Les Deux Brasseurs - Golden Ale

This was a gift from a friend of mine, and I've finally got around to uncorking the bottle. The title comes from the fact that this is a joint project between Jason Perkins, brewmaster of Allagash Brewing, and Dirk Naudts, brewmaster of De Proef Brouweri. It's billed as a golden ale fermented with multiple stains of brettanomyces yeast. Using this yeast seems to be tricky as the results seem to vary widely between palates on beers made with it. (Though Victory's Wild Devil from the bottle was roundly considered by me and my friends to be inferior to the Hop Devil from which it is derived.)

The beer pours cloudy (as one would expect with the yeast) and is yellowish orange in the glass. (I used a 16 oz shaker for the present session.) A somewhat floral nose which belies the yeast used in the fermentation. The taste is yeasty with a pungency that one normally doesn't find in a golden ale. Also, the taste is a bit darker on the front of the palate, which makes the beer much more appealing, as a more typical lighter taste would make the beer pretty unenjoyable, as the astringency of the yeast would overpower the malts. As it is, the two are very well balanced. It's one of the few beers I've had where the brett actually works. That said, I doubt I could drink this all the time, but I'd not mind having one every now and again. Recommended for adventurous palates.

Serving size: 22oz bottle

Allagash Brewing Company, De Proefbrouwerij

Founders Cerise (Cherry Fermented Ale)

This offering comes from Founders Brewing Co in Michigan, makers of the renowned Breakfast Stout. It pours a dark pink, with little to no head, and very nearly opaque. The cherry taste predominates in this beer, but it's not so overpowering as to call it medicinal. It is quite light on the palate, though at 6.5% it is reaching the limits of what I would call a session beer. Also too, I'm not sure, due the fruitiness of the beer, I'd want to drink more than one or maybe two in a session. That said, it is clean, crisp and refreshing - perfect for showing people an example of what beer can be. Recommended for adventurous palates and those who like fruitier beers.

Serving: 12oz bottle

Founders Brewing Company