Draught at the brewery, 6/6/15
Lightly hazy white gold in the glass with a moderate amount of white head that slowly recedes to cover.
Lactic nose is quite sour, with dry, biscuity wheat/malt notes that further drive home the sourness. Still, the lactic aspect (as well as other critters and brett) seems delightfully authentic and despite the bracing sourness, is well-done and complex (yogurt, light cheese, lime and orange notes). No alcohol or flaws.
Sour in the mouth but with a soft, cream-of-wheat-like texture and matching flavor that gives something for the sourness to sink in to. Tight carbonation both concentrates the sourness but also keeps the very quite refreshing (assuming you like sour beers). I can’t help thinking back to one of Ernest’s reviews where he comments on a beer being so sour/dry that instead of refreshing, it comes off parching/making you thirsty. So I could see a little bit of that here, especially if you aren’t in to overly sour beers. But I am. So this was blissful for me.

Bottle. Blend 1 Pours yellow - nose/taste of fresh orange peel, white wine, florals, oak, coriander and light acidic funk - medium body. Beautiful and delicate.

Draught at OEC, 6/6/15
Mildly hazy, warm-toned orange with lighter banana skin yellow tints and a foamy, well-retained white head.
Mildly tart brett is notable though not dominant in the nose, while softer, playful fruitiness (apples, tangerines, strawberries) provides a strong defining Belgian character. Biscuits and some light plaster dry it out and no alcohol or flaws are present.
Tart, yet bright acids greet the palate but a shot of light honey and soft, clean and well-attenuated malts comfort the palate as snappy, tight carbonation announces light lime and soft sugars on the finish. I havent looked up what Spanish Sagardoa is, but the beer had a very unique flavor, almost kiwi-melon-like. Wonderfully attenuated, clean, crisp, drinkable. I don’t know who I like more, these guys or Oxbow. Thankfully I don’t have to pick.

Draught at OEC, 6/6/15
Light pale-golden liquid shows moderate haziness with a large white head that is very-well retained.
Soft, understated aroma actually parallels a wit bier quite well, with plenty of cream-of-wheat character, light coriander spiciness and flecks of honeyed maltiness. It’s all nicely attenuated, as expected and the citrus is very reserved, adding a very soft note reminiscent of a cocktail with light grand marnier/cointreau. There’s no sourness/tartness to the nose, but a moderate fruitiness from the yeast gives it a good Belgian character. No flaws or alcohol.
Again, mild in the flavor, with the sour orange character mostly in the background adding a light rosewater/orange blossom water character to the mostly dry, wheaty and slightly honeyish palate. Light pepperiness and spicy herbs emerge with warming but don’t dominate, while fruity esters add complexity. Very little influence from the barrel; seemingly just dry tannins at the most. Very drinkable and elegant beer that I wish I had bottles of....I think this will be even better after 6 months when the spiciness dies down (it’s not overdone, but with such a light beer, it’s rather prominent now).

Draught at the brewery, 6/6/15
Dark mahogany liquid has some dark auburn highlights on the edges with a medium-sized drab tan head that shows moderate retention. Great clarity on the beer as well; could see pretty far in to it while holding it up to the sun.
Nose is quite a bit more reserved than the flavor; not muted or not-aromatic, I suppose I should just say quite a bit different. Some treacle and light acidity combine to immediately announce this as a nicely attenuated, dry version. Not intensely sour in the nose, nor is it full of barnyard quite yet. The beer being fresh and still relatively young, the spices and citrus are felt more prominently now. Still, there’s a delightful amount of playful acidity and fruitiness, with light caramel and toffee notes emerging more with warming. Even with the spice/citrus/brett, it’s not too dry/astringent and comes off surprisingly light and airy for an Imperial Stout. Alcohol immensely well-controlled, as well.
Rich, leathery and tobacco-laden dark malts are wonderfully attenuated, while the wheat provides ample softness on the palate as the citrus bitterness cuts in to the malts. It’s very citric, there’s no getting around that. Even to the point of astringency. There’s a lasting bitter grapefruit rind note that is taken a bit too far and dominates the malts, on the finish. Most likely a combination of the beer being so well-attenuated and the citrus flavors still very fresh. Fruit flavors die off as the beer ages, so I’d hold off on opening the bottles (all 130 of them that were produced....) in hopes that the dominant bitter citrus character recedes. Other than that, tart brett notes, earthy funk and extremely well-drawn out and complex malt notes overwhelm the senses with sheer quality. This is one hell of a beer and were it not for the extreme bitter citrus rind character, it’d be upper 4’s in my book. Hopefully, as I said, the citrus bitterness recedes over time. Would like to revisit in a year or two, but there are so few bottles out there it may prove difficult.

Draught at OEC, 6/6/15
Rich bright orange-yellow, lightly hazy at best, with a good-sized white head atop showing strong retention.
Damn. This is a hell of an American version. From the graceful oakiness and fantastic sourness, right down to the burnt rubber/sulfur edges, it’s got all the makings of a fine Cantillon Gueuze. Some sweet honey, band-aids, lime skins and touches of vanilla all produce a complex nose. No alcohol and only sulfur to be found as a "flaw" (though I just can’t get enough of it here or in fresh bottles of Cantillon).
The flavor shows a rich, sumptuous texture for a lambic-style beer. To that end, yes, I did find it a bit too malty and slightly on the sweet side, though it’s a delicious honey-laden pils malt and does help counteract the heavy lactic sourness. Funky and only lightly oaky; bright and acidic it remains, even through the strong maltiness. Moderate barnyard notes with a lip-smacking citrus fruitiness and a touch of alcohol and tannin.