Berliner Messe: Kyrie
The Referend Bier Blendery

Bright wine red with a modest raspberry-tinted head that quickly dissipates to nothing. Cherry juice aroma. Funky, cheesey taste with cherry mixed in. Smooth, medium bodied feel with light carbonation zip. Not bad.

Very unique.

750 ml bottle, dated January 2018, poured into a flute

A- A clear reddish orange with a small fast fading head.

S- Sour cherries, lemons, some sweet cherries, oak, hints of raspberries, barnyard funk.

T- Very sour, cherries are mostly sour but some sweetness cuts through, raspberries, some lemons, oak, some funk.

S- Smooth, crisp, light to medium body.

O- Much more Lambic like than Berliner like, well done, great fruit flavors.

Big berry flavor and oak, and lots of great funk.

 

18 October 2020 - Beer #198

Price: $22.22 at Liquor Outlet Wine Cellars in Boonton, NJ

Appearance: 5 - a beautiful, deep, red-orange. Head fizzled away quickly but a lovely halo remains.

Nose: 5 - super funky and earthy, like digging for truffles kind of earthy.

Taste: 4 - extremely sour, and, indeed, earthy. It's the cherries. It's like digging for truffles and coming up with cherries instead.

Mouth: 5 - somehow on the thicker side. Very bubbly. I am impressed.

Overall: 5 - not quite as good as the Credo version I had a few months ago, but pretty dang tasty.

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Poured dark shimmering ruby with a head that quickly faces into surface and glass lacing. Jammy raspberry and cherry with dried cherry, oak, lacto, barrel funk, and a healthy amount of brett. Taste has the same makeup with the jammy fruit with oak backing up front, before the brett settles onto the palate, bringing about a dry and acidic finish. Feels really young, but has plenty of character, impressive. Bubbly feel, slightly funky and acidic, and oak tannins all over, with a huge brett character that defines the beer. A little more base in the body to support would go a long way, still like what this has going, much prefer this berliner weiss trend to the syrupy sugar bombs. Lord have mercy this one was good!

 

Interesting, Innovative Interpretation of a traditional style!

Not until the dry finish did I think this was closer to a Berliner Weiss than a lambic. Kyrie's attack is clearly like a lambic. That holds my Interest. How The Referend made that finish is their Innovation.

As for the Interpretation, The Referend has drawn on many sources. The Kyrie is one of the most famous pleas in the Christian liturgy; asking God for Mercy from today's troubles. But Kyrie also is a single song from the pop music band Mr. Mister that hit the top of the charts in the mid-1980s. And Kyrie is also the name of a double album from Italy's most famous Italian female vocalist of the 1970s.

What did The Referend mean by using this name ? I do not know. But such a sophisticated ale coming from a young blender is an achievement. While I was apprehensive about the price tag, it proved worth the experience. I hope to find their work again.

I went on The Referend's website and it was refreshing change from the often self-evident self-promotion of young brewers. The Referend thoughtfully describes its blending philosophy and process and subtly offers a link under Citations menu to "The 15 Top Brewers of Hop Culture" which lists The Referend as one.

And if you want to unpack how the Berliner Messe (Mass as in religious service) seems so much like the Lambic, I recommend this: http://www.thereferend.com/discussion-archive/2017/2/2/berliner-messe

Blend 4, bottled Feb. 2019.
Pours a sanguine scarlet color, deep and bright, sharp clarity. Initial burst of pink-tinged meringue foam that fades quickly into a thick ring around an otherwise glassy surface.

Aroma is big on cherry, raspberry seediness blends in seamlessly. Light musty Brett and oak barrel funk. Some flinty minerality as it warms up.

Taste is fruit forward with a bigger funky Brett presence, super dry oaky finish. Lots of Brett funk lingers in the finish, leathery and a hint of sterile gauze. Bright cherry and raspberry sourness, saturated and deep flavor from the fruit. Spritzy feel, ample carb, with an effervescent feel.

Overall this really does justice to the Belgian lambic-inspired trend, spontaneously fermented with ample funk and fruit in equal measure. The Referend is doing great things, seriously one to watch.

On-tap @ The Referend Bier Blendery in Pennington, NJ.

Deep amber, reddish-brown with a creamy, pink head. Well rounded fruity aroma and flavor. Mixed berries and wheat malt. Moderately tart and well balanced. A little bit of oak from the barrel.

This was a super flavorful beer. Despite all of the fruitiness, it never came close to being cloying. Excellently crafted, a joy to drink. Possibly the best of the 4 or 5 beers I've had from The Referend.

Pours a light red color, ample micro carbonation. Jammy and acidic aroma. Taste is light and sour, cherries with some light citrus. Nice acidity. Love the champaine-like carbonation. Overall an outstanding wild / sour beer.

5/24/19
750ml from brewery - bottled on 10/5/18
4.5 rating

3/2/20 - drank another bottle - still fantastic.

On draught at the brewery. It pours a hazy, bright cranberry color with a creamy pink head and thin coating of creamy lacing. It's a very attractive pour. On the nose there is tart cherry, wheat cracker, and funky spice. It opens tart and moderately sour with abundant, fresh cherry, white wine, and wheat cracker. The combination of tart and sour cherries takes it to a higher level of flavor. While the body is lite it is also pleasantly creamy, with moderate carbonation, and it's a super easy drinker at 4.7% Overall, this is a delicious and delightful Berliner. I drank it outside the brewery on a beautiful, mild Spring day, which enhanced the experience. It would pair nicely with mild cheese and a yeasty, crusty bread.