Now here is an interesting product: a reconstruction of historical Jopejskie, a kind of thick, originally spontaneously fermented, syrupy beer produced in the Gdansk region of Poland since the 15th century; it was cooked for twenty hours ('reduced', one could say), hence the syrupiness and remaining sugars making it sweet. It was mostly used as an addition to other beers because - quote historical sources - it was too difficult (and expensive) to drink on its own. Jopejskie is among the least known extinct beer types today, but Olimp, located more than a hundred miles south of Gdansk, took up the challenge, in true and original craft beer vein, to resurrect it from the dead. Few attempts have been made by other breweries (even outside of Poland), but with some more exposure, I assume this long-forgotten yet very peculiar extinct beer style may well be a good candidate for a revival in craft beer circles. I cannot thank tderoeck enough for donating part of the delicate little bottle - which, in combination with the guilded, calligraphic letters on it, looks more like a perfume bottle than a beer bottle; it is in any case very unique, totally unlike any other beer vessel in general I have ever seen in my life. No head whatsoever - and none expected; very dark caramel brown robe, with a beautiful, almost oil paint-like 'lacing' sienna colour at the sides, clinging to the glass. Intense nose - note that I am only having a few centiliter of this stuff - rising out of the glass, reminiscent of molasses, treacle, marmite, sirop de Liège, brown rhum, old Asian fish sauce or even Worcestershire sauce, kahlua, walnut oil. Intense in the mouth as well: sweet and brown-sugary at first, but far less so than expected, even hardly cloying; instead, a soy sauce- and fish sauce-like umami flavour unfolds, even a tad salty at the sides, and even the sourishness resulting from - I assume - spontaneous or at least mixed fermentation is there; I would say that the combination of all these things come close to balsamico with a whole lot of brown sugar in it. No carbonation, thick and oily mouthfeel, lovely walnutty maltiness with this sugared balsamico effect continuing, even if the sourness eventually fades away and sheer maltiness remains, including toasty bitterness and nuttiness, but mostly sweet caramelliness. Bittersweet, very molasses-like finish, very syrupy, very umami still (reduced gravy), but also quite boozy, with a rhum-like alcohol glow lingering on the root of the tongue. I always wish I had a time machine when I taste something like this: how historically reliable is this resurrection? We will never know, but I do believe Olimp, a trustworthy (if not very well-known) name in the Polish craft beer wave, did everything they could to recreate Jopejskie as truthfully and authentically as possible. Seen the spontaneous fermentation thas was applied back in the 15th century, I would imagine it averagely had a more pronounced and complex sourness at the time, but this Olimp interpretation does in any case match a historical flavour description (written much later by a German author) I came across when searching the internet for information about this style. Barleywine-esque, but actually closer to something one would pour over a salad: condensed beer syrup indeed, hardly drinkable as such (and indeed perhaps applicable as an addition to, say, a quad or a Scotch), but not lacking in complexity and certainly a very entertaining and educational experience. Have some extra points for that - also because I have no idea how to rate something as distinct as this. I think the intellectual effort and historical resonance of an experiment like this far exceeds the pettiness of rating on a site like this - so let's say that it, indeed, deserves a high score for that alone.

0.33 l bottle that Marko brought from Prague. Thanks! Shared with Ogi and Marko at the Grand 7.a2.ting 2021. Dark brown, small tan head. Spice, red and black fruit, tart berries, nuts, toast, plastic, liquorice, herbal liqueur such as Amaro, dark cherry, wood. Roasty flavour, burnt, ash, caramel, a tart note, sweet. Soft, medium body, soft carbonation, moderate finish. Nice fruit presence, not too sweet, balanced.

Shared with Marko and Ogi at the Grand 7.a2.ting 2021. Hazy orange, small off-white head. Moderately hoppy. fruity, citrusy, orange, zest, ripe citrus, tangerine. Soft fruity, flavours, bland and malty. Sticky, light body, moderate carbonation, light finish, dangerously drinkable. Shy but nice.

Bottled 330ml. -Courtesy of Marko, shared with him & hrabren, thanks! Black coloured, medium sized beige head, malty chocolate nose. Roasted malt, chocolate, caramel, some grapes light notes of oxidation and warming alcohol in the finish.

Canned 500ml. -Courtesy of Marko, shared with him & hrabren, thanks! Unclear golden coloured, medium sized white head, some ripe fruits in the nose. Sweet malty, ripe fruits, notes of tropical fruits and light oranges with bitterish finish.

Bottle from BaseCamp, shared with H&O. Sweetish aroma mixing wine and heavy malty notes, spicy somewhat, a bit on the heavier side all in all, but okay. Hmm... dry taste, chocolate, highly roasty, some grapes too, chocolate with raisins, which isn't entirely my favorite chocolate, but isn't bad either. Quite a solid RIS.

Can from BaseCamp. Hazy Golden body. Lightly old seeming aroma, some sweet citrus notes, light stone fruit. herbal touches, some raisins. Sweetish, light, slightly tired orange-tangerine taste, some malty notes. hefty herbal bitter finish. A modernized AIPA, very well hidden alcohol, not bad, not perfect. I can see this being better fresher