New Glarus Brewing (2018)

They have a lot at the woodmans near Menomonee falls.

Also, there is a "beer finder" feature on the new Glarus website that is usually very accurate so id give that a shot.

 

I picked up a 4 pack of Wild Sour 2018 at Discount Liquor in Milwaukee on Monday.

 

I was very excited that Wile Sour was returning. I kept two bottles from 2013. I opened one a few nights ago before heading up to WI to buy the 2018. I bought a four pack to try it before committing to buy a whole bunch more. I returned to Illinois with three bottles. It is not bad, it is just not very good. It pales in comparison to the 2013 batch.

 

Well that bites. I am going to give one a spin tonight.

 

Palate memory is a fickle thing but drinking a fresh bottle reminded me pretty much of what I remember the first batch tasting like fresh; my opinion obviously. I haven’t had the aged first batch recently to comment at all on that though.

 

This is what i’ve been trying to figure out - is this batch really that much worse than the original, or am I simply remembering wrong?

I do feel this batch defintitely has darker malt characteristic to it at the moment than I recall from the OG. Kinda Oud Bruin-ish right now.

 

I was feeling the same way about this new batch. Tasted like tart prune juice... while technically still in style and didn't really have any flaws, just not my favorite. I swear the 2013 batch tasted more like RR Supplication.

 

2018 WSA is a nice tasting, well crafted beer. Will I buy more than one 4-pack? Probably not.

 

Ever since they started making the sour and fruit beers using the coolship at the Riverside, brewery, I have not been that big of a fan at all. Given that I have historically had a bad habit of buying too much of the Unplugged/Thumbprint series, I have done several verticals/side-by-sides with the old and new versions of several of these. I have preferred the 'old' pre-coolship versions every time. There's something about the new base beer that puts me off--too dry/astringent and penny tasting for my liking. The older versions were a bit sweeter and rounded that made them tastier. It's a good thing I still have a half case of the original Wild Sour to go through. I'll buy a 4-pack of the new one for sure and it'll be fun to do another side-by-side, but I have a feeling it'll be another instance of me preferring the original version.

 

I thought the new version of Wild Sour was good, better than most AWA's, certainly at it's price point.

The original iteration was better, as others have stated. That said, assuming the new version isn't pasteurized, it could evolve into something as special as the original.

W/R/T the coolship program as a whole - I agree with @grantcty that the pre-coolship wild/sours tended to be better. But I still think they are very good, better than most AWAs, and very competitively priced. And I think we are getting more than we got in the past. I feel like we've gotten Oud Bruin, Enigma, Cran-bic, and Wild Sour, all pretty recently, not to mention the R&D sours and what seems to be an increase in production of the fruit beers. I feel like the increased production outweighs the slight decline in quality, but that's just my opinion.

 

Agreed. At $2.50 per bottle, I can't think of a better sour in the world at that price point and availability.

 

Does anyone know if there is a new drop of Strawberry Rhubarb expected anytime soon or is my best bet to search some smaller mom and pop places and see if I can find any from the last drop still on the shelf?

 

Mom and Pop seem like a long shot by now. July was the word so just hold out hope...

 

It's supposed to ship to distributors this week. Will have more info either tomorrow or Friday.

 

There were still a few 4-packs at a cheese shop in Mineral Point, WI as of last Saturday.

 

Supposed to arrive at Beechwood today however not sure if it's shipping tomorrow or Monday. I suppose y'all will find out soon enough.

 

Is everyone enjoying the Oud Bruin that has a Wild Sour label on it?



This is nothing like the original, but still tasty if you enjoy the Oud Bruin.

 

This comparison is making me sad. I hated Oud Bruin & loved the old Wild Sour. Guess I better get to that four pack soon.

 

I figured we were due a side-by-side. While "oud bruin" maybe isn't our best hopes and dreams for a wild sour ale, the new compared to the old really isn't all the different. In fact, the new version is a punchier version of the old. Chalk that up to age though. Color is identical. Sip vs sip is strikingly similar. New is more tart, old is more well rounded. Overall, I (assume) this is a very similar recipe.

I like Cranbic better since it's a more blonde sour with fruit and more acidity. For a more traditional sour ale, Wild Sour is fantastic. It's not a sour bomb, but it's poundable and you get that earthy flavor that's reminiscent of a dark Belgian sour. Choose your poison.

 

Thanks for writing up the notes. I'd love to do this too but I crushed all of my old WSA within a few months of it coming out. I've already gone through half a case of this year's. Luckily I should be able to restock at least once..