Funk Land III
Half Hours On Earth

 

Appearance: Super effervescent... Started out pouring with a whopping 90% head of creamy Victorian off-white on top supported by chunky bubble scaffolding underneath. Settled leaving a volcano of foam in the middle settling faster at the edges leaving behind a shear full sheet of lace drapery along the "unsipped" side. Really good retention, I had a least a half finger of head all the way to the bottom of the glass. I had to wait for a few minutes at first before I could even tip the class to get at some liquid which is a slightly hazy rosy amber/light brown, and casts a great colorued shadow when in good light.

Aromatics: Fresh and bright citrus notes - mostly on the grapefruit vine, maybe a little lime. Hints of cherries and there is a slight wooden musty funk, like it was aged in open wooden vats in the barn with some florals and rain watered silage.

Taste: tart, borderline sour - its tartness more bitter than sour. Which is nice, in the sense that too sour can sometimes be a turn off, so in that regard it has a decent balance without the sweetener letting you know it's their... the malt character is a total ninja here, and that I can dig. The more I drink the better it gets, starting out fairly moderate in intensity - somewhat acidic, and never punchy, and settles into its lingering tartness that does stick around but only for a little while.

Mouth: A crisp medium bodied liquid with a really good carbonation quality. The acidic flavours are also present in the palate feel along with a dry fuzzy cardboard film that feels like it coats the tongue in a really dry finish.

Overall: Ever have one of those beers that you say , "now that was interesting, never really had anything like it"? This was one of those for me. The beer qualities are familiar but the flavour was extremely difficult to place for me (and I'm a former chef so I should be able to pick out something familiar; but it was hard!)

Pairing: No idea. The flavour combinations here are not like anything I think I have encountered. So my best suggestion given its its tartness is a sweeter and mildly rich dessert. I'm actually going to try a small piece of pecan pie or tart. Might be too rich, but I love pecan pie ... now that I look outside at my walnut tree that is ready for harvest - maybe replacing the pecans with walnuts is better - walnuts being a slight more bitter would at least share a flavour compliment.