Sour Crap

BFM is a relatively well-known, highly respected European brewery. Just because, "you're on here multiple times a day," doesn't mean you're the expert on all beers by all breweries everywhere.

 

Reviews on BA don't always clarify things; I had a similar experience with Boulevard BBQ. I read the reviews, read the description, even posted a thread when neither the reviews nor the descriptions adequately answered whether or not this beer had sour characteristics.

The conclusion was, maybe sour or maybe not, which I guess may translate into maybe infected or maybe not!

Since I love the Belgian Strong dark ales and quads and noticed that BBQ was sometimes included in Quad tastings with Westy, Pannepot, etc., I decided to take the risk and buy a bottle.

I knew the minute the aroma hit my nose, that "old gym bag" smell which some describe as "funky" and love but which I find disgusting and loathe.

Oh well, lesson learned, it would have been nice if it was called a sour, but sometimes you just have to give it a try!

I reviewed the beer as labeled (a quad) and scored it appropriately.

 

Did they intend for it to be sour?
I feel like a lot if breweries don't clean spirit barrels well enough and many barrel aged beers become sour, especially with age

 

FWIW, I just had the non-sour version of this beer (the version brewed in Athens) on-tap and it was pretty damn good.

 

So people are supposed to check BA reviews before buying a beer as opposed to assuming the label the brewer placed on the bottle is at least close to correct?

So BA is more knowledgeable and informed than the brewers themselves?

Sure, the OP is a bit too mad, but the idea that BA is the be-all-end-all of craft beer knowledge is... well, I think some people here think too highly of themselves.

 

You aren't supposed to do anything, including reading information of any kind and including knowing that this beer is sour. However, I read and I knew. Go figure.

Not knowing things is always a choice, and many do choose it. Why? I have no idea.

 

Complain to the FDA that this is false advertising. See where that gets you. Or accept reality.

 

Because apparently anyone who buys beer should either consult BA or cavedave?

Other than the thoroughly ineffective "holier than thou" attitude, that seems to be the gist of it.

But keep in mind, cavedave is the same guy who thanked INBEV. For supposedly making a beer he likes more widely available (which they didn't).

So, I'd take what he says with a big ass old grain of salt.

 

Why do some BAs actually THANK AB/INBEV for taking over Goose Island? Why? I have no idea.

Selfish, self-centered-ness, maybe, but that's just a theory.

 

Nice I love it when a post is a total non sequitur and in front of which we can put an imagined, "Apropos nothing..."

Yeah, you are against ABInBev, the boogie man who... wait for it...uses their corporate muscle to.... wait for it...demand SHELF SPACE IN THE REFRIGERATOR OF THE STORE!!!! Gasp, let's hang them all! And most of all if they can make it easy to get one of the best beers on the planet, LET'S NOT BE THANKFUL ABOUT IT.

You drive to the store to buy your beer in cars destroying the air and water, you heat/cool your home and enjoy your beer while pumping out free radicals that destroy folks' health, but thank god you are worried about THE IMPORTANT PROBLEMS IN LIFE!

 

Read an Orval label lately? I hope after reading it you will contact the proper authorities to complain
Edit OMG i just had to add this image I had of you reading an Orval label, while sitting in front of a computer that is logged on to Beer Advocate, and saying to yourself, "It says nothing about what kind of beer is inside! How will I know? How will I find out? Who can I contact to correct this situation?"

 

Easy Cico . No need to be sour.

 

Ooops, did I touch a nerve?

It demonstrates context. YOU have no sympathy for the OP because he didn't do as much research as YOU did.

Just like YOU've got no problem with inbev taking over goose island as it means YOU might have more access to a beer that YOU like.

Me... I try and have some principles other than being entirely self-centered.

 

Hey, I was just bringing up some context. If people don't want things like that brought up, they shouldn't throw them out there.

Look, the OP was too angry and confrontational, for sure.

But that certainly doesn't, at least in my eyes, eclipse the idea that he bought a bottled that was labeled as a rye-heavy Barleywine. Barleywines are not supposed to be sour. And even if it was supposed to be a Biere de Garde (I haven't seen the label, so I'm not entirely clear on that bit)... still, that in no way accounts for aggressive sourness.

The idea that anyone and everyone who goes into the craft beer section should expect to log onto a website and do research instead of relying on the label a brewer put on his bottle is simply asinine.

And, it also entirely destroys the idea of "advocacy"- instead of advocating that brewers make it clear to purchasers what they are getting, people are advocating for misleading labels to be OK, as everyone who buys craft beer is assuredly a member of this website and assuredly ready to "research" every beer they buy.

Just as many of us advocate for things like CLEAR bottled-on dates, shouldn't we also advocate for CLEAR labels that accurately describe what a consumer is getting?

 

I've yet to have any beer from BFM that isn't a tad sour if not definitely sour.I really hope that they intend for their beer to taste the way it does. I liked the beer in question, but I just assumed it was sour...

 

The bottle is labeled as a Biere de Garde, a style name designation that is commonly used for some sour/funky beers. OP ignored the designation and instead focused on the name of the beer. Then you (jacksback) flew off the handle on a self-righteous rant. Pretty much sums up the thread.

 

Belgian's give him shit for adding sugar to his beers...the irony!

 

Expecting all the attributes of a beer to be on the label or expecting beers to fall neatly into styles will get you nowhere. You can keep complaining about it if you want though.