonderfully complex and unique brew, well worth what they ask for it. i need to get my hands on the rest of the series! berliner lagers are pretty cool these guys have proven...