Gaismas Ragana
Alus Darbnīca Labietis

 

Pours a cloudy, deep golden amber coloration with a medium, frothy head. Smells of honey sweetness, floral and berry notes, with accents of tart cranberry. Taste is an excellent balance of light biscuity malt and grassy hops, with a strong honey sweetness and lighter berry tartness, with notes of cranberry, as well as just a hint of citrus zest and some floral, herbal, slightly spicy accents, with just a hint of anise coming through. Finishes with medium sweetness and light bitterness, with some honey, cranberry, citrus zest and anise lingering in the aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

This makes for a really nice and very interesting Braggot that has got an excellent balance of honey sweetness, berry tartness, citrus zest and hop bitterness to it, while some floral, herbal and spice accents really flesh this out, lending a lot of character to it. This character actually kinda reminds me of some gruits I've had, with the inclusion of bog myrtle and meadowsweet, almost making this feel like a Gruit Braggot or something, which is kinda accurate, I guess, as this actually calls itself a Bronze Age Braggot. Also, the relatively high ABV is hardly detectable here, not feeling overly boozey at all. Overall, this makes for a very enjoyable and interesting example of the style that is very well-balanced and has lots of character.

A: Pours a golden orange color with 2 fingers of head that quickly fades down to nothing

S: Lots of sweetness. Honey, berries, grass, and malt all stand out

T: Follows the nose. Starts off super sweet with the honey and bready malt. Picks up the berries and grass, which helps to cut the sweetness slightly with some acidity. Finishes with lingering berries (mostly cranberry) and honey

M: Medium-full bodied with moderate carbonation

O: A solid braggot with some nice complexities. Definitely on the sweeter side, but the acidity helps to balance a bit. Worth a try if you’re into fermented honey drinks