2 Moon Junction
Outlaw Brew Co.

 

Appearance: Poured with a single finger of head that didn't lace but did stick around. I didn't expect white chunks of what I presume (and hope) is yeast to come out of the can. It thankfully that quickly sunk to the bottom of the glass. The body is a cloudy yellow when put up to the light, but orange in dimmer conditions without a hint of blueberry. It shows fairly strong carbonation. Upon completing the beer, those chunks appear to have dissipated into a mild white film that's best described as skim milk with extra skim, leading me towards thinking yeast.

Smell: Blueberry juice is the dominant smell, but doughy malt isn't far behind it with the smallest hint of Banana. Warming does help the beer come out of it's shell a bit more, but it isn't overly needed as it boasts decent potency while cool.

Taste: Starts with the aforementioned doughy malt to start with hints of rougher wheat malt, the malt is trying to be the star on this one but there is a sandy note that then holds it back before a snap of blueberry brings this beer to a close. It's decently balanced but I don't get he impression the flavors are working on concert here, and I'm left wondering who is the star here?

Mouthfeel: The carbonation does a great job of helping out the entire beer, the transitioning though is a bit rocky, as that sandy note seems out of place, and the malt not quite right. The blueberry snap at the end though is good as it dominates the aftertaste but never gets out of control and reigns in the rest of the beer.

Drinkability: Light bodied and flavorful, which while not the easiest drinker does have a nice crispness to it. Settles down quite nicely and has an interesting mild fruitiness. Wish that sandy note was gone, and replaced with a strong malt presence. Oh well.

Final Thoughts: It strikes me today that a lot of breweries are really getting into brewing with fruit more and more. I mean, when I first started reviewing beer, I never saw as many as I do now. It's always lead to my tired fruit beer question, why did you add fruit to the beer instead of throwing it into a Vodka cooler or a making some kind of cider. This beer answers that question, and the answer is "I want to use blueberries to cleanse the pallet" which is a good answer. Sadly though, that aspect was the best aspect of the beer, as the other beer elements struggled to find themselves and the blueberry wasn't so potent for me to sing overwhelming praise of it. Anyways, it's a outdoor summer drinker, which also serves as its biggest hurdle. Wits, lighter lager and sours tend to dominate that season for me, and this one doesn't quite do enough to want me to re-pursue this one. I certainly applaud it the effort, but it's filling a niche that so many others brews and styles fill in superior fashion.