Saint's Devotion

   Saint's Devotion, as far as I am aware is the original recipe of The Lost Abbey's Devotion Ale with Brettanomyces added. It is a common misconception that Brettanomyces actually makes beer sour, but in reality it produces zero sour flavor. Brettanomyces contributes to a cleaner and crisper beer, than other yeast strains.

Size: 12.7oz bottle.
ABV: 6.66%
Color: This beer pours a dark orange, with more of a cooper color towards the center of the beer. There is a slight hazy to this beer, and a monstrous head bubbled to the tip of the glass. It took me several minutes to pour, but a rocky white head built up.
Smell: Aroma was very refreshing, lots of tropical fruit and lemon peel thrown in. There is a touch of funk, but not overpowering by any means. The Brett is fruity giving off pineapple and melon scents. The hops add to the fruit aroma, and give it a touch of pine.
Taste: Crisp, refreshing, and highly carbonated are the only words to describe the first couple of sips. When the carbonation settles down some juicy pineapple washes over the palate, along with citrus and pine from the hops. The hops give the beer some bitterness to counter the fruity flavors, and add to the dryness. The Brett is slightly funky giving off an earthiness to go along with the biscuit flavor of the grain.
Recommendation: I am a little surprised that I enjoyed this beer so much, and very happy that I decided to grab one. The flavors are very well balanced between fruit flavors, and dry earthy flavors. This may be the perfect summer beer when you are looking for something a little more adventurous then a summertime lager. The Brett will only develop overtime, but I personally think the flavors are great right now.

Brise-BonBons

   Well I have to start by saying that it has been way too long since I have posted on here, but for the past couple of weeks school was killing me. So, I thought I would start with a pretty unusual beer to get me back in the swing of things. Fantome's Brise-BonBons is a Saison, which is the only style that Fantome makes and they are some of the best. The fun thing about trying Fantome beers is that you never really know what you are going to get. Even the same style of beer will vary greatly from bottle to bottle, so be aware of the sneaky games that ghost is playing.
Size: 750ml bottle.

ABV: 8%.
Color: Sunny golden coloring with some hazy in the middle of the beer. This beer took awhile to pour as you can see from the fluffy white head that shot up the glass.
Smell: Like every other Fantome beer I have tried there was a musty funk that I have come to associated with these beers. The musty aroma is reminiscent of blue cheese and hay. I was surprised to get some tart lemon juice on the nose, and a fruitiness of pears. A touch of bready grains and spice as well.
Taste: Extremely carbonated almost to the point of not being able to pick out any flavors. The taste leads to the blue cheese and hay mustiness, but it is not quite as strong as the aroma. There is a lot more fruit flavor including green apples, pears, and lemon. The fruits bring a level of tartness, which I love in a Saison. This beer was light and easy to drink especially on a hot summer night.
Recommendation: I have to say this was by far the best beer I have had from Fantome. The flavors were bright and there were not any noticeable off flavors. Fantome beers can be a gamble, but that is the fun that comes with the ghost. Yes, you may get a bad beer from time to time, but when you get a good one it is amazing.

Class of '88

   I know I haven't posted any new beers on here in awhile, but I am currently wrapping up my last semester of college and for some reason that seems to be taking up all my time. Well, back to what's important; the beer. Class of '88 is a Barley Wine produced for the 25th Anniversary of Deschutes. There are actually three versions of this beer made, one being from Deschutes, one from North Coast, and the other by Rogue. This particular bottle is Deschutes version.
Size: 22oz bottle.
ABV: 10%.
Color: This beer pours a honey orange coloring that is slightly hazy. The head is an off-white color, which is creamy and built of tiny bubbles.
Smell: I was surprised at how sweet the aroma was, but not the typical Barley Wine sweetness. This version was sweet from candied sugar, and figs. The hops add a more subtle floral aroma, rather than intense pine.
Taste: The flavor is unusual to say the least. The flavors do not really place this beer in the English or American Barley Wine spectrum. The first couple sips are very sweet, and like the aroma the flavor is rock crystal sugar. There is a floral flavor possibly flower flavored honey. When the sweetness subsides, you are left with a bready cereal flavor. The mouth feel is creamy, but with decent carbonation.
Recommendation: This was an interesting beer for me, and I have tried it several times now. Deschutes version is on the verge of being too sweet in my opinion. I know that style guidelines do not play too much of a factor for some brewers, which is great. I love when brewers push the boundaries, but this is just an unusual beer that does not really know what it wants to be.

Espresso Imperial Stout

   Stone's Russian Imperial Stout is one of the beers I look forward to being released every year, and since this is an odd numbered year they add a twist to their classic RIS. This year's version was transformed into an Espresso RIS, which to me sounded fantastic. Stone also released the regular version of their RIS, so don't worry the original is still out there.
Size: 22oz bottle.
ABV: 11%.
Color: As you would expect, this RIS pours midnight black. There is a slight motor oil tint and consistency to this beer. I was able to build up a sturdy coffee colored head.
Smell: As you would expect, a very strong espresso aroma. Smells like fresh ground espresso, and there is a little bittersweet chocolate thrown in. Some roasted malt and a subtle black licorice scent. The booze comes through as well.
Taste: At first I served this beer way too cold, and all I was tasting was bitter coffee. As it warmed up the espresso became more dominate, but not overly aggressive. There is definitely some bitterness coming from the hops, along with some chocolate flavoring. I really drank this beer too fast, and didn't give it a chance to warm up and allow the more subtle flavors to come through. The mouth feel was thick and creamy, with a lingering of alcohol.
Recommendation: I really enjoyed this beer, and have had it several times since enjoying my first bottle. This is definitely a beer you will want to drink fresh while the espresso flavor is present. Over time that wonderful coffee will fade, and this beer will probably turn into the regular RIS. I think this beer should be drunk on the warmer side, as to allow the chocolate, hops, and tobacco flavors to come through.

Prairie Gold

   Prairie Artisan Ales is a fairly new brewery out of Oklahoma, and they are jumping straight into sour and funky beers. Prairie Gold is their take on a Sour Blonde Ale, and all kinds of yeast and bugs are added to this beer. They use ale yeast along with champagne yeast, Lactobacillus, and two strains of Brettanomyces.
Size: 750ml bottle.
ABV: 6.5%.
Color: Prairie Gold pours a light straw golden color, with a two-fingered bubbly white head. The head fades rather quickly, and reduces to almost nothing. Second pour leads to a murky yeast filled glass.
Smell: The aroma is rather pleasant, with lemon juice and zest taking over. The Brettanomyces adds a layer of funk and wet straw, and a subtle bready biscuit scent.
Taste: First sip is almost mouth puckering sour, but that is reduced to a light sour flavor overtime. Lemon juice makes its way onto the palate to compliment the sourness. There is a wheat and grainy taste, but the mouth feel is on the thin side. The carbonation is extremely high, giving this beer champagne like carbonation.
Recommendation: This was a decent sour beer, and for the price I would say that it was a good buy. There just was not that much flavor to match the sourness. The only real flavor I got was lemons, which leads to a one note beer. If you are looking for a quick sour fix this is a good beer, but it is pretty basic for a sour. With that being said, I enjoyed Prairie Gold as a standard Sour Ale.

Imperial Loakal Red

   Imperial Loakal Red is another beer that came in my Preservation Society shipment, along with two other great Bruery beers. Imperial Loakal Red is the beefed up version of the regular Loakal Red. This version is 75% Red Ale, and 25% Ale aged in oak barrels. I have to say that I was not a fan of the regular Loakal Red, so I was a little leery when trying this one.

Size: 750ml bottle.

ABV: 12%.

Color: This beer pours a deep red mahogany coloring, with a light chocolate tint to it. A monster khaki head that was dense and creamy rushed to the top of the glass.

Smell: Pleasant hoppy pine scent, and sweet malt backbone with a touch of caramel. The oak does not come through as much as I thought it would, and there is a slight scent of alcohol. There is also a floral aroma that I could not put my finger on.

Taste: After the first couple of sips I could not get over how rich and creamy this beer was. Semi-sweet malt with a little caramel and toasted malt. Nice hoppy flavor that is citrusy and piney. Can definitely taste the oak more than I was able to smell it. The oak adds a little spice, which accentuates the hop presence.

Recommendation: Red Ales, and the regular version of Loakal Red have not been my favorite beers in the past. But, Imperial Loakal Red was a very good beer that I would buy again. The rich flavors of this beer made it very enjoyable to drink. I was pleasantly happy that the oak flavors were not too strong, and the booze was well hidden. Overall, another solid beer from The Bruery.

Duchessic Ale

   Duchessic Ale is considered a Saison, that is blended with one year old Cantillion lambic. This beer is produced by Birra Del Borgo in Italy. The addition of the Cantillion blend gives this beer a little bit of sour flavor, and the classic funk that Cantillion is known for. This is the second time I tried Duchessic, and this second bottle must have been a bad one because the flavors were a little off compared to the first bottle.
Size: 12.7oz bottle.
ABV: 5.9%.
Color: I thought something might be a little off with this beer because the head just formed a thin white film around the glass, rather than produce a pillowy head. The color was hazy honey orange.
Smell: Aroma was pleasant with lemons and a subtle amount of funk. I did not get the classic Cantillion aroma on this bottle, that I loved in the first one.
Taste: After the first sip, I thought I was drinking a completely different beer than the first time I tried Duchessic. Instead of this beer being sour, it had more of a bitter flavor. The Saison aspects of this beer come through, with a little bit of spice and grain. The carbonation was not as high in this beer either. It was really hard to get pass the bitter flavors, they were almost too off putting.
Recommendation: The first bottle I tried of this beer was absolutely great, and you could tell there was Cantillion in it from the aroma and taste. This particular bottle was just bad. It is quite disappointing when you enjoy a beer and purchase another bottle of it, only to realize you grabbed a bad one. I would still recommend this beer only because the first bottle was so good.