8.4/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
From Apr 2008
I got this in a trade with nutbrown. Thanks Alan!
The label says Batch E!005 and it pours from the 750ml beige(?) foil(?) caped bottle a hazy straw gold colour with a 1 finger head of foam and what looks like a lot of carbonation. It turns from hazy to cloudy with subsequent pours and that's what I was looking for.
The smell is nice and spicy! Loads of cloves and pepper along with a god lemony nose. Judging from the smell, I think this one is going to be good.
The taste is very peppery up front with the clove and lemon I mentioned in the nose. Yum. I like how the lemon works so well with the spices..no over powering from either direction, just a real harmony going on here and that makes it oh so drinkable...8%abv????..you gotta be kidding me! Very very well hidden!
The more I sip, the more I notice the fine yeasty wheat flavour that kicks this brew up a few notches in complexity. And, despite how bubbly it looks in the glass, the carbonation is at a respectable light to medium light level and again, that works for me. Absolutely perfect mouthfeel for the style for me. This is truly a fine drinking experience and I'm further impressed with Ithaca Brewing's craftmanship. Btw, head retention is awesome and there's a lot of sticky lacing. I just thought you needed to know that. ;^)
Bottom line: This is about as close to perfection in the style that I'm probably ever going find so...let the scores fall where they may. Wonderful drop!
I got this in a trade with nutbrown. Thanks Alan!
The label says Batch E!005 and it pours from the 750ml beige(?) foil(?) caped bottle a hazy straw gold colour with a 1 finger head of foam and what looks like a lot of carbonation. It turns from hazy to cloudy with subsequent pours and that's what I was looking for.
The smell is nice and spicy! Loads of cloves and pepper along with a god lemony nose. Judging from the smell, I think this one is going to be good.
The taste is very peppery up front with the clove and lemon I mentioned in the nose. Yum. I like how the lemon works so well with the spices..no over powering from either direction, just a real harmony going on here and that makes it oh so drinkable...8%abv????..you gotta be kidding me! Very very well hidden!
The more I sip, the more I notice the fine yeasty wheat flavour that kicks this brew up a few notches in complexity. And, despite how bubbly it looks in the glass, the carbonation is at a respectable light to medium light level and again, that works for me. Absolutely perfect mouthfeel for the style for me. This is truly a fine drinking experience and I'm further impressed with Ithaca Brewing's craftmanship. Btw, head retention is awesome and there's a lot of sticky lacing. I just thought you needed to know that. ;^)
Bottom line: This is about as close to perfection in the style that I'm probably ever going find so...let the scores fall where they may. Wonderful drop!
Tried
from Bottle
on 09 Nov 2017
at 09:21
5/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 3
Texture 6
Overall 6
From Mar 2007
Pours from 12oz bottle a hazy orange with a small head of foam that dissipated quickly leaving a fine ring around the glass.
The smell smells very much like apricot...imagine that!
The taste is a mix of semi sweet apricot and wheat but it's on the delicate side. A little more oomph with the apricots and this would be a very good taster...still, not a bad drop.
Thanks to Wasatch for this sample!
Pours from 12oz bottle a hazy orange with a small head of foam that dissipated quickly leaving a fine ring around the glass.
The smell smells very much like apricot...imagine that!
The taste is a mix of semi sweet apricot and wheat but it's on the delicate side. A little more oomph with the apricots and this would be a very good taster...still, not a bad drop.
Thanks to Wasatch for this sample!
Tried
from Bottle
on 19 Oct 2017
at 11:31
9/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 10
Texture 10
Overall 9
From Jul 2009.
I received 2 bottles in trade thanks to NutBrown and joe1510. Thanks Alan and Joe!
Served near room temp, maybe I should have chilled it down a bit as I lost an ounce or 2 when I popped the cork.
A hazy straw colour with a huge head of foam, it does settle down fairly quickly leaving some nice lacing.
One whiff and the influence of the Brett is right there with plenty of notes of wheat and some lemon citrus sourness to back it up. A very nice and inviting nose.
The taste starts off wonderfully sour and that has my complete attention. Smack. Yum. On to the light wheat and light lemon zest bitterness to go with the sour and a light dash of an oaky flavour. If you really want to taste how sour this is, try swishing the beer in your mouth. Oh my!
Medium mouthfeel, this is one highly carbonated brew but it works perfectly for me. And....head retention is superb.
Drinkability? I'll have to say....I could drink this all day long! Incredible drinkability because it tastes so damn good and the alcohol is just a number(label says it is 7%abv) and doesn't come into play at all.
Bottom line: I loves me a good American Wild Ale or Sour Ale. Brute is *crazy* good and anyone who appreciates the style must seek this one out. 'nuff said.
Thanks again, Alan and Joe for the opportunity!
Btw, I still have one of the bottles.
I received 2 bottles in trade thanks to NutBrown and joe1510. Thanks Alan and Joe!
Served near room temp, maybe I should have chilled it down a bit as I lost an ounce or 2 when I popped the cork.
A hazy straw colour with a huge head of foam, it does settle down fairly quickly leaving some nice lacing.
One whiff and the influence of the Brett is right there with plenty of notes of wheat and some lemon citrus sourness to back it up. A very nice and inviting nose.
The taste starts off wonderfully sour and that has my complete attention. Smack. Yum. On to the light wheat and light lemon zest bitterness to go with the sour and a light dash of an oaky flavour. If you really want to taste how sour this is, try swishing the beer in your mouth. Oh my!
Medium mouthfeel, this is one highly carbonated brew but it works perfectly for me. And....head retention is superb.
Drinkability? I'll have to say....I could drink this all day long! Incredible drinkability because it tastes so damn good and the alcohol is just a number(label says it is 7%abv) and doesn't come into play at all.
Bottom line: I loves me a good American Wild Ale or Sour Ale. Brute is *crazy* good and anyone who appreciates the style must seek this one out. 'nuff said.
Thanks again, Alan and Joe for the opportunity!
Btw, I still have one of the bottles.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Oct 2017
at 18:58
7.5/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 8
From Aug 2006
Poured from 12oz bottle a clear reddish gold with a medium sized head of foam that settled down to about a 1" layer and stayed the course that way.
The smell is a very nice caramel malt, similiar to what I get from a JW Lees Harvest or Thomas Hardy Ale, with similar results... leaves me going ahh.
The taste has that caramel flavour noted in the nose but there's definitely some biscuit and roasty goodness there as well and then the hops, in a pronounced grapefruit form, jump out at me but the finish returns to a fruity sweetness.... so there's a lot going on here in this Red Ale and I find that it's all working *extremely* well.
Bottom line: This is a *superb* Red Ale! I recommend it!!!
Thanks to Nutbrown for including this wonderful nectar in our trade!!
Poured from 12oz bottle a clear reddish gold with a medium sized head of foam that settled down to about a 1" layer and stayed the course that way.
The smell is a very nice caramel malt, similiar to what I get from a JW Lees Harvest or Thomas Hardy Ale, with similar results... leaves me going ahh.
The taste has that caramel flavour noted in the nose but there's definitely some biscuit and roasty goodness there as well and then the hops, in a pronounced grapefruit form, jump out at me but the finish returns to a fruity sweetness.... so there's a lot going on here in this Red Ale and I find that it's all working *extremely* well.
Bottom line: This is a *superb* Red Ale! I recommend it!!!
Thanks to Nutbrown for including this wonderful nectar in our trade!!
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Oct 2017
at 11:07
8/10
Tried
on 14 Oct 2017
at 16:43
8/10
Tried
on 14 Oct 2017
at 16:07
8/10
Tried
on 14 Oct 2017
at 15:43
8/10
Tried
on 07 Oct 2017
at 08:49
7.9/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Pours clear gold into a tulip. White head with excellent retention top hats and craters leaving soapy lacing. Cork and aroma of Chardonnay, Brett and citrus. Full and crisp with sweet marshmallow, hot caramel and horsey Brett upfront turning to bitter earth in the lasting finish. Like a less subtle Flemish Primitive.
Tried
on 01 Oct 2017
at 17:21
7.5/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7
Draft at Valhalla, 9th Ave, New York City. Pours pale amber with a small off-white head. Aroma of citrus, herb, vanilla, touch of cinnamon, caramel and floral notes. Moderate sweetness, medium plus bitterness. Medium body, slight oily texture, soft carbonation. Finish is semi-dry.
Tried
from Draft
on 29 Aug 2017
at 00:10