Draught@Šnekutis, Old Town, Vilnius
Hazy orange-amber color, small white head. Aroma of green beans, bread and alcohol. Medium-bodied. Flavor of sweet malts, honey, wood and green beans. Aftertaste has lingering woody sweetness and minerally bitterness.

Small white head quickly disappears. Hazy amber body. Fruity herbal walnuts aroma with phenolic oily notes. Dry-sweet herbal dusty walnuts taste with phenolic fruity notes. Full-bodied. Mealy soft faintly hot mouthfeel. Dry herbal hoppy syrupy walnut aftertaste with peppery floral notes. Excellent! Really unusual, harmonic, and scarily drinkable. Very complex. I’ve had this beer at least 10 times by now, and it always keeps presenting new facets of flavour. I love this beer.

It should be added that this is not your average beer. It’s a raw ale, for one thing, meaning the wort is never boiled, as is normal for farmhouse ale, both in Lithuania and elsewhere. The yeast is the family yeast, which DNA sequencing indicates is unique. (Draft at all three Snekutises, bottled from Bambalyne, and probably more places I can’t remember right now.)

First rating: Small white head doesn’t last. Hazy deep yellow body. Light mealy floral aroma with papery honey notes. Dry-sweet honey and spice taste with mealy fruity notes. Oily, thick body. Dusty almost cloying mouthfeel. Dry-sweet aftertaste is much the same. Lacking in complexity, but full of honey flavour. Not bad, but could use a bit more freshness. Too sweet, really. (0.33l draft at Šnekutis Old Town, Vilnius.) 5,4,6,3,12=3.0

Second rating: Small white head doesn’t last. Hazy brown body. Fruity phenolic aroma with honey and sugar notes, quite complex. Dry-sweet caramelly vinuous linoleum aroma with fruity phenolic notes. Mid-bodied. Strange semi-astringent mouthfeel, quite flat. Dry-sweet earthy dusty honey aftertaste with oily fruity notes. A very unusual beer, but outstanding when in good shape. (1l PET bottle, gift from the brewery.) 6,4,7,3,14=3.4

(Draught at Alaus Namai, Vilnius) Poured light brown and cloudy. Head was medium sized and white. Aroma contained malts, hops and butter. Palate was medium bodied and dry with medium carbonation. Flavours were malts, molasses, bitterness, mildly roastedness and bitterness. Aftertaste was bitter.

Draught at Alus Namai, Vilnius (as Jovaru Kaimiškas Alus.). Cloudy deep golden, small head. herbal and fairly sweet, creamy and mildly fruity. Low carbonation gives the already soft malt character an extra cushion. Lots of ripe fruits, but fairly low on hops and bitterness.

(Draught at Šnekutis in Vilnius, Lithuania)On May 1, 2008Shady copper color, white head. Subtle sweet scent. Sweet, acidic, bitter taste. Moussy mouthfeel, high bitterness.