Bam Biere

Bam Biere
Jolly Pumpkin
Farmhouse Ale
4.5% ABV
750 ml bottled 2-23-2011, drank 03-28-2012. Poured into a wine glass.

    Very clear, brilliant golden colored with abundant effervescence. I suspected that the head won't last but I was wrong. Aroma is very reminiscent of 3F Oude Gueuze to me, with extra sweetness perhaps. Cellar and basement funk... intriguing.

    Taste is almost a polar opposite of what I was expecting... the aroma was so close to Gueuze that I was already tasting dry sourness in my head, of which there's none in this beer. Not right now anyway. The taste is funky, yes, but without the tartness. A clean bitterness that I sometimes associate with pilsners and saisons, except that it's very mild... in fact I wouldn't have called it bitter had I not been expecting tartness. Apple, certainly. Obscure hints of grape peel. What else? Not much of anything... like a dry white wine but diluted in taste?! I have been fishing for interesting notes because this is a craft beer and what not but I am having a hard time telling it from... let's drop that.

    Mouthfeel is bursting with carbonation on a light body. Very dry and cleansing without being abrasive. Seems like an ideal companion for foods it can stack up to.

    I have been typing my thoughts as I drink and read about it... just found out that it's 4.5% ABV as opposed to the 8% I had stuck in my head. Now it is starting to make a far better impression on me. Also, the warmth is helping. Let's get this straight... this beer highlights the yeast and everything else takes a back seat. Now that it's almost room temperature, and I am burping Gueuze, it's beginning to grow on me. The grape peel character is much stronger and it's getting well into the white wine territory from the diluted white wine territory. There's a welcome astringency at the end although I can't say if it's the acid or the tannins. The mouthfeel carries the flavors excellently and I find it amusing that it was bland to me about 10 minutes ago. Long story short, I am loving it. However, I feel the need to add that the low ABV has influenced my scores significantly. I mean, this is no Fantome, not even close.

4.5, 4, 4, 4.5, 4