The Bruery Atta Boysenberry

Tonight’s beer is a fruity selection from The Bruery. I don’t think I’ve a raw boysenberry, but I love boysenberry preserves. Let’s see how it was.

ABV: 13.8%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to wikipedia.com, “The exact origins of the boysenberry are unclear, but the most definite records trace the plant as it is known today back to grower Rudolph Boysen, who obtained the dewberry–loganberry parent from the farm of John Lubben. In the late 1920s, George M. Darrow of the USDA began tracking down reports of a large, reddish-purple berry that had been grown on Boysen’s farm in Anaheim, California. Darrow enlisted the help of Walter Knott, another farmer, who was known as a berry expert. Knott had never heard of the new berry, but he agreed to help Darrow in his search. Darrow and Knott learned that Boysen had abandoned his growing experiments several years earlier and sold his farm. Undaunted by this news, Darrow and Knott headed out to Boysen’s old farm, on which they found several frail vines surviving in a field choked with weeds. They transplanted the vines to Knott’s farm in Buena Park, California, where he nurtured them back to fruit-bearing health. Walter Knott was the first to commercially cultivate the berry in Southern California. He began selling the berries at his farm stand in 1932 and soon noticed that people kept returning to buy the large, tasty berries. When asked what they were called, Knott said, ‘Boysenberries,’ after their originator. His family’s small restaurant and pie business eventually grew into Knott’s Berry Farm. As the berry’s popularity grew, Mrs. Knott began making preserves, which ultimately made Knott’s Berry Farm famous.”

Random: I remember going to Knott’s Berry Farm as a child and getting soaking wet on a log flume ride.

The beer poured with a half a finger of pink head. It dissipated at a moderate pace and left some lacing on the glass. The body was a cloudy, deep red color with no visible carbonation due to cloudiness. The nose had huge berry notes up front with some vanilla as well. There was some bourbon and a kick of booze smell as well. The taste started with the same large berry note and a touch of tartness. There was some sweetness as well with vanilla and raspberry syrup. There was an undertone of oak and a big hit of booze. The body was on the heavier side and needed a bit more carbonation to have this go down easier. It had a lengthy finish with berries and booze. I wish this beer had a touch more balance, but I’m glad I tried it.

Untappd Rating: 3.0/5.0

The Bruery Apfelsap

It was almost 60 degrees today, which is unseasonably hot for this time of year. I miss the cold. I really don’t like warm weather. Maybe we’ll have one more cold snap.

ABV: 15.6%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to wikipedia.com, “An apple is a sweet, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (Malus domestica). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus Malus. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe and were brought to North America by European colonists. Apples have religious and mythological significance in many cultures, including Norse, Greek and European Christian tradition. Apple trees are large if grown from seed. Generally, apple cultivars are propagated by grafting onto rootstocks, which control the size of the resulting tree. There are more than 7,500 known cultivars of apples, resulting in a range of desired characteristics. Different cultivars are bred for various tastes and use, including cooking, eating raw and cider production. Trees and fruit are prone to a number of fungal, bacterial and pest problems, which can be controlled by a number of organic and non-organic means. In 2010, the fruit’s genome was sequenced as part of research on disease control and selective breeding in apple production. Worldwide production of apples in 2017 was 83.1 million tonnes, with China accounting for half of the total.”

Random: Val and I are going to Germany later this year and I’m very excited.

The beer poured with a two finger, thick, slightly off-white head. It dissipate slowly and left a lot of lacing on the glass. The body was clear and mahogany with some carbonation visible. The nose had some apples and apple brandy with some brown sugar. There was an alcohol scent as well. The taste had a big note of apple brandy and apple juice. There was a caramel note with brown sugar and a touch of cinnamon as well. The alcohol note was a bit too strong for me and the body was on the thicker side with light carbonation. It had a lengthy finish with apple brandy. This wasn’t my favorite beer from The Bruery, but I’m glad I tried it.

Untappd Rating: 3.5/5.0

The Bruery White Chocolate With Cherries

Tonight’s beer is definitely another sipper from The Bruery. Let’s see how it was.

ABV: 14.2%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to the brewery website, “If you closed your eyes in our barrel house, you might think our brewers have become chocolatiers. They dipped cherries into this limited edition of our bourbon barrel-aged wheatwine-style ale. Already rich and creamy with white chocolate flavors thanks to fresh vanilla beans, cacao nibs and extensive oak-aging, this treat for the senses has been enhanced with the addition of tart, sweet, juicy cherries.”

Random: I’ve never been a huge fan of white chocolate. It’s a bit too sweet for me.

The beer poured with a thick, two finger, cream-colored head. It dissipated slowly and left a lot of lacing on the glass. The body was slight cloudy and dark brown in color. The nose was not as strong as I expected, although it definitely smelled like white chocolate and had a lot of sweetness. I did not get a lot of cherry, but there was vanilla as well. The taste was much stronger with lots of white chocolate and candied cherries. There was a sweet toffee note with vanilla as well. It had some oak and a hint of bourbon. There was a big alcohol note as well, but it wasn’t as overwhelming as the ABV would imply. The body was on the thicker side with moderate carbonation. It had a sticky, lengthy finish with white chocolate. This was another standout beer from The Bruery that I would certainly have again.

Untappd Rating: 5.0/5.0

The Bruery White Mocha

I managed to crank out over 7 miles on the bike today on the higher setting. I guess sticking with it is starting to pay off. Since I’m done with my workout, let’s see what the beer is tonight.

ABV: 16.3%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to the brewery website, “This is White Oak Sap waking up on the other side of the bed. Similar to White Chocolate, White Mocha is our bourbon barrel-aged wheatwine-style ale, known as White Oak Sap, but with fresh coffee beans (instead of vanilla beans) and cacao nibs. Rich notes of coffee and chocolate are joined by warm flavors of coconut, honey and vanilla that rise and shine on the palate. If you’ve never fancied yourself a morning person before, today might just be your day. Best served fresh in a tulip glass or biodegradable coffee cup.”

Random: My job has free coffee, but to be more green, we’ve gone to pour over coffee. I think it makes better coffee, it just takes way too long.

The beer poured with a thick, one finger, off white head that took awhile to dissipate and left a lot of lacing on the glass. The body was slightly cloudy and dark brown with moderate carbonation. The nose was boozy with some raisin and coffee along with mild chocolate. The taste had a bit more depth and started with blonde coffee. It quickly went into milk chocolate, raisin, honey and some vanilla and tobacco. I didn’t pick up any coconut. The body was on the thick side with lots of carbonation and some boozy heat. It had a lengthy finish with blonde coffee and chocolate. I liked this beer for sure, but it is very intense. It’s definitely worth a try.

Untappd Rating: 4.0/5.0

The Bruery White Oak

Yet another day of staying late at the office. The only good thing? I get to leave early on Saturday (supposedly). So, here’s a beer that I picked up awhile back and really heard nothing about. On balance, I either love beers from this brewery or I hate them. The major thing that I have against them is the price point, which can be a bit…inflated, to say the least. So, these are my thoughts on this one.

ABV: 11.5%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to the brewery website, “White Oak is a blended beer– 50% wheatwine aged in Bourbon barrels (we call it “White Oak Sap”), and 50% Mischief (our Golden Strong Ale). Vivid caramel, coconut and vanilla flavors blanketed in a crisp yet robust wheat ale, White Oak is an exercise of balance.”

Random: Dom Brown is on fire for the Phils right now. He hit another home run this afternoon.

This brew poured with a one finger white head that dissipated quite slowly. It left a crown on top of the body and some nice lacing on the glass. The body was a cloudy light orange color with lazy carbonation visible throughout. The nose was delicate. I got notes of coconut and bourbon. The bourbon was relative smooth and light on the nose. The taste was a magnified sample of the nose. I got coconut and bourbon first and then some apricot and caramel came through with yeast finishing up the sip. The booze was absolutely undetectable on this one, which was really nice. The body was a medium thickness with very light carbonation, which was my only complaint. It could have used a bit more fizz. The finish was long and sweet. Although I really enjoyed this one, it would have been a great beer to split with friends, especially given the booze.

Untappd Rating: 4.0/5.0

Three Floyds Boogoop

This was a brew I had on Saturday with Katie. I got this nasty virus on Saturday which involved not being able to keep anything down, which meant that I was completely and totally unproductive. Very annoying. But, once I felt decent, I had to open a brew. I mean, it was Saturday night and this was one that I was very excited to try. Especially because I tend to really like Mikkeller and I’ve never had anything from Three Floyds. Let’s pop this bad boy open.

ABV: 10.4%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to beerpulse.com, “Please join us for the Chicago release of Boogoop, a collaboration beer between Mikkeller and Three Floyds. The fourth collaboration between these breweries, Boogoop is a Buckwheat Wine, weighing in at 10.4% ABV.”

Random: This is a collaboration brew between Three Floyds and Mikkeller.

This brew poured with a huge and fluffy three finger off-white head. It dissipated painfully slow and left a huge amount of lacing on the glass. The body was a hazy mahogany color with no visible carbonation on it, due to the color. The nose had a decent amount of booze, a bit of wheat and hops. This almost smelled like a boozy IPA. The taste was unique. It started with a dose of sweetness, quickly followed with a generous amount of hops. There was a little bit of wheat, but not much. I honestly didn’t know what to make of this beer. The body was on the medium side with low carbonation. The finish was long with some booze warming on it. The booze was also very apparent on the taste. I would say that this beer was interesting, but I just don’t completely get it. It reminded me a little more of a barleywine than a wheatwine, but I would have it again.

Untappd Rating: 4.0/5.0

Terrapin Gamma Ray

By the time you read this, I’ll hopefully be finishing my birthday dinner with my family and I’m now hitting up a bar with Aly (the infamous girlfriend). As you can tell, I actually had a two brew review night last night. I’m now 28, which means I’m even closer to 30. Yeah, that part isn’t fun. But, at least it’s a long weekend, and I have a lot of fun stuff planned. I may even crack open some of the cellar beers this weekend. This beer is from one of my favorite breweries and yet again, has an incredibly cool label. So, onto the brew!

ABV: 11%

Style: Wheatwine

Trivia: According to wikipedia, “Gamma rays are usually naturally produced on Earth by decay of high energy states in atomic nuclei (gamma decay). Important sources are high-energy sub-atomic particle interactions in natural processes and man-made mechanisms. These include processes such as electron-positron annihilation, neutral pion decay, fusion, fission (important man-made sources) to lightning strike and terrestrial gamma-ray flash (rare natural sources on Earth). Gamma rays are produced by many astronomical sources in which high-energy electrons are produced. These electrons then produce secondary gamma rays by the mechanisms of bremsstrahlung, inverse Compton scattering and synchrotron radiation.”

Random: I’ve never had a wheatwine before, so I don’t really know what to expect…but pretty much everything I’ve had from Terrapin has been great.

This beer poured with a barely there white head that dissipated quickly and left no lacing on the glass. The body was a cloudy orange color with very mild visible carbonation. On the nose, I got a bit of booze, followed up by a syrupy, honey sweetness. After a bit of searching, I also got some banana, but honey was dominating the nose. The taste is definitely different. I got a lot of different things: banana, clove, lots of honey and a bit of wheat. In a way, it almost reminds me of a Belgian because of the sweetness. I think this was also because of the breadiness that I got from the brew. The booze was definitely present and warmed a little bit on the end. The finish was incredibly sweet, but pleasant. All-in-all, a solid brew that was pretty complex, but I couldn’t have more than one of these. The sweetness combined with the high ABV makes this a beer I would sip on, but not pound. This is definitely worth a try.

Untappd Rating: 4.0/5.0