Casey Brewing and Blending

It's the culture & base, with the right balance you'll get a pleasant tartness like you're describing. Simple grain bill (w/ enough varied sugars and proteins like wheat) mixed with right culture does wonders. The more malts & adjuncts and the more stains, the more unpredictable beers become, also the drier the sours become as the high variety of strains ensure all the sugars are converted.

I'm no expert, but I also think that his additions of whole fruit (and not using frozen, syrup or preserves) are the right approach and may help as it probably delivers the most complex range of sugars instead of simple sugars which tend to leave a really dry fruit flavor vs. a more juicy profile. Quantity of fruit helps as well. I have noticed that the newer CS beers with more fruit are holding up much better than the lower fruit ratio in Petite Sours.

 

I generally agree with you, with the (potentially weird) exception of the Balaton CFP. Drank one recently and just didn't love it. Not sure I can explain why because the Balaton FS from the same release is absolutely killer at the moment.

 

Anyone tried East Bank with a year on it?

 

Still have one I'm waiting to crack. Need to do it soon.

 

If there is any Casey left in Denver please send me a PM on where to get it!

Thanks

 

There was a Casey event at Freshcraft yesterday. Both beers on tap were still flowing when I left around 3 yesterday (good chance they've kicked by now though) and still had plenty of bottles left in the cooler. As far as bottle shops go I would check out Mr. B's.

 

Small Batch has plenty of Cherry FS and Saison.

 

I was at Mile High and they have a TON of Casey with no limits. Saison, dry hopped Saison, Cherry Fruit Stand.

 

Also talked to who I assume is the owner/manager there yesterday. Sounds like they expect a good amount for the next release as well. Good to see this is a trend.

 

Yeah the only downside is the prices are a bit steep. Beggers can't be choosers. I'm wondering if the price is going to scare a few people away though. $18.99 for Saison and $22.99 for Fruit Stand. I think member prices for those two were $15 and $18?

Has he announced the bottles for next release?

 

FS is $20 for members and releases

 

The FB event for the next release says details will be announced on 5/23 (today). But EF hasn't received an email yet, which usually precedes the public announcement by a week or so.

 

The ticket site now says 5/27 is when details will be announced.

 

I feel like an idiot since I only bought one DH Saison and 2 FS at the last release at $15/$20. Now i'm buying up a bunch of them, as they were my favorites. It's a bit expensive, but not terrible.

 

Tickets will be up within 24hrs and as per the recent standard, please public bottles will be announced after tickets are sold. Member email tomorrow.

 

I think it's time for a chili saison...

[Runs and hides]

 

Price has kept me away.

I bought one bottle last fall (East End I believe) and did not care for it, personally. Thought it was a well constructed beer (and tried rating objectively, not subjectively) but it just did not work for me. It was kind of a chore finishing my bottle. At a more affordable price I would happily give their other offerings a try, but as prices stand I just don't care enough to test the waters any further.

 

I got a bottle of saison a few weeks ago, and I thought it was alright, but I was surprised by how stinky it was. There was a lot of sulfur in it-it did taste better than it smelled. Fifteen bucks, eighteen bucks, hell, twelve bucks, I don't see myself buying much more of it-I'd probably rather have Vielle Saison. I also got a bottle of the Cherry Fruit Stand, and am looking forward to trying it, but Cuvee Rene Kriek is $8.99 a bottle right now at Mile High. That Fruit Stand is going to have to be damn good to be worth it at $23 a bottle.

 

I love lambics as much as the next guy, but I'm not sure it's fair to compare Troy's scale to Lindeman's. For that matter, the beer is pretty different, too. You might love one and hate the other. Plus, CRK is a crazy exception to pricing rules
There aren't too many beers that can beat that value. Certainly no American wilds I've ever seen and very few Belgian lambics either.

If you go apples to apples, Hanssens and Timmerman's tend to be in the $20 range for their unsweetened krieks. Some versions are 2x that. Cantillon Kriek (and LPK) and 3F's Kriek variants go for whatever the store or individual wants to charge for them. There are some other traditional Krieks out there, but they aren't super common in the US and the prices tend to reflect that.