Dionysus
River Styx Brewing Company

2 16 oz cans acclimated to 45 and then 48°F. This is brewed with Cabernet grapes so I opened it into the closest glass I have to a Cabernet glass.

Pours a cloudy, wonderful peach color with a 2 finger foamy and effervescent white head, fading quickly and leaving little lacing. This is genuinely about my favorite color, so far the prettiest beer I've seen. (I know, not entirely a beer)

Initial aroma is very fruity, not just esters but overtly fruity, there's a little bit of fermentation smell to it, and a definite must. Additionally there's a sharpness/dryness. It's nice. I can pick up blueberry, but it's relatively subtle, and I doubt I would get it if I didn't know it was there. I notice some raspberry, tart and funk kind of smell may be swaying me. It may sound crazy, but after agitating, the first thing my brain interpreted was yellow mustard, just for a second, I guess that's the acidic quality making me think that. After agitating again I get more raspberries and more yeast/funk.

Initial taste before swallowing is slightly sweet, a definite tartness, and a general fruitiness. After swallowing it tastes dry, then I get a sweetness afterwards that feels mild and fully rounded, like a naturally sweet food that doesn't have sugar just added to it, not at all flat, it's very very good. Tasting again, remembering there's blueberry, I can taste blueberry, it's not subtle, but it's maybe hard to discern? It tastes excellent though, and feels quite at home, it's a blueberry flesh taste, not really juice or jam or skin. The dryness in the beginning lasts a while, staying in the back of the mouth. There's not tartness overall, it's very pleasant. I'm not sure if it's different from the dryness, but I notice what seems like a dusty/musty note in the roof and front of the mouth.

Mouthfeel is not fantastic in my opinion. It's rather like a slightly diluted juice that's dry rather than syrupy. Minimal carbonation does not help this, making it feel very much like a spritzer, seltzer and juice mixed. On the positive side, it is clean and soft, and finds no resistance going down. It's not at all bad, but not very exciting, easy to drink, though.

Overall I quite enjoyed this one and I'm glad I got 2. Being an oenobeer, a wine/beer hybrid, it's somewhat hard to consider it a beer. My brain does best considering exactly a beer/wine hybrid, but it makes for a lovely experience. It's well balanced, with the necessary flavors occupying a proper amount of space. It's also gentle, and sits well on both the palate and tastebuds, tasting and feeling soft, with a certain amount of satisfying quench. It's just pleasant to drink! I wouldn't have chosen blueberry but it ended up being a great choice! This, like the other oenobeer River Styx produces, would be an excellent way to ease a wine drinker into beer. I also see it as a nice drink for a summer afternoon or evening, but I can absolutely see it working in spring and autumn, and likely winter.

Will absolutely buy again, likely in 4 packs, will be a downer when they stop brewing it, but I'll be hopeful it will be a returning recipe. I am absolutely going to be recommending this one as well.