Wet Hop Strata
Barrique Brewing & Blending

2023 vintage (GABF gold!), into an Ethereal Brewing tulip.

Pours an almost flat dark yellow with almost no foam. Aroma is sharp sourness and citrus along with some vegetal wetness. Flavor is actually extremely approachable. Tons of strawberry and cucumber, and there is an intense funk and sourness, but the overall profile is smooth and refreshing. There's some sour citrus present as well and the funk is intense but short lived. Even at over 3 years old, I still get bright hop flavors and smooth vegetal crispness, as well as a very complex sour flavor. It's got the signature Barrique horse blanket funk as well as puckering sourness, but not too strong. It's got a good sweetness as well which amps up the Strata flavors to balance out the funk, and it's really not bitter at all. Feel is good, very slightly carbonated due to the age, and it's lower body but incredibly complex. Finish is long, ending sweet, and a little sticky. This one is very drinkable but too sugary and complex to be refreshing, but I feel like that's a strength of this beer. It's a wild ale, and extremely funky, but it has so much going on and so many synergistic flavors that it's meant to be sipped even at a lower ABV for the complexity.

Overall, this beer is world class. Barrique introduced me to wild ale, and also gave me easy access to world-class examples. This one is deserving of its GABF gold title. There's a great balance combined with a ton of complexity as well as approachable flavors as well as how unique it is. It not only shows off great wild yeast flavors, but also exceptional fresh hop flavors.