Buzzards Bay Barrel Aged Cranberry Lambic

[newportstorm]

Came out last weekend. Only 250 bottles available, and only at the brewery. $12.95/750ml. Selling fast. Still some left, but with their Holiday Fest event coming up on Saturday 12/2, it may not last much longer.

From their press release:
"The world’s foremost cranberry region is our very own South Coast. Thus, we had to brew this beer and indeed, we’ve been a little cran-crazy here at Buzzards Bay Brewing. We brewed a special batch of black lager and barrel aged it in a Cabernet Sauvignon soaked French oak barrel (from the Nevers region) for 12 months. During that time the lactic bacteria (already in the barrel) fermented the remaining sugar and created a deliciously dry and somewhat sour beer. We took some South Coast cranberries fresh from the bog, crushed them and added them to the brew. The cranberries added not only a delightful cranberry aroma and mouth-watering tartness, but also a wonderful red hue. Bottle conditioned, this is a very tasty, tart, South Coast rendition of the traditional lambic style. As this is a natural beverage - unfiltered, unfined and naturally carbonated, expect yeasty stuff as well as bits and pieces of real fruit to be floating around. Great for Thanksgiving! Yeah! Drink now or age for 1 to 5 years."

[sundontlie]

that sounds very very good.
if anyone can get their hands on one i'm definately in for a trade and/or pay dearly for it. just p.m. me please...

[chazwicke]

Capitol City Shirlington just did a Brettanomyce (sp) brew called Sour Puss. It was very good and not as tart as I had expected. I've had similar brews from Allegash and Russian River. I applaud those brewers who are even willing to have that yeast strain in their breweries. I took a growler of the Sour Puss home. It was a nice brew.

[newportstorm]

Originally posted by sundontlie
that sounds very very good.
if anyone can get their hands on one i'm definately in for a trade and/or pay dearly for it. just p.m. me please...

Long gone.

First batch came out before Turkey Day and was gone by mid-December. They did a second bottling (very small - 70 bottles?) and it lasted less than 2 weeks.
I bought 15 bottles total to trade around and asked if they had any stragglers just this past weekend. Nope.

They will be making more for next year. Beer has already been transferred to the barrels. I assume it will be finished when the cranberry harvest happens.

They will have a Farmhouse Ale available later this year.
Got sketchy details on it.
Aging in French Oak (formerly help Cabernet?) right now and will be "green hopped" (assuming shortly after the fall hop harvest).
If I get more solid info on a release date, price, etc., I'll post here.

[newportstorm]

Originally posted by chazwicke
Capitol City Shirlington just did a Brettanomyce (sp) brew called Sour Puss. It was very good and not as tart as I had expected. I've had similar brews from Allegash and Russian River. I applaud those brewers who are even willing to have that yeast strain in their breweries. I took a growler of the Sour Puss home. It was a nice brew.

Heard from someone else this beer was a disappointment. TETO.
Not sour at all. Compared it to Cherry 7-up with a hint of Brett?

Heard some good early feedback on this one from Russian River:
http://www.russianriverbrewing.com/pages/beers/compunction.html

Fruit is faint, but a solid beer. Love being able to order their brew online, too.

Cheers!

[chazwicke]

The Sour Puss was much milder than I had expected. But it did have a tartness. I'm no 7 UP fan so I can't compare but there was no sweetness. It just was not as tart as say a Rodenbach. I had it on recommendation from a rival brewer who recommended it on DC - Beer. I met him later that day and thanked him for the recommendation. Cap City made another beer called Fruitcake that was made with 3 or 4 different kinds of berries and it was very sweet. Perhaps this is the beer you heard about.

[newportstorm]

Originally posted by chazwicke
The Sour Puss was much milder than I had expected. But it did have a tartness. I'm no 7 UP fan so I can't compare but there was no sweetness. It just was not as tart as say a Rodenbach. I had it on recommendation from a rival brewer who recommended it on DC - Beer. I met him later that day and thanked him for the recommendation. Cap City made another beer called Fruitcake that was made with 3 or 4 different kinds of berries and it was very sweet. Perhaps this is the beer you heard about.

Nope. It was the Sour Puss. The name stuck with me when he mentioned it.
He also tried it on recommendations from others - including a brewer.
He simply didn't like it and was sorry to go home with an empty growler.
Different strokes...

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by newportstorm

Different strokes...

You bet. I was talking to another local brewer last night and he said he does not like Rodenbach. I told him I'm a big fan. Especially the Old Grand Cru. The Sour Puss is not nearly as tart as that. I liked it.

[sundontlie]

nothing like reviving an old dead thread... i didn't realize