Drake (22934) reviewed Less is More from Botanist and Barrel 2 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Keg at the brewery, 4/26/23. New cidery! Hazy pale orange, thin head. Aroma of sweet apple, earth, honey, mild citrus. Taste is apple, pear, earth, hint of citrus. Well balanced, dry. Nice.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Oily gold, kinda clear, goblet pour. Grapefruit, orange, herby, lemon bitters in a bittersweet, in an approachable apple blend. Mellow but lingering herbal. Candied grapefruit, sweet onion, a touch dank, kinda bittersweet, modern, natural soda-ish. Meddling to medium tart over significant sugar. Lingering moderate acidity helps cut it. Very different for the brand. Thank you.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Small goblet @b&b. Yellow-green gold, mostly clear pour. Floral, earthy, orange liquor, pungently grassy nose. Taste is major orange zest in a backdrop of Earl Grey. Bitter tangerine, heavy tea tannins, lots of astringent apple skin. Snappy acidity, medium tartness, lemon, lingering bergamot. Finish is bitter-tart, slightly veggy apple essence. A little yeasty on the finish. Lingering rose of all things. Kinda unique.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7
Clear 375ml bottle from Whole Paycheck. Mojito glass @home. Half hazy, sizzling bubbly, watermelon water. Astringent, lots of miscellaneous skin, grape gum, glue. Definite tropical punch. Cherry+deep concord grape+herbals+pineapple+barrel+tonic+a slight vinegar sweetness. Thin, sharp, boozy, a touch yeasty, drying finish. A little less vinegar & we're good.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 10 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 9
Clear 375ml bottle from Whole Paycheck. Mojito glass @home. Dusty, jellied, watermelon, a little active. Sweet cherries, white wine, tarragon, bourbon, apple astringency, inviting. Taste is backwards. Apple astringency upfront, lingering cherry skin, menthol, muddled spices, lime, soft bourbon, yeasty finish. Maybe not carbonated enough, boozy for the abv. Fucking good.
SaltyGrog (4618) reviewed Secret Crush from Botanist and Barrel 3 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
On tap @Botanist Asheville while listen to Appalachian music of sorts. Hazy, peach pour. Grape-y, lemon soap, rose. Tart, muscadine funk, tons of grape skin drying everything out. Pretty good. Been a while.
SaltyGrog (4618) reviewed Sour Blackberry from Botanist and Barrel 3 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7
Party in your mouth you say? Clear 375 bottle from Botanist AVL. Pint glass @home. Clear, cranberry-tea color, bubbly. Yeasties eagerly await that second bottle tip. Actually, the residual looks purple, like it's spent fruit/skin. +1. Pickled berry(what), sweet vinegar, vanilla, herbs. Taste is odd. Smoked bittersweet apples, sharp berries but not a lot of them, mellow acidity, low to medium low tartness, salt. The smoke dissipates after a minute, but the drink remains a touch savory with the salt. Finish is salty savory veg, light veg bitterness & berries. I swear, licking my lips... this is salty. Salty-tart. Thin, decently carbed, solid abv. Strangely okay to good. Too mellow to be a sour though.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5
Why would you want help from a cidermaker that makes poor cider? Why do I keep buying brands I know are suspect? Shame on you, shame on me. Let's drink. Half bottle from Botanist AVL. Stemless wine glass @home. Clear, golden yellow & still. Sharp, wild, green like it was dry-hopped(but isn't), white floral grape, plastic, clay, salt. Big nose. Seriously sharp. Static bittersweet Botanist apples that ferment to a funky vinegar sweetness, very bright/tart lemon juice, grape skin tannins that linger, bitter lime, plastic, earth, salt. It becomes less straight lemon & the wine notes pop more as it gets over being ice cold. Juicy, softly yeasty, vinegar astringency, feels stronger than the listed 6.9%. Okay to good. One glass is enough.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 10 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
375ml bottle from Botanist AVL. Stemless wine glass @home. Spritzy, clear, dark gold. Minerally, leafy, lemon, soft herbs. Taste is bittersweet apples, some more acidic, some crab-ish. Lingering lime pith, sweet onion, soft herbs, super slight sweet, very minerally, vinegar, eventually leading to a semi-dry finish. Juicy, runny, medium to medium low carb, at least coarsely filtered, appropriate abv that doesn't hit harshly. I think this is the best non-adjunct straight cider I've ever had from Botanist.
SaltyGrog (4618) reviewed Nomadic Roots from Botanist and Barrel 3 years ago
Appearance - 4 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6
Dark 375ml bottle from the Botanist AVL fridge. Chivas glass @home. A couple bucks more than several of their half size bottles for some reason. Pale, faintly half still. I get more menthol than ginger on the nose initially. Clay, yeast, cream soda, lime. Actual ginger zest as it warms. Very soapy, Canada Dry level ginger strength & sweetness. I get some second half acidity I'm assuming is from the mangos, but nothing obvious. Slight apple cider vinegar. A bitter & slightly herbal apple & ginger finish. Very mellow & floppy. Low, ticklish carbonation, yeast slurry, feels stronger than the 6.9% list. Forgettable.