Pome and Grabbit
Against The Grain Brewery

Canned late 2016; drank 1/27/17 @ the Yarchives.

Cloudy red/orange appearance.

A violent pour yielded a huge, noisy white head; a thick curtain of tree-rung lace.

Pomegranate, honeyed wheat, mild strawberry & faint oat notes in the nose.

Smooth, creamy medium mouthfeel.

Pomegranate & honeyed wheat flavors up front; creamy oats & faint strawberry notes on the finish. A faint tartness settled on my lips over the course of the quaff.

Fruity & pleasantly tart; bold yet extremely drinkable. This would be indecently enjoyable on a summer afternoon.

I am now entering the seCANd phase of Happy New Against the Saugatuck Grain Beer Sunday (Week 699) & I am kind of happy to be: a) returning to The CANQuest (tm) & b) putting Saugatuck BC behind me. 'Nuff said.

From the CAN: "Tart Wheat Ale with ginger and pomegranate"; "A Collaboration [with] Brewski Microbrewery"; "There are tales of a land far away where all dance to Abba while eating rotten fish from a [CAN] and women are free to breastfeed in public. Meanwhile, in certain countries such as ours, any boobage not used for advertisement or entertainment is cause for Springer levels of outrage. We do, however, firmly believe in freedom, be it to nourish our children, shove pomegranate and ginger in a deliciously sustainable beer, or even play ourselves the mythical brown note. It's time to take the power back!"; "CAN Designed by: KendallRegan.com".

I beCAN this part of the adventure by gently agitating the CANtents before the Crack! It was identified as being a Wheat Ale & I like to ensure that any lees are in suspension. As you CAN impagine, this led to some foaming through the vent, but I was ready & followed through with a heavy-handed Glug. This quickly raised two-plus fingers of foamy, fizzy, light-pink head with modest retention. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it deigned to leaves some lacing in its wake. Color was a deeply-hazy/lightly-cloudy pinkish-Amber (SRM = N/A or > 7, < 9). Nose smelled strongly of ginger, but the wheat and pomegranate were also making their presence known. Mouthfeel was thin-to-medium, not watery, but not much beyond it, either. The taste was tart-ish, with the pomegranate and wheat malt working to give it a subtle tang, but the real star in this one was the ginger! I might have designated this one as an "Herbed/Spiced Beer" as opposed to "Fruit/Vegetable Beer", but either is acceptable. I really liked the way that the ginger gave a spicy offset to the tangy tartness. It was the kind of thing that begged to be CANsumed with sushi or oriental foods. Finish was dry, more spicy than tangy, but very pleasant & drinkable.

 

 

16 oz. can

Pours foggy hazy amber with a creamy frothy white foam head. Smells like ginger, tart pomegranate, malty wheat, green apple, pear, with floral earthy herbal grassy pine. Tastes like tart pomegranate, ginger, malty wheat, green apple, pears, with floral earthy herbal grassy pine. Feels medium-light bodied, creamy with moderate carbonation. Overall an interesting tart wheat ale with pomegranate and ginger.

 

 

 

16 ounce can into pint glass; no can dating, but is a recent release. Pours lightly hazy medium golden/light pinkish color with a 1-2 finger dense and fluffy white head with good retention, reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings down the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of lightly tart pomegranate, lemon, cherry, berry, pear, apple, white grape, ginger, pepper, light banana/bubblegum/clove, wheat, biscuit, herbal, and yeast earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of fruity/earthy yeast, fruit/spice, and moderate pale malt notes; with solid strength. Flavors of lightly tart pomegranate, lemon, cherry, berry, pear, apple, white grape, ginger, pepper, light banana/bubblegum/clove, wheat, biscuit, herbal, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate tangy fruit tartness, herbal bitterness, and ginger/yeast spiciness on the finish; with lingering notes of pomegranate, ginger, lemon, cherry, berry, pear, apple, white grape, pepper, wheat, biscuit, and herbal/yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/earthy yeast, fruit/spice, and moderate pale malt flavors; with a great malt/tart/spiciness balance, and zero astringent flavors after the finish. Moderate dryness from tart/spiciness, increasing through the glass. Medium carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth, fairly crisp/acidic/sticky, and creamy/grainy balanced mouthfeel that is nice. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 5%. Overall this is a nice fruit/spiced American pale wheat ale. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity/earthy yeast, fruit/spice, and moderate pale malt flavors; very smooth, crisp, and refreshing to drink with the modest fruit tartness/acidity. Very well balanced between fruit/yeast with a nice malt backbone; noticeable ginger but very restrained overall. A nicely enjoyable offering.

 

Appearance is clean with minimal white head.

Smell is mainly ginger with some pomegranate in the background.

Taste is surprisingly watered down ginger and pomegranate.

Feel is thin, watery and carbonation is moderately low.

Overall I was pretty disappointed with this one. Flavors really come across as watered down and muted. I think an imperial version of this would be the ticket.