Oh Christmas Tree
Bellwether Brewing Co.

another weird sour gruit type from these guys, i swear nobody is making more, and more interesting herbal ales than these guys right now. i definitely didnt expect this to be so tart, but some of them have been before, so its not way out of left field. they have such an interesting house sour character, not bretty or wild, but not generic lacto either, this is mouthwatering in the nose and moderately acidic in the feel, but with some interesting funkiness in the flavor. its the herbal profile that makes this so unique though, its definitely got a spruce or pine element to it, juniper too, orange peel maybe, and things like anise and allspice it seems, enough malt to support and balance the sourness, but this isnt sweet and its not heavy, and its weirdly fresh for what it is. behind the obvious pine, there are notes of black tea, ginger, even cinnamon, but this doesnt have an obvious winter spice complexion to me, its very distinctive. i love the spruce, almost gives it a hop note, but this may be done entirely without hops. some saison-esque esters in here too, nice with the richer malt and the spiciness, but then its quiet sour in the finish, with the pine really standing out on its own. super fun beer, flavorful and strange, but a winner again from these guys, the kings of gruit! cool for holiday time, definitely no for everyone, but i loved it, almost shockingly strange, but yummy!